Gamingtec CEO: How to build a start-up in the iGaming industry

Sapar Karyagdyyev, Gamingtec CEO, talks to European Gaming about the growth of the company and shares his tips on how to start a business in the iGaming industry.

1. What made you interested in the iGaming field of entertainment?
I had already been working in the iGaming industry for five years when the idea for Gamingteс came about. We started the project in London, in 2013, as part of Offside Gaming. The problem we set out to solve was the slow speed at which new White Label projects were developed and launched. Most B2B companies relied on legacy technologies, which caused delays. It was obvious that only new technologies and a different resource setup could change the speed of the service and launch new projects more quickly. Our speed and efficiency has become our competitive advantage and we work hard to preserve it. We also rely heavily on our partners, as there are a number of tasks that need to be delivered on their side. Therefore, we usually only collaborate with companies that truly understand the iGaming industry and its challenges. Finding the right partner is a crucial part of the working process for us.

2. Can you give any tips to companies that want to start an iGaming business?
To build a fast-growing and profitable project, you should choose the target market very carefully. Realistically assess your capabilities and ensure that the marketing strategy is thought out properly. Choose the most appropriate strategy, according to the country and legislative system: traffic, sponsoring, flyers, TV ads, or even word of mouth.
Whilst developing your company, pay attention to the quality of the team and the company culture. Hiring qualified specialists and looking for enthusiasts that can develop the project is an ongoing process. You will need specialists that not only get the job done, but can offer smart and profitable solutions.

3. What service do you provide to your partners?
Every client and partner requires an individual approach. Sometimes, we provide full turnkey solutions and other times, selected services only. Gamingtec does not develop games or payments. Instead, we find companies that specialise in it and we integrate the best products into our platform. This, in turn, allows us to focus on our core speciality, which is high-quality turnkey product.
That is what we are really good at: we can find the right and the best products, put them together and offer the final solutions that work in the most effective way.

4. Could you describe your clients? Who are they?
Most of our clients are media companies with an access and experience in acquiring customers. By partnering with us, such companies receive tools and solutions that allow us to build a profitable business.
Less often, we work with large affiliate networks; companies that decided to start their own operator businesses. Most of the time, such clients do not take into account operating costs and fail to generate a profit. Our task is to explain all the nuances of operating the business, and the costs and risks involved, so they can implement these into their business model.

5. What do you think about innovations in the betting industry? Is cybersport as promising as many experts say?
Since the last shift towards live betting and faster markets, the sports betting industry has not changed much. This shift happened over five years ago and most of the products in the industry have been commoditised by now. There has been a notable shift in the source of innovation from product providers to operators, which I think, is partly explained by the lack of innovation from product providers. When you are operating in highly competitive conditions with very similar products, you have to find the innovation elsewhere in order to stay competitive and grow.

As for cybersport, I think this is just a new type of product to be offered to customers, in combination with everything else in the portfolio. I do not believe it will be a success on its own. The main audience is underage and, like any other responsible company, we have a duty to protect them from the exposure to gambling.

6. Is there anyone who has impressed you with their approach to business? Who is an example for you? 
I really like Amazon’s approach. They work with third parties, until they develop a similar level of expertise and then launch their own versions. This approach allows them to offer clients a good level of service to start with and then they can take it to the next level by perfecting the process with an in-house solution. For instance, at the very beginning, goods from Amazon in the UK were delivered by Royal Mail. Gradually, the company built its own delivery system. The results are amazing: same-day delivery, weekend delivery and higher margins, perhaps.

7. What principles do you follow when developing Gamingtec?

I follow our code of conduct principles: celebrate diversity and create opportunities for all specialists, regardless of their age, gender, or nationality. In particular, during the last two years we have increased the number of female employees, from 10% to 36%. When we hire people, we look at their competences and skills, not their gender, or religion. However, age diversity is a challenge that we are yet to tackle.

When it comes to our offices, we try to facilitate teamwork and find channels of communication between employees. To build a cohesive team, we hold team-building activities. I really like the framework developed by Patrick Lencioni, which he describes in his book, ‘5 Dysfunctions of a team’. This framework enables employees to work through five distinct problematic areas: trust, conflict, commitment, accountability, and results. It is a never-ending process through which we strive to achieve transparent and honest communication. I believe that our company should be a place where employees trust each other, are open to discussions and debates, are ready to commit to decisions and assign responsibilities and, of course, accomplish significant goals for our company, as well.