Simon Hammon, CEO of the leading content provider Relax Gaming, advises companies operating in the saturated slot market. The Casino Market team shares the summary of his words.
Abilities of the Successful Leader
The company has experienced significant growth ever since Mr Hammon joined it. Revenue during the second quarter of 2022 increased by 20% to £5.2 million in comparison to the previous one. The firm has organised the launch of the Dream Drop jackpot component and 6 new games.
Other recent achievements of the brand:
- 15 new distributors in the partner network;
- 32 studios linked to the provider’s RGS;
- extended market coverage (to Italy and Spain);
- the Ontario licence (obtained to enter North America).
Mr Hammon's shift to CEO of Relax was facilitated by his pragmatic perspective, making the levelling up «more natural than the title suggests».
The experts believe this is the result of his strong awareness of the market, including:
- financial situation;
- positioning of products;
- promotion;
- end-to-end offers, etc.
Avoiding Replications
As a platform provider and aggregator in addition to being a game developer, Relax is a versatile company. Mr Hammon claims that the organisation takes genuine delight in its outstanding productions. However, it also offers a platform to 70 various studios. Some of them have branded systems and are quite autonomous, using the supplier merely as a middleman to connect to the distribution.
Other firms are quite dependent on the technology that the provider offers, even in the smallest details like business operation, invoicing, financing, and sheltering. The specialist thinks that they most likely would not exist without Relax.
This probably fits into the general trend witnessed across the slot market, where studios expand into diversified businesses to shore up their role in the supply chain. However, it only constitutes a small portion of what they must do to truly prosper. Consumers will not get interested if a brand keeps pumping out only 5×3 gaming titles.
How to Differentiate in Gambling?
Relax has remained active for more than 10 years, but Mr Hammon cannot recall any standard 5×3 slot in the history of the provider’s developments. There are still reel complexes at the core. However, the specialist claims that the company entirely avoided standard products from the beginning.
Distributors want to stand out. So, they need uniqueness. Developers must alter current practices to capture an operator's imagination.
Relax examines the market to modify standard things. The brand gets the information from:
- consumer feedback;
- industry data analysis;
- lobby activity monitoring;
- game placement exploration.
That demonstrates industry tendencies, particularly as a brand or a theme gradually rises to the top of casino portals across the sector.
Mr Hammon cautions that developers who merely view trends as the model to adopt are unlikely to find much success. By the time they have noticed that tendency and established configured variations or twists on it, the market may have changed once again.
The expert cautions that many developers are «in for a bit of a rude awakening» after the surge of similar products hitting the market. The industry and interest from operators are extremely tough, he explains. Even with the most cutting-edge system in the world, it will not be appealing to work with copied ideas.
How to Remain Popular in the Sphere?
A famous solution or service raises the profile of a supplier and places its content higher in a casino operator's lobby. However, this puts pressure on a company to deliver another hit product after this. Mr Hammon acknowledges that such a hot streak is rare. Making a top-ranked program still requires a lot of luck, he claims.
The expert believes that it is almost impossible to expect a product path to follow up with another. Some studios can release a game at the right time with the perfect circumstances and the appropriate support, and the entertainment will instantly take off. Market conditions are an unknown element, as well as general branding or visibility.
Mr Hammon believes that many providers profit in the early wake of successful products because there is anticipation and hype. They might decline rather quickly due to the huge number of content that is released between each hit. The perception that a provider is «hot» or not results from this.
The Absence of the Right Way
There is no straightforward formula to success in the gambling industry and business in general. Mr Hammon claims that it only requires patience and the appropriate variables in the equation, which are unpredictable. Sometimes it can be attributed to a worker who was on the job at the time and had a brilliant idea but then quit the position.
Simon Hammon believes it is tougher in recent times with the number of rivalries to distinguish yourself from others and to be seen as somebody who understands what they are talking about. However, it is worth a shot.
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