With SBC Summit Barcelona behind us, the industry got to collect impressions, exchange experiences, and see where they go from here.
Just days before the summit, we talked to Marketing Director at SBC, Dennis Algreen, who had a lot to share. Today, days after the Summit, we talked to him again, and this is where he is at:
Now that the SBC Summit Barcelona is over, we've got to ask - was this industry gathering everything you expected it to be?
We had huge expectations from SBC Summit Barcelona as we were all working towards one main goal — organising the biggest-ever SBC industry event without sacrificing quality. Did we achieve this goal? We absolutely did.
SBC Summit Barcelona exceeded our own expectations, and this is not just our achievement. It is also an achievement of all the exhibitors, sponsors, speakers and delegates who put their faith and time into the event and made the best of it.
Most remarkably, I was thrilled to see the exhibition floor still bustling with delegates when I looked at my watch at around 16:00 on Thursday, the last event day. We have all been to plenty of industry events, and we all know this is rarely the case. Second days are typically slower, and delegates often leave the exhibition floor way earlier. This, to me, was a testament that we did a great job.
Then, of course, I've had some personal chats with the attending exhibitors, sponsors, speakers and delegates, and I couldn't be happier with the feedback. The attendees enjoyed the five-zone concept, as it proved very intuitive, allowing them to spend their time productively and swiftly identify the people and companies they were after.
I also received some very positive feedback on the conference content and the quality of speakers, which was great to hear, as our conference team truly went beyond their limits and brought nearly 400 high-level speakers to the show.
All I have to say is that SBC Summit Barcelona not only delivered on its promises but also show taught us a lot, which means that next year, we will be, once again, coming in stronger and bigger than ever.
For those unsure, give us an insight - how do you come up with the conference content and how do you recruit speakers for your panels?
Thought-provoking conference content is a big part of SBC's success. I would even say that we have a significant edge over the industry's competition regarding the content value we provide.
We have a fantastic conference team that spends a lot of time analysing the trends and the hottest topics in the industry to identify what needs to be addressed at the show.
This time, we had seven stages running simultaneously, and we discussed sports betting, casino, innovation, payments and compliance, player protection, affiliate marketing, emerging tech, metaverse and more.
There are many ways to go about this. One way to do this is to come up with the topics we feel need to be covered internally and then identify the thought-leaders in the field that could provide valuable insights and reach out to them. Alternatively, we chat with acclaimed industry experts who have proven their value in their respective fields and create our panel discussion topics in collaboration with them based on what we feel would be interesting for the attending delegates.
Also, we have a form on our website sbcevents.com, and those interested in speaking opportunities can always fill it in or send us an email with their suggestion. We make sure to examine each and every one of these proposals.
A close relationship with a lot of amazing industry friends is at the core of SBC. Therefore, in some cases, it is really a very organic process where our conference team sits down with the industry veterans and has a nice open-ended chat. This industry is all about networking and connections, so the speakers we're already working with oftentimes suggest reaching out to an industry peer they think would be great for a panel. Word of mouth is and will remain a big thing.
Honestly, it's a seemingly simple yet fairly complicated process with that many stages running and the packed schedules of our speakers. Therefore, big kudos to our conference team for always delivering more than expected.
From your perspective, what skills should someone new to the iGaming field develop to be successful in the future?
The most valuable skill is pitching your product and ideas in a way that leaves no room for doubts. No matter the company you work for, you have to be able to convince people that what you're offering is better than what your competitors can do for them.
Another thing is, you need to stay up-to-date with the latest trends. And I'm not just talking about industry trends here. Keep an eye out for any tech developments that could be applied to your project, the tools that will make your processes more efficient, and the shifts in user behaviour. These things matter. You should be open-minded and willing to experiment in this industry.
I honestly think that the primary thing is to do your best to understand this industry. Study, read the news, analyse and think of the impact that a certain news story could have on your company.
And, of course, there are some people who are typically behind the scenes whose skills are integral to the company's overall success. Developers build user-friendly websites and apps to help the company acquire and retain customers. The design team creates a visual identity that is now more crucial than ever.
