Soft2Bet: “Balancing the user experience with stringent RG measures is challenging”

Casino Guru News has caught up with Soft2Bet, one of the shortlisted companies for the Best Implementation of Responsible Gambling Tools category, part of the Casino Guru Awards 2024. Soft2Bet goes into detail to explain how platform and software providers such as the company can play a pivotal role in ensuring that responsible gambling safeguards and measures are implemented in a way that balances the user experience and increasingly demanding criteria for protecting players. Dive into the full interview with Soft2Bet below to find out more about the company’s process in upholding impeccable responsible gambling safeguards and how it implements them for partners. We spoke with Elisabeth Isaksson, Head of Regulatory and Compliance, to find out more.

Q: Soft2Bet is in a unique position to introduce responsible gambling tools available to partners – do you make a particular point of insisting on the tools being used by partners?

We prioritize the adoption of robust responsible gambling (RG) tools among our partners. It's crucial for us to ensure a consistent and effective approach to player protection across the online sports betting and casino platforms we operate.

We have a lot of in-house expertise with many years of experience in the gambling industry and a good understanding of the research behind the use and effectiveness of RG tools. Our partners rely on our expertise with regard to implementations of technical functionalities and processes, including responsible gambling. We optimize and streamline the player experience as much as possible across our brands, ensuring that it aligns with best practices while still catering to individual brand characteristics.

Our reputation in the industry draws partners to us because of the expertise we have to offer which positions us as a trusted advisor to our partners, guiding them in implementing technical features and processes, particularly those related to responsible gambling. Our tools are well integrated into our RG processes and work together in offering an optimized network of player protection.

Q: What do you think is crucial when integrating RG tools into a gaming platform – in other words how do we know that an RG would not just be a "token" but actually drive meaningful results?

We focus on comprehensive tools that promote player education, self-exclusion options, and real-time monitoring. Genuine commitment and user engagement are essential to drive meaningful results in responsible gambling practices. The offering of tools and information onsite, needs to work in tandem with the tools and processes implemented in the background to monitor and interact with players.

We also think that clarity is crucial in the implementation of responsible gambling tools. We aim to present these tools in a manner that players can easily understand and utilize effectively.

This involves clear, concise descriptions of the tools onsite, including the FAQ sections, and the availability of well-trained customer service representatives to assist as needed. Ensuring that players can fully leverage these tools is crucial to maximizing their effectiveness and promoting responsible gaming.

Q: Speaking of making sure RG tools work, what specific challenges have given you the most trouble addressing when looking to ensure that your tools actually work?

Balancing user experience with stringent responsible gambling measures is challenging. Striking the right balance to prevent harm while maintaining an enjoyable gaming environment requires continuous refinement and adaptation of our tools. Our responsible gambling processes are continuously evolving and reviewed for efficiency.

Player activity is continuously monitored both to identify patterns that might need to be addressed, but also to see if tool usage has an effect on player behavior and gaming patterns.

For any tools implemented onsite, we have a QA team in place to carefully test any functionalities prior to implementation, and continuously monitor such functionalities giving them priority in trouble-shooting processes to make sure any potential incidents are addressed in a timely manner.

Q: How do you decide to improve an RG tool – and how often does this happen?

Regular assessments on effectiveness, feedback from users, and advancements in technology guide our decisions to enhance RG tools. Continuous improvement is ingrained in our strategy, ensuring our tools evolve to address emerging challenges and align with the latest industry standards.

A lot of our focus until now has been on making sure responsible gambling tools are well described and easy to find and use. We continuously review our sites and offerings, including responsible gambling solutions, from a UX perspective and as part of our ongoing Responsible Gambling procedures to find areas of improvement.

There are also certain restraints one needs to take into account when considering changes to player limits onsite, taking into account regulatory requirements but also making sure changes do not confuse players who are used to a particular implementation, so any such changes have to be carried out with care.

Q: Where do you see there is clear room for improvement in your offer of RG tools?

We always listen to our players, and welcome any suggestions on improvements from them, but I think collecting more player feedback, to get more of an in-depth understanding of their experience of our Responsible Gambling solutions could greatly aid. We are actively exploring innovations in predictive analytics and personalized interventions to further strengthen our RG tools.

Continuous research and development are essential to stay ahead of evolving player needs and industry expectations. There has been a surge over the past years in third party solutions that offer responsible gambling tools and it is an area we are closely monitoring at the moment, to review improvements we can make ourselves and potential new partnerships aside from the ones we already have.

Q: Has the Casino Guru Awards made you more aware about the importance of RG tools and do you think improvements were made because of this format?

I believe we have an existing strong awareness of responsible gambling within the organization, in particular in the teams that work with this area directly, but any such initiative helps raise further awareness within the organization at large, emphasizing the importance of placing focus on responsible gambling.

Participating in this format encourages continuous self-assessment and motivates us to elevate our standards, leading additional improvements in our responsible gambling initiatives.

Q: What has motivated you to sign up for the ceremony and what do you hope to gain as a result of your participation and potentially winning the awards?

Our motivation stems from a commitment to excellence in responsible gambling. Soft2Bet is a relatively new challenger in the industry and it is our aim to highlight the effort and focus we put into responsible gambling to ensure a solid base of responsible conduct.

Winning this award would not only demonstrate our strong commitment to responsible gambling to the industry, but also further ignite our passion for ongoing improvement in this area.

Participating in the ceremony offers us a platform to showcase our dedication, learn from industry peers, and potentially winning an award would validate our efforts, inspiring us to continually raise the bar for responsible gaming practices.

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