Engineering Smarter Traffic Routing in iGaming
Every successful iGaming marketing campaign includes a technology solution to route traffic from user to conversion. While the campaigns and their operators focus on acquiring new users and maximizing player engagement, the engineering team ensures that traffic finds its way to the right destination.
With so many regulations in place in the iGaming space, traffic routing has developed into a smart technology that can improve conversion and revenue for all parties involved in traffic acquisition. With the proper investment in traffic routing technologies, iGaming companies will gain a significant competitive advantage.
What Is Traffic Routing in iGaming?
Traffic routing is the process of sending users to a specific destination based on certain conditions or data.
Instead of sending users to a destination without considering a few factors, traffic routing software considers various data points that improve the user’s chances of converting and increasing revenue for the site.
These factors may include:
Geographic location
Device type
Operating system
Traffic source
Campaign parameters
Compliance eligibility
Historical performance data
Operator availability
Why Engineering Matters in Traffic Monetization?
Traffic acquisition can be expensive.
Regardless of the means of traffic acquisition, every click holds some value for the company. However, if the engineering and traffic routing software fail to direct users to the best destination for revenue generation and compliance, the company could lose revenue and have a significant negative impact on its traffic acquisition efforts.
Engineers can develop technology that routes traffic and maximizes earnings without spending additional money on traffic acquisition.
The Evolution of Traffic Routing Systems
Instead of relying on the old ways to route traffic to gaming sites, there are many benefits to utilizing dynamic routing software to route traffic and improve revenue.
Older systems that redirected traffic to predefined landing pages failed to consider several important variables. With dynamic technology in place, traffic is routed to the best destination based on data and variables that can significantly improve the traffic acquisition process.
As the industry has become more competitive and sophisticated, dynamic traffic routing software has become one of the essential tools that iGaming companies use to improve their revenue.
Key Components of an iGaming Routing Engine
Geo-Location Detection
Knowing the geographic location of the users is one of the most important factors in traffic routing because licensing is specific to the markets in which the company operates.
Therefore, traffic routing software must be able to recognize the country, state, city, and jurisdiction of the users to ensure they do not encounter regulatory problems with the gaming site they are attempting to reach out to.
Device Recognition
Players may use various devices to access the gaming websites.
The traffic acquisition and routing technology must recognize the device type, browser, and operating system of the user to provide them with the best experience, whether they are using a desktop or mobile device.
Offer Selection Logic
Not all offers are the same. A gaming company might have multiple traffic offers they use to acquire users.
The offer selection logic software that engineers create can evaluate the performance data of offers, such as their historical EPCs, conversion rates, and popularity to choose the best offer for traffic routing.
Reducing Blocked Traffic Through Engineering
Blocked traffic can be one of the most significant issues for traffic acquisition and revenue generation for iGaming companies.
Users may be blocked from several reasons, including geographic restrictions, licensing issues, compliance, and registration requirements.
However, with engineering and smart traffic routing software in place, publishers can significantly reduce blocked traffic and revenue loss.
Smart Jurisdiction Matching
Many users live in the same country but may fall into different regulatory jurisdictions.
Smart traffic routing systems can automatically detect which gaming operator is eligible for the user based on their location to ensure that all users follow the compliance regulations of the jurisdiction in which they live.
Automated Failover Routing
Several automated failover routing systems have become a part of many traffic acquisition and gaming company infrastructures.
Operators may experience technical issues, registration problems, or acceptance of payments. By having a failover system in place, traffic can be automatically redirected in the case of these issues to ensure users have the best experience and the best chance of converting.
Engineering for Scalability
Traffic during high-profile sporting events or competitions increases exponentially.
To accommodate the significant amount of traffic, traffic routing companies use engineering solutions such as load balancing and cloud-based architecture to ensure that users have the best experience with minimal crashes or technical difficulties.
Data Collection and Performance Optimization
Engineering teams will generate valuable data regarding the traffic acquisition process.
Data tracking software can collect information about each user’s journey from traffic acquisition to registration and deposit into the gaming website. This data can help the engineering team optimize the user experience and improve conversion rates.
Real-Time Analytics
Data collected through traffic acquisition may take several days to report.
Real-time analytics software can give traffic acquisition and gaming companies insights into how well traffic was acquired and routed to what destination in real time. With such fast insights, traffic acquisition companies can make improvements faster to increase the success of their traffic efforts.
A/B Testing Infrastructure
Engineering teams can use the A/B testing infrastructure to test different landing pages, offers, and user experiences for traffic routing software.
By testing these elements, engineers can improve the user experience and the number of users that successfully convert to paying customers.
Compliance Engineering
As regulations become more complex, compliance relies more on technology solutions.
Automated Compliance Checks
Traffic routing engineering teams can develop automated compliance software that can check users’ eligibility for various offers and confirm their age, location, and regulatory requirements to improve the compliance of traffic routing efforts.
Audit Logging
The regulatory agencies that govern traffic acquisition and gaming will require logs of the compliance of traffic routing software.
Engineering teams must maintain logs of user interactions, traffic acquisition, and redirections to meet regulatory requirements for compliance.
The Role of AI in Traffic Routing
Artificial intelligence software is becoming increasingly popular in the iGaming traffic acquisition and routing space.
Instead of depending on preprogrammed variables to route traffic to specific offers, companies that use AI can expect the software to consider user behavior and historical data about traffic routing to find the best destination for their users.
However, AI technology could significantly increase the number of conversions that traffic acquisition companies direct to their partners.
Engineering Challenges in iGaming
Despite the benefits of engineering and traffic routing software for the industry, there are a few challenges to overcome to provide users with the best experience.
The challenges include:
Data Accuracy
As with any software, traffic routing and acquisition software must have accurate data to be effective in routing traffic.
If the software fails to have the correct data regarding the user’s location, device, or other information, it can create an unsuccessful traffic routing effort.
Latency
The software must be fast enough to route traffic without having a considerable amount of latency between the user clicking on the link to the gaming site and the user landing on the website.
Any latency will significantly impact the user experience.
Compliance Complexity
Regulations for the iGaming industry are complex and change quickly.
The software must be flexible enough to accommodate regulatory changes quickly to ensure users do not face any compliance problems.
The Future of iGaming Infrastructure
The next generation of traffic acquisition and gaming companies will seek to automate and provide users with an even more personalized experience with the traffic routing software they use.
Many new technological developments are currently taking place in the industry that will revolutionize the traffic acquisition process.
These developments will include AI to aid in traffic acquisition, real-time regulatory monitoring, improved audience segmentation, and automated operator matching with traffic sources.
Organizations that invest in creating innovative engineering and traffic routing solutions for traffic acquisition will provide users with the best experience and generate the highest volume of traffic for their websites.
Final Thoughts
The engineering and traffic routing infrastructure behind traffic acquisition efforts is just as important as the traffic acquisition itself.
Publishers, affiliate marketers, and gaming operators will find significant benefits from investing in traffic routing software that can significantly reduce blocked traffic, improve compliance, improve the number of users that successfully convert, and ultimately generate significant revenue for their organizations.
In an increasingly competitive industry, engineering and the engineering of traffic routing systems will remain one of the most important areas of focus for traffic acquisition and gaming companies.