Industry News

Betinvest levels the odds with customer support training

Published

5 years ago

August 5, 2019

Betinvest levels the odds with customer support training

Reading Time: 3 minutes

As the wider international gaming marketplace grows and the number of businesses on the scene increases, it’s more important than ever to position a strong customer support staff at the forefront of your brand according to Valentyn Kyrylenko VP of Business Development at Betinvest. Whether it’s allocating resource across the myriad of communication methods or liaising with VIPs, a good old fashioned customer service department is a key part of a customer’s journey even in today’s digital age…

If customers are not satisfied with level of the support they receive, it can be a reason for changing the bookmaker.
All customer communication with the company goes through the customer service team. This department is the only point of contact with players. Various platforms and the odds betting companies offer can be more or less the same, so customer support could be a crucial factor while choosing the operator.
Therefore, customer care is a key part of a customer’s journey, which plays an integral part in forming their impression of a business.

Nowadays, taking an ‘omnichannel’ approach and interacting with players through the channel of their choice is an essential part of any customer support department. On top of that self-service is increasingly replacing direct contact in gambling industry.
The way that customers interact with businesses is changing all over the world. Whereas previously customers would be more inclined to get in touch with a company via telephone, nowadays they prefer to do so via various messenger services. This does not, however, mean that companies need to move away from the telephone completely, as those who have a poor messaging experience as well as most of betting shops customers still do prefer to pick up the phone.
For this exact reason, every customer support department needs to adopt a holistic approach which allows customers to get in touch via telephone, email, online chat or messenger.
Another key trend is companies’ desire to automise aspects of the customer support process. Automisation is great for dealing with common requests as they can be resolved instantly. This is a win-win situation for both companies and customers, as the customer doesn’t have to wait for a solution and the company doesn’t need to use any resources to provide one.
In addition to the above, it’s also crucial to ensure the entire history of customers’ requests is recorded so that when a customer speaks to a different advisor there is no need for them to explain their problem again, as the advisor is already aware of their issue.

Whilst every customer service department may be organized differently depending on the needs and size of a business, they must fulfil the same core duties.
So, let’s say there are five different levels of customer support, the first of which is front-line customer support, which usually deals with 80% of typical enquiries. They can be unable to deal with around 20% of customers’ requests as they may lack the required knowledge or access to information. This is where second-line support, who liaise with other departments, step in to provide an answer to a client’s enquiry.
Companies with ambitious goals might also consider having a retention team to deal with churn and VIP team to ensure special care and seamless experience for the most demanding clients.
Finally, quality assurance managers are the last, but by no means least, important link in the structural chain, as they monitor how customer service advisors interact (both during calls and in writing) with clients in order to improve the standard of service.
In small companies and start-ups, employees may be required to fulfil a number of the roles listed above. For instance, a team leader may also perform the duties of a quality assurance manager and an advisor can also perform a retention manager’s functions as well.

Whilst you can use the latest technology, there still needs to be someone who’s happy to help at the other end of the line.
The core of any customer support is its team, which should be built around those who love other people with a strong sense of empathy.

When you start your business, it’s important to be prepared to deal with customers’ requests.
Betinvest offers and runs a training programme for managers and customer support workers for its B2B clients, after which they return to their companies and impart the knowledge gained to their customer service advisors. Moreover, we always can run a course again or provide extra courses at the client’s request. It is a part of our clients’ service philosophy.

Industry News

SKS365 keeps investing in people: GROW People Management Program took the next level

Published

10 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Peter Tolan

Reading Time: < 1 minute

11 experienced people managers from the SKS365 group’s 4 locations gathered last week in Belgrade for the new GROW People Management Program. From 15 th to 19 th of April, through trainings, discussions, and social connections, people had the opportunity to further grow individually and as a team, while enjoying Belgrade’s city center and rivers.

Created in 2023 with the purpose of building foundation people management skills across the organization, GROW initiative evolved this year by including a new, advanced program for experienced people managers to further consolidate their skills and prepare for future opportunities.

Building and fostering connections, sharing experiences, and enjoying team building experiences – all these activities have been part of the GROWpmp agenda for the 11 people managers coming from Commercial, Product and Development, Finance, and Sportsbook departments of the group’s 4 locations – Malta, Italy, Austria, Serbia.

GROWpmp included a variety of topics that people managers in SKS365 recognized as the key areas for management development. Topics such as influence through communication, team effectiveness, DEI, through to presentation skills and business topics like understanding finance and management reporting, were delivered with the support of external professionals and internal experts, while designed and organized by the SKS365 People & Culture team.

