Adam Baylis of Smarkets: Building Winning Brands In Highly Regulated Industries & Turning Data into Dollars

In this episode of "CMO Weekly," host Hayley Clover interviews Adam Baylis, Marketing Director at Smarkets, the company behind SBK and the Smarkets exchange. Adam shares his extensive background in the gaming space, having worked at Patty Power Betfair, and The Jockey Club, which has given him a deep understanding of brand growth in a highly regulated industry.

The discussion covers several key areas:

Evolution of the Gaming Space: Adam highlights the significant changes in the industry, particularly the increased regulation in the UK market, including affordability checks, which differ from the less regulated US market.

Challenges and Strategy at Smarkets: He explains how Smarkets, being sports betting-only, is impacted differently by regulations compared to other operators. A large portion of their user base consists of "match betters" who take advantage of other bookmakers' offers, which can trigger more affordability checks due to the sizable bankrolls required.

Storytelling and Niche Markets: Adam discusses how Smarkets, a data-savvy brand, has historically found a significant acquisition source in political and current affairs betting, a space that has been "business as usual" for them in the UK for a long time, unlike its current buzzy status in the US. He notes that while Smarkets embraces political betting, their SBK product is more geared towards traditional recreational sports betting.

Marketing Strategy Post-COVID: Adam explains the shift from traditional "through the line" marketing (like linear TV) pre-COVID to a greater focus on performance marketing post-COVID, leveraging advancements like Google's Performance Max.

Community-First Approach and Partnerships: He emphasizes the importance of community-driven environments and sport partnerships, citing a successful collaboration with Hibernian, a Scottish football team, which significantly boosted customer acquisition in specific areas of Scotland. This local, community-focused strategy helps Smarkets, as a startup without the budget of larger competitors, gain "share of wallet" and brand buy-in.

Product USPs: Adam highlights SBK's commitment to offering best odds and prices, along with a unique in-app price comparison feature that shows when they or other operators have the best price, underscoring their ethical approach. He stresses that Smarkets focuses solely on sports betting, avoiding casino, slots, or bingo, positioning themselves as an "ethical operator" for sports fans.

Professional Growth: Adam advises marketers to "get their hands dirty" and immerse themselves in the product, rather than relying solely on conferences and external agencies. He also discusses the importance of taking customer feedback seriously, as seen in how Smarkets uses app store reviews to influence product roadmap changes.