Data analysts help you make your communication strategy more personalised and relatable. These are some seemingly practical skills, but in reality, they require creativity and a solid understanding of the industry. Whether you work in these fields or simply collaborate with such teams, you need to get a basic understanding of how these departments function — this is the best way to make sure that you're looking at the holistic picture and do not get stuck within the borders of your own skillset and mind.
What has changed the most, if anything, about SBC Summit Barcelona since the last time you hosted it? And since you started?
Everything has changed, but everything's still the same when it comes to our ambitions.
We grew, and we grew massively.
When it comes to SBC Summit Barcelona specifically, last year, we were very restricted in terms of what we could do due to the pandemic, so a comparison would be slightly unfair. However, all I can say is that this year we went above and beyond to make sure that the industry gets enough opportunities to catch up and compensate for all this lost potential.
Generically speaking, however, we now have several industry events in our portfolio — CasinoBeats Summit in Malta, SBC Summit North America for the US and Canadian betting and gambling scene, our recently-acquired Canadian Gaming Summit, SBC Summit Latinoamérica focusing on this very promising region, SBC Summit CIS (that couldn't happen this year, but will definitely return in the future) and, of course, our flagship global event SBC Summit Barcelona.
What started as an attempt to bring the underrepresented sports betting community together, has now developed into a series of shows that include all industry verticals and several geographic regions. Moreover, we're always working on introducing new elements into the mix — the Emerging tech, blockchain and metaverse zone is a great example of that. As an event organiser gathering thousands of delegates under one roof, we want to ensure that our delegates get the opportunity to learn things from the outside as well as from the inside.
Apart from the fact that our list of attendees is growing exponentially, we have also massively improved the quality of what we have to offer, whether it's the quality of speakers and the relevance of content discussed, the exhibition floor, and the special networking events surrounding the action. We do our best to treat our attendees as MVPs, and we always walk the extra mile to ensure they have a productive couple of days and some great fun.
Moreover, our team continues growing, which is a testament to the fact that the company is willing to dedicate time and resources to make this experience truly special. It was only nine of us when I first joined the team, and now we have 100 employees working on delivering the best possible experience to our attendees. We have introduced several new teams, such as the Customer Success team and Relationships team, to ensure that we not only bring new attendees onboard but also keep them happy and assist them in achieving their business goals.
And then we have special exclusive features like invite-only dinners, charity poker games with the legendary Molly Bloom and a Championship featuring football legend Gaizka Mendieta. This would not be possible without the support of the industry that we've earned through all the hard work we've been doing over the past years.
Moving on to the things that will never change — the main goal is for the next event to be better than the previous one, no matter how well it went. This is the only way forward, and all of us here at SBC share that very same work ethic.
What was the most challenging part of the SBC Summit Barcelona? And your favourite one?
I'm probably repeating myself here, but this was our biggest event ever. And this was the biggest challenge and the biggest reward at the same time.
It wasn't just about how we get there in terms of numbers but rather how we make sure that all these delegates have a productive, unforgettable and smooth experience. With events like that, there's always a higher probability of errors, so we had to take some strategic decisions to eliminate these issues before we even got there.
It was extremely important for us to create an exhibition floor that was big enough to host all the companies wishing to exhibit and representative of all the industry verticals. However, it was equally important to make sure that it was not confusing for the delegates, that all the stands were easily accessible, and that the exhibitors were getting the attention they hoped for. The five-zone concept was a great decision that certainly helped us achieve that balance.
The main challenge was to not compromise on the quality aspect as we're growing bigger, and I was very happy to witness that we didn't.
My favourite part was realising that we had actually managed to ensure that the challenging part played in our favour. We organised a big event that was all about quality. Seeing a busy exhibition floor, stands, conference rooms, and networking areas was great.
It definitely looked like the participants made the best out of their involvement and came away with tangible leads and ROI after attending SBC Summit Barcelona. And this is our biggest reward.
