When ranking online operators, whether sportsbooks or casinos; several factors are considered. If it’s a casino, such factors include the Return-To-Player (RTP) of slots and live games. For an online sportsbook, things looked out for include the available markets and the odds.
However, while these factors are exclusive to casinos or sportsbooks, there is one that applies to both. This factor is equally as important as all the others mentioned above but tends to be overlooked by a number of operators. This universal factor is language; that is, the languages in which the operator offers its content.
NOTE: Language is very important because it determines who the target market is. Where an online operator contains the best offers, if the content is not offered in an understandable language, then it will be unable to penetrate a certain market.
In the world today, there are over 195 countries. One amazing fact about each is there are several languages spoken by inhabitants within each country. The importance of these cannot be overemphasized as they are the means through which individuals communicate and understand each other.
Language Options on Operators’ sites
In order for online gambling operators to spread their tentacles and acquire even more customers, it is important to exploit the use of languages to their advantage. Currently, most operators offer content on their sites in either of these:
1. A site that is exclusive to the country
Here, all the offers are exclusive to the country the site is created for. Hence, there is a general language in which its content is provided. For instance, Betway offers a separate site for players from the UK, compared to the site it offers to players from Nigeria.
Such sites offer their content using a language. So, since in Nigeria, English is generally spoken; the Betway site for Nigerian players is provided in English without any other alternatives.
Another example is 888Casino which offers separate sites for players from different countries. Therefore, accessing 888Casino from UK or Italy offers the site in English or Italian respectively.
2. General sites open to players from across the world
These are sites that serve players from across the world. They offer their content in multiple languages. It is common to see options like English, Spanish, German, Italian on such gambling sites.
A good example of an operator using such a site is 1xBet. Upon logging onto the site, there is a language section at the top right corner of the screen. This site offers a large number of options numbering up to sixty-one languages.
The issue with the Current Language Options
While it is commendable that operators attempt to create exclusive sites and offer multiple language options, there is still more that can be done. A careful perusal of these sites indicates that the options are languages generally spoken across different countries. Hence, upon logging into a site like Cloudbet, a South African player is presented with its content in English and no other indigenous options like Zulu or Ndebele to select from.
The problem with the current system used is it is not all-encompassing. This is because it targets only the official language speakers in these countries within Africa, and leaves out others within the countries. This tends to cause operators to be at a loss because their markets do not reach the indigenous language speakers, leaving out a chunk of possible online casino players and sports bettors.
Language in Africa using Nigeria as a case study
We have focused on Nigeria as our case study due to the ethnic and language differences within this sub-Saharan African country. This will help to portray how important it is for online operators to provide content in other language options.
The country’s official language is English. However, it will be self-deceit to claim that English is spoken by all its inhabitants. Citizens who make up the country are very diverse and speak their own different tongues.
In the country, the current population stands at over 206 million persons. And amongst this really large number of persons, there are over 250 ethnic groups which come with their own tongues and dialects.
Some of the prominent ones include Yoruba, Igbo, Hausa, Ijaw, Tiv, Edo, Igala amongst so many others which are up to about five hundred in all. Although the majority speak English, about 13.58% of persons are not English speakers within the country. In terms of percentages, this might not appear much, but considering the population of the country, it is. The mathematics sums up to about 27 million persons.
How language has been used to target more customers
A good example of proper exploitation of native tongues has been displayed by service providers within the country. These service providers ensure their services can be accessed in the native languages and also provide commercials in indigenous tongues.
This benefits both the customers and the service providers. For the customers, there is a better understanding of the content being advertised. While for the service providers, their outreach to even more customers is extended.
How Online Operators can extend outreach through Native Languages
The ways operators can properly ensure their services reach even these non-English speaking populations within these countries include:
1. Providing services in the top alternative languages
With the number of languages in these countries, it is definitely impossible to provide content in each of them. However, operators should provide content in major indigenous ones.
For instance, in Nigeria, operators targeting Nigerian players should also provide their services in Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa. This is because these languages are spoken by a large number of persons within the country.
Statistics of these language speakers are as follows: Hausa (30.9%) Yoruba (17.4%) Igbo (9.5%) NOTE: that this does not mean some of these are not also English speakers.
2. Encouraging customers to make use of Google Translate
Online operators should encourage users to make use of Google Translate on their sites. This might be less expensive for the operators but not as convenient for their customers as the first option mentioned above.
Google Translate offers up to 109 languages across the world. Hence, operators should enlighten users on how to install Google Translate as an extension on their PCs. However, this might prove difficult for mobile gamblers. Hence, the best option would be for the operators to provide more native language options on their sites.
Putting these into effect will benefit operators as an extended outreach means more customers and ultimately, more profit for operators.