Disclaimer: The opinions expressed herein are strictly those of the author, CT Moore, and interview subject, and in no way reflect those of IGN.

There is a flipside to when a jurisdiction is completely open to igaming, and that’s increased competition. Down Under, online gaming is very mainstream, and since advertising restrictions were lifted, the market has become considerably competitive.

In such a climate, launching a new brand or product becomes doubly challenging. Not only do you have to carve out a share of the market, but raising your brand profile to a point where you can do so becomes a race in an of itself.

I recently had the opportunity to chat with Robert Gallagher, the Chief Operating Officer of SportsAlive.com. Formerly known as SportsAcumen, the launch of SportsAlive is a considerable exercise in re-branding. Mr. Gallagher shared a bit of what the brand is doing to leverage advertising, social media, and customer relations management to reach their re-branding goals.

CT Moore: What have been some of the most popular and effective promotions that you've run, and what were their outcomes?
Rob Gallagher:  We have run a range of different promotions over the years, but the most popular where not the “free bet” type promotions, but ones around the enhancing of odds or the creation of some excitement around a specific event with a new bet type or a cross promotion of bet types.

The outcomes saw an increase in activations of our customer base and/or a spike in turnover on the specific events. I remember we ran a $2 lines promotion on football and had the results go our way which was huge given the extra interest it created.

CT: Where has social media fit into your marketing strategy?
RG: The Social Media hasn’t been a major part of our marketing strategy to date. However, our new brand, Sports Alive, has been designed to be more than just a sports betting site. The plan is to develop more entertainment features and products and we see social media and the use of Web 2.0 as critical in delivering the customer growth, as well as retention and (my favorite marketing term) "stickiness."

We also see the use of white label technology as critical in developing our social media offering. By delivering up a tailored sports betting solution to a social media site that knows their customers intimately and are looking for a way to monetize their traffic or database, the white label site will provide that opportunity.

CT: What branding techniques have you employed to increase awareness and recognition?
RG: The launch of Sports Alive has seen us look to position ourselves to our competitors. Since the dropping of the advertising restrictions, the Australian market has become very cluttered and everyone is offering a free bet or the best odds, but nothing that really differentiates the [brands]. At Sports Alive, we plan to use targeted media and positioning to create awareness of our brand [by delivering] of a non-tangible benefit, which is really the essence of sports betting and entertainment.

By delivering an entertainment feel through our media and affiliate marketing, we believe we will create strong brand awareness and build our recognition through positioning within the media and on the net. Our catch cry is to "live the moment" and our betting manager, Gerard Daffy, communicates that strongly through his media commitments on a weekly basis. And we will be supporting that through a section on our website and advertising where you can "Live the moment with Gerard Daffy."

CT: How often do you measure your traffic conversion from visitors to customers?
RG: Weekly or fortnightly. For much of our affiliate traffic we rely on our Affiliate Manager, Income Access, to optimise the traffic stats from the affiliate generated traffic and work with them to create better converting content.

CT: And how much does CRM factor into your retention strategy?
RG: CRM is a major factor in our retention strategy. The understanding of our customers and their needs is critical in developing communication messages to invigorate our customer base. We use our customer analytics extensively in profiling our customers and building campaigns to build relationships with them.

At the time this was written, CT Moore was a new media strategist for Income Access. a provider of affiliate marketing solutions to SportsAlive.com.