Why white label is a ticking bomb?

White label can turn into a bomb almost at every step of a casino’s operation and in almost any area. It’s easy to fall into the trap of limited functionality, constrained marketing, or underwhelming data management capabilities. If you are thinking about owning a white label, the next few paragraphs may change your mind. See what you may expect.

What may be “ticking” in white label software

There are a number of issues to pay attention to when considering WL.

The commission for the white label provider eats your profit

And the worst thing about this is that it is not a fixed sum. A part of it, between 7-12%, goes to the game providers whose games have been integrated into your platform’s systems. The company selling white label products also imposes additional commission, which can be anywhere between 1-4%, which pushes the total cost to 8%-16% each month. When you are at the beginning of your iGaming activity, this might not be such a huge sum, but it becomes more and more prominent as your profits grow. You will be able to negotiate the commission with some white label providers when your profits exceed a specific threshold, but there will always be some noticeable fee to pay every month.

The commission is one thing, but the initial fee is also too high

As with most software-related projects, the initial white label pricing depends on a number of factors, one of the most important ones will be the functionalities you expect to have on your platform. A very simple white label product, “white label light”, may cost between 10 000 to 15 000 Euros. The price is lower at a cost of very limited impact on the appearance of the platform and its functioning. A regular price for a white label is usually between 20 000 to 35 000 Euros, while the cost of the most highly customizable solutions usually begins at about 50 000 Euros. The higher the price, the more impact you have on the final result – the content, functionalities, and overall appearance.

You have no way to promote your brand on your own terms

iGaming is not an easy niche to advertise. There are places where the doors are closed and you can’t even discuss the subject. Therefore, it is so important to maximize the effectiveness of marketing wherever promotion is actually possible. Even here, white label throws a wrench in the works. You are bound to the provider’s license, which will restrict the ways you can advertise your platform – sometimes severely, and remember that this is already a difficult business area for marketers. You may have good ideas or good connections in the industry, but it may turn out that the license will prohibit you from engaging in effective advertising the way you want. It all contributes to a slower start as well as slower potential growth in subsequent months and years.

You have little to no control over how the casino looks

As it was mentioned earlier, in this model you have very limited options when it comes to the general appearance of your platform. When your site is similar to other competitors on the market, especially those that have been around longer, you do not add any unique value that would help you overtake the competition. White label may fail to provide any unique customization options aside from some simple color changes to the theme. In some cases, it’s almost like creating a clone of someone else’s solution. They all look very similar.

You lack the ability to adapt your system for more traffic and profit

Flexibility, adaptiveness, and the potential for expansion are among the most important characteristics that keep modern apps alive. Unfortunately, the potential in these key areas is very limited in the case of white label. You hardly ever have an influence on the performance of the entire system, as it is hosted by the WL provider and he is the one that manages the entire infrastructure. This means if he doesn’t do a good job, or if the traffic on your platform climbs, you may be unable to do anything about it. One should pay attention to the contract with the provider also in terms of databases. Some providers will give you full and direct access to “your” database, but others will act as mediators. In severe cases, they may not even provide you direct files/screenshots, but “reports” that have already been processed in some way. This creates the risk of delays, lies, and – at worst – no real access to this data.

White label solutions operate on the basis of a template given by the provider. Before making the purchase, you are usually able to look at it in detail through a demo. If not, this should be a huge red flag. However, you may play with the demo a bit and you may like it initially, but if half a year later you would like the solution to work differently, you will have to ask the WL provider to implement the change. If the company is reliable and cares about its clients, then it may do what you want (but be prepared for big costs!). If not, well, you know you’ve made a questionable decision with your choice of solution and provider.

The construction of the databases is imposed on you. This means that, e.g., if some specific data is not collected and you would like the information to be gathered, you will also have to pay a lot of money, and that’s assuming it will be possible at all. The data can be almost any type – about the players, traffic, individual games, or settlements.

You may struggle if the white label software is underperforming

There may be a situation when the white label generates revenue below expectations, and yet the client still has to share the profits with the provider. It may not be easy to cover the expenses of maintenance and support for each subsequent month so the casino may be forced to close. It is imperative to have a well-designed plan to make sure the investment succeeds, especially during the first months when the traffic at the platform should be picking up speed.

What can you do to improve white label efficiency

Use any customization options the provider allows to try to make the platform stand out from the competition. They will be limited, but that doesn’t mean this aspect should be neglected. Invest in marketing. White label providers usually leave this aspect to the client, but some do actually provide the solution along with a set of marketing activities – at an additional cost. Some clients decide to hire a different company to do the digital marketing for them, especially those that know how difficult marketing usually is for the iGaming industry.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is another key aspect contributing to any white label’s popularity, and there are many techniques a specialist or a whole team of specialists could apply to make the platform more visible. Without going into technical details, the actions may include:

• link-building,
• whisper marketing,
• social media activity with frequent updates,
• longer, written, and SEO-optimized content for the blog section
• implementing the recommendations provided by a thorough technical audit
• guest posts and articles on websites with high authority
• …and more

How to choose the best way to develop your casino

You have to know what kind of casino you want from the very beginning, and it’s not about the technologies you use, the plugins that should be installed, or the systems you should have for marketing automation. The technology is up to the provider to take care of, you should focus on the business you are building. Consider the scope of its development, the influence you would like to have on it, and – most of all – how independent you want to be with the whole endeavor. When you choose white label, you must not forget that at some point your business will hit a wall, and to break through this barrier, you will have to spend a huge amount of money. In some cases, it will not be possible at all, regardless of the money you throw at the contractor.

Conclusion

Now you know what you should pay attention to when considering white label. Here you will find another set of guidelines regarding full functionalities that will ensure the stability, scalability, and marketing freedom of your business.

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