Industry News

Kindred’s Share of Revenue from High-risk Players Shows Slight Increase

Published

20 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: < 1 minute

Kindred Group plc’s (Kindred) share of revenue from high-risk players showed a slight increase to 3.2% (Q4 2023 3.1%) in the first quarter of 2024. Compared to the first quarter of 2023, the high-risk revenue share decreased marginally. The percentage of detected customers who exhibited improved behaviour after interventions came in at 87.1% (compared to 87.4% in Q4 2023 and 83.0% in Q1 2023). This sustained trajectory in the improvement effect after interventions, observed over an extended period, serves as a testament to the strong dedication and collective efforts throughout the company. It reflects Kindred’s ongoing commitment to fostering positive change within the industry.

“We continue to see our share of revenue from high-risk players fluctuate quarter to quarter, and we are working closely with all teams across the company to support customers towards a more sustainable gambling experience. However, it is encouraging to see that our Journey towards Zero data has steadily decreased since 2020. A similar trend can be seen across the healthier gambling behaviour effect after interventions. This tells us two things: our work is paying off, but we need to continue to push ourselves to propel a sustainable progression,” Alexander Westrell, Director of Communications at Kindred Group, said.

“It was very encouraging to witness the open and transparent discussions at the Sustainable Gambling Conference in London on 20 March, where those with lived experience shared their important stories. Also, it is evident that technology is moving forward, and will provide greater opportunities to detect and intervene in the future. We hope to see more regulators engage with the industry and with experts to secure a more sustainable industry for everyone,” Alexander Westrell added.

Industry News

PENN Entertainment Names Aaron LaBerge as Chief Technology Officer

Published

21 hours ago

April 24, 2024

Niji Narayan

Reading Time: 2 minutes

PENN Entertainment announced that Aaron LaBerge has been named Chief Technology Officer (CTO) effective July 1, 2024, subject to customary regulatory approvals. Mr. LaBerge will report directly to PENN CEO & President Jay Snowden.

In his new role, Mr. LaBerge will be responsible for driving the technology strategy and execution for PENN, while leading the multinational team of technologists and serving as the key business leader for the company’s Interactive division.

Mr. LaBerge spent more than 20 years at The Walt Disney Company, in two stints separated by five and a half years as a technology entrepreneur. He was most recently President & Chief Technology Officer for Disney Entertainment and ESPN where he was responsible for driving all technology and product development in support of The Walt Disney Company’s two media divisions. In that role, he helped set the vision and strategic leadership for how Disney uses technology to enable storytelling and innovation, drive its business, and create unparalleled consumer experiences with entertainment and sports content.

“We are thrilled to have someone of Aaron’s caliber join our PENN executive team. Having overseen a global organization of thousands of engineers, product developers, designers, technologists, and data scientists that created some of the largest scale and most successful media properties in the world, there is no better candidate to lead our Technology and Interactive division into its future. I know Aaron is looking forward to working with Todd George, our head of operations, and our entire Executive Team to continue growing our position as a leader in online gaming, sports betting, and digital sports media,” Mr. Snowden said.

“I’m excited to join another talented team at PENN Interactive and lead our technology strategy. PENN Entertainment is at the forefront of the fast-changing gaming and sports media industry. I plan to use my experience from Disney and ESPN to help make ESPN BET an essential piece of the sports fan experience. Together, we’ll push the limits and redefine how fans interact with sports and gaming,” Mr. LaBerge said.

Prior to his most recent role at the Walt Disney Company, Mr. LaBerge was Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at ESPN from 2015 to 2018. At ESPN he played an instrumental role in the growth of ESPN’s consumer-facing digital media products and services – leading many of ESPN’s most ambitious and challenging projects and helping establish ESPN’s position as the leader in digital sports and innovative sports technology development. He was a key architect in the design, development, and engineering of ESPN’s state-of-the-art facilities in Bristol, CT; Los Angeles, CA; Charlotte, NC; and Austin, TX, as well as data centers and infrastructure that connect those facilities around the world, as well as the technology design and development to support the launch of the multi-platform SEC Network.

Between 2007 and 2012, LaBerge was co-founder and CEO of Fanzter, Inc. – a venture-funded consumer software and digital product development company. At Fanzter, he directed all day-to-day operations and led the development and launch of a variety of consumer-focused internet and mobile products, ground-breaking social and commerce technologies and more.