Vlad Slyusarenko told GBC Time journalists about the impact of the crises of recent years on the gambling industry, the adaptation of a gambling company to changing market conditions, methods of brand promotion, promising regions, and directions in iGaming.
Tell us how the crises of recent years have affected you: the COVID-19 pandemic, the military conflict between Russia and Ukraine?
Any crisis is always an opportunity to reevaluate one’s activities, to look at it from a new angle. I am a supporter of the idea that it is in moments of crisis that a company can make quantum leaps, it is at these moments that changes take place at the “genetic” level, which helps to get stronger and focus on really important things.
In this regard, in the context of our company, forced to shift the focus from exhibitions to bright marketing, we were able to use the corona crisis as a moment of very deep work on our products and improvements. We came out of the crisis much stronger and ready to conquer new heights.
With regard to the military conflict, this issue, of course, turned out to be much more difficult for us than any other crisis, and indeed any other problem in general. Many Ukrainians work in our company, and we all experienced and are experiencing everything that happens together.
Not so long ago, we launched a charitable foundation – betongood.foundation, which is aimed at uniting efforts within the gaming industry market and focusing these efforts on supporting Ukraine. Last week, our founder Petr Korpusenko made a presentation on the fund at the SBC Awards, the speech was very enthusiastically received by the audience, and we received a lot of support.
As far as we know, a significant part of TVBET employees was in Ukraine at the beginning of the war. Have you managed to set up workflows with this factor in mind now? Maybe you had to help the team with relocation or cut some of the staff?
We have several offices, one of them, the main one, is located in Poland. And yes, we did our best to ensure that our Ukrainian colleagues could comfortably go through the relocation and be safe. However, many of my colleagues are still working in Ukraine. In particular, I am now answering your questions while in our Kyiv office, watching from the window as the cloudy autumn comes.
As for the downsizing, by no means, on the contrary, we are growing and are very glad to have new proactive people in our team.
How is your company adapting to the changing market environment? And is it generally possible to cope with the challenges posed by crises?
We have been in this market for a long time, we understand it well, and we feel the trends and trends well. In this regard, it has always been possible to stay on the wave and make the right decisions that help us and our partners grow.
What are the main promotion methods used by TVBET to make the brand recognizable in different markets?
For many, exhibitions are very important for us. The importance of this format cannot be underestimated. We try to take part in the top events, we always approach the issue of creating a stand in advance and in great detail. We just returned from SBC Summit Barcelona, getting ready for November at Sigma Malta, and then at ICE London 2023.
An exhibition is always a direct communication with market representatives. You exchange energy, feel each other, and convey your advantages and opportunities much better than in a conditional email newsletter.
Also, personally, I always pay a lot of attention to design and social networks. As for me, it is extremely important that the brand itself lives its active life, looks interesting and modern, creates new meanings, set new trends. I love the way TVBET looks on social media. We manage to make a really bright and interesting story!
In your opinion, which regions are the most promising for the development of iGaming today?
You know, the question is quite extensive and it is difficult to answer it concisely and briefly. Different companies have different products and benefits, different approaches and views on the market. In this regard, it is always difficult to give some kind of universal advice, especially in our industry.
The same is true for consumer markets: somewhere now keno is trending, somewhere poker has been trending for decades, somewhere people want more bright elements and movement, somewhere they appreciate simple rules and statics.
Perhaps the universal advice is that you should clearly understand who your main client or group of clients is, how they play your games and what they feel, what they like in your games, and what, on the contrary, can annoy them. The process of user interaction with your product, you know, as they say, should go like clockwork. Nothing should distract him from a comfortable and interesting game.
What are the most promising areas in iGaming today and which ones, in your opinion, will come to the fore in 2024?
You know, very soon we are preparing a pool of rather voluminous and definitely very interesting changes within TVBET. For those who like to look for cause-and-effect relationships, our changes will be the answer to your question.
How do you think the iGaming industry and the gambling content developer market will change in 2024? In general, what are TVBET’s goals for 2024?
It is difficult, of course, to speak for everyone. Interestingly, after the SBC Barcelona exhibition, I can note that the market has definitely revived and is gradually returning to its former tracks in external communications. We talked with colleagues from other companies and I understand that COVID-19 will definitely leave its mark on the event industry for a very long time. Many companies are no longer going to use events as widely as a tool, reducing this direction to some more acceptable limits. Nevertheless, everyone I have seen presents themselves vividly and dynamically, looking for new forms, and rethinking the old ones. It is always interesting to watch such a process, especially when you have been on the market for a long time.
If we talk about games and products, then in general the market is already changing and will continue to change towards mobile devices. Players are increasingly choosing to play and bet from their smartphones with fast mobile internet. Moreover, the fact that there are much more smartphones than computers is becoming more and more noticeable. So, one of the most visible and expected trends in the further growth and powerful development of mobile gambling.
And if we talk about ourselves, then we are not afraid to say that our plans are Napoleonic. Now we are breaking all records in terms of the number of players, we are actively developing our keno direction, which has really become our big hit. As I said above, we are actively developing a charitable foundation and helping Ukraine. Well, we are preparing a lot of interesting things for the very near future.
And most importantly – support Ukraine and always bet only for good! In our new and unpredictable world, following the good is the right decision.
