Q&A - James Garmston, CEO, Easyodds

eGaming Review (eGR): How important is strong content within the affiliate space?

James Garmston (JG): I think the correlation between content and betting is huge, both from a consumer point of view but also in terms of the opportunity of betting within content as well. The big advantage to affiliates is that they can offer independence on views, tips, form and odds. We live in a world where people are after an independent view along with value – look at the model of something like gocompare.com. People know the brands behind what they’re going in for, love the fact that they’re comparing the brands and then they’re actually getting a deal, so from that side of things odds comparison will always be a strong business but also a relatively easy-to-enter business as well. Where the challenge for affiliates is now is differentiation from one another – I think historical relationships are key – but we also need to look at giving bookmakers as much exposure as possible and that comes by giving them as big an audience as possible, and that point comes by giving the users the best experience possible.

Bookmakers can spend a lot of time doing content and never be whole-heartedly trusted – if you’re writing an article, tip or preview or writing something on your Facebook or Twitter page that actually references more than 1 bookmaker within the piece, the user’s perception instantly is independence and integrity.

eGR: Is brand loyalty, if not brand strength, creeping into the affiliate world?

JG: I think naturally it would do and will do. You can see that with certain types of media only wanting to have only certain opportunities on offer and not seen to be having allegiances with a particular bookmaker therefore a B2B comparison solution is a strong one.

Branding will become more dominant – I think it has to – I think for us Easyodds does what it says on the tin but we could just as easily be called EasyBet – what we’re trying to aim for is to have a whole experience where the whole thing is easy. The most important thing for operators at the moment is new customers and the new generation is one that knows what they want while the other brands that interact with them know what to give them. We need to be in a position where we know our audience very well and we can give them what they want; where we can also see what we’re giving them and how we’re giving it to them.

Then we can begin a process where both in terms of the content we offer and also from a technical point of view the most beneficial experience, so if they’re on the mobile and like a certain spectrum of sports we can offer them the right service and the right space and continue to talk to them – then we’re talking about value and information that we can pass onto the bookmakers.

eGR: Do you think anyone in the affiliate space has really cracked mobile?

JG: No, and I think the biggest challenge to offer a decent mobile service is in-app betting. There are a couple of great examples of that with singular bookmakers but it’s a hard process to take an external party and put it in as an in-app betting solution to a mobile platform. So you’ve got two options – you have the web mobile which will recognise whatever the device is that’s plugged in and deliver it in the most appropriate way to give the right look for an iPhone, Android, and so on, and then of course you have the apps themselves, but the point at which they really come into their own is when you can stay within that process. However working within the affiliate world there is a click-out at some point and that is the stumbling block, but it will come.

The 2 biggest things at the moment are mobile and dual screen usage – I think they play very well into the hands of odds comparison because that can instantly invoke debate. Mobile is doable, but the in-app betting is key to that or at least a slick user experience, but it’s very hard work. With in-running on mobile the hitch is getting a feed in and digesting that and turning it around quickly enough that it’s a useful experience and that people aren’t clicking on odds that then become unavailable.

eGR: What are the main challenges that in-running betting presents to affiliates?

JG: In-running is a tricky thing for a single bookmaker to make work effectively – the idea of a comparison service going through there at the required rate is pretty much twice as hard, and so it’s a real challenge for the affiliate world. But then again technology is a beautiful thing – every time something new comes out whether it’s an ipad, a new smartphone or whatever, it creates a great opportunity. It has to be there, and the technology is developing at a rapid enough pace, and now I think the bookmakers need to have a think themselves about how they can start providing it in more usable ways.

I think the balance now is right in the middle, which is where I think all bookmaker-odds comparison relationships should be – it’s a beneficial relationship to both parties and both should meet in the middle both commercially and technically. In the past there hasn’t been as much commitment technically from the bookmakers, with some exceptions, but those who do are going to benefit. And if you think about the new punters who people want and who don’t have previous affiliate accounts, they are most likely to be interested in in-running, and if the bookmakers can get that to us in a better way, the better for them.