With a business model that depends on returning customers and increased play time, Soft2Bet, a leading provider of online betting and gaming solutions, has invested their resources into figuring out how to keep their customers coming back for more. In fact, they've developed their own system, called MEGA – Motivational Engineering Gaming Applications – a blend of social gameplace and gamification.

If increased audience engagement and lifetime value sounds familiar, that's because it's generally what most companies strive for. Far from being only useful for the iGaming industry, principles of Motivational Engineering can be applied to any user-centric applications to increase engagement and lingering time.

Soft2Bet's Chief Product Officer, Yoel Zuckeberg, says they're already seeing personalization in sports, film, and music streaming industries, however that traditionally more “boring” niches stand to gain the most; Most consumer-facing industries would benefit from MEGA, especially fintech and banking. But let's be honest, we can improve customer experience across any industry and service.

By making use of gamification, localization and customization features, these industries can create a more engaging experience and thus differentiate themselves among competitors for attracting new customers and increasing retention.

What banking and fintech can learn from iGaming

Soft2Bet notes a surge in interest in Motivational Engineering from banking and fintech executives, seeing it as a means to enhance customer engagement. While some banks have adopted gamification strategies like lotteries and leaderboards, there's ample room for further innovation. In finance, this could involve offering financial news, budgeting tools, educational content, badges for savings achievements, or interactive planning modules to prolong app usage and provide added value.

Soft2Bet's CPO, Yoel Zuckeberg, attributes their success in iGaming to players' enjoyment of achievements, rewards, and interactive features, suggesting similar benefits for other sectors. Digital finance's shift from in-person to online services presents an opportunity for enhanced user experiences with digital tools. ""One of the reasons Soft2Bet has been so successful in iGaming is because our players love the achievements, rewards and interactive elements we provide as part of their gameplay and interaction with our brands. These have been critical in our success and we believe niches outside of iGaming can reap the same benefits from these features," he pointed.

MEGA tactics directly impact business metrics: a 40% profit increase, 60% rise in user participation, and tripled screen time. SoftBet's CEO, Uri Poliavich, stresses the importance of balancing increased screen time with meaningful engagement, emphasizing responsible gamification to positively impact users' lives rather than encouraging excessive screen use.

The future of MEGA in the AI world

With the recent rise and ubiquity of AI, no industry is exempt from the potential benefits the new technology may bring. iGaming and fintech is no different.

Soft2Bet is looking at making use of AI and machine learning to personalize and localize their content across their platforms. “Integrating these technologies as key components of our operations will become even more important in 2024 and as we have seen with other industries such as music and film streaming, they help with personalisation and customisation of offers through our CRM and bonusing tools,” Yoel Zuckeberg, CPO of Soft2Bet

The company is quick to emphasize that embracing new technologies shouldn't come to the detriment of human interaction, which they continue to make use of. Yoel shares that human interaction “enables us to take all kinds of factors into account that technology wouldn’t not be able to consider.” As such, they're not looking to jump on the AI bandwagon too quickly.

Using data analysis and gamification to increase engagement

The major benefit of iGaming is for the bottom line. But this is done by making use of moder-day technologies to improve user experience. At a technical level, this involves using data to make decisions about what sort of interactive experiences should be activate, and to use the MEGA modules to build out a custom system for each company and user's needs.

Motivational Engineering has already been embraced by the iGaming industry, but signals show that the digital finance space will be quick to follow. Soft2Bet's MEGA systems is available in a B2B business model, and ready for use by banks, fintechs, and more.

Soft2Bet is licensed in Sweden, Greece, Ireland, Malta, Romania, Denmark, and Italy and is going through the licensing process in and Portugal, Ontario, Canada and Mexico. Also the company looks forward to entering the US market in New Jersey.