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In this analysis, we will move away from standard ORM or traffic cases for the crypto and online-casino industry. The traffic team cases for stake.com are quite standard, and there is nothing unusual in them.
Our focus is on Stake’s overall marketing strategies. We will examine how long-term strategies and growth tools are employed dynamically, starting from the moment of establishment to the present day.
Undoubtedly, the diverse range of products, including slots, online games, sports betting, and events, has played a significant role in the growth of stake.com. This varied product assortment allows stake.com to attract an audience in diverse ways and leverage it for PR purposes. For instance, betting has become a key factor in the company’s explosive growth since 2021. But we’ll talk about that a bit later. Let’s start with where Stake directed its initial marketing efforts.
Investments in Influencer Marketing and Streaming
Stake.com recognizes that in today’s world, influencers can deliver significant results, not only in lead generation but also in enhancing reputation and community building. Here, the company has demonstrated ingenuity, going beyond standard integrations and advertising purchases from influencers. They took an unconventional step by organizing streams with influencers during gaming sessions on stake.com. The most substantial contract was a collaboration with Drake, estimated at $100 million annually. However, the streaming strategy on Twitch began much earlier, with the first streamer on the platform, Oleg Barca, starting in aug 2017.
It is from this account that the tracking of the history of streaming gambling games on stake.com begins. The number of stake.com streamers consistently grew, but they were primarily micro-influencer gamers and crypto-influencers, and this trend continued until the end of 2019.
During this period, Stake also actively utilized Twitter influencers and standard yet effective tools:
- Collaborative giveaways;
- Challenges with prizes;
- Regular giveaways;
- Promotion of political event betting;
Perfect Understanding of Market Dynamics and Timely Marketing Response by stake.com
Stake.com experienced steady growth until the end of 2019. The pandemic marked a turning point for the company, not due to the pandemic itself, but thanks to Stake’s marketing team’s timely response to the pandemic’s consequences.
The active surge in popularity of online casinos was evident during the 2019-2020 pandemic period. Stake.com was the first to realize the potential of the situation, intensifying marketing efforts in collaboration with bloggers in late December 2019 – the company’s visibility sharply increased. Additionally, with the growing isolation of people during the pandemic, interest in Twitch began to rise. Recognizing the potency of this channel, Stake.com initiated a substantial increase in Twitch streaming concurrently with influencer marketing. For Stake.com, this strategy proved highly successful. In 2019-2020, the company actively invested in influencers, and according to the founder, Ed Craven, influencers and Twitch are the most powerful marketing tools in their arsenal. This period marked the starting point for the active growth of the entire online casino industry and Stake.com in particular.
2021-2022: A New Chapter for Stake.com, PR, and Market Summit
The sharp rise in popularity for stake.com came in Q2 2021. During this period, the company announced its first major sports partnerships with the football club Watford and UFC in the LATAM region.
Such partnerships were growing at an exhilarating pace. Stake.com adeptly leveraged these events, organizing activities aimed at lead generation: token giveaways, enhanced welcome bonuses for specific regions, raffles, and much more.
In early 2022, Stake.com entered into a partnership with the rapper Drake, who conducted streams with multimillion-dollar stakes on stake.com. Drake’s streams on Twitch set records, and each significant win became a massive information occasion that Stake utilized in its marketing communications. However, in September 2022, Twitch began blocking all streamers associated with online casinos and betting. This dealt a significant blow to Stake, but the company found a solution and created its own streaming platform, kick.com, where it transferred its streamers.
To this day, Stake.com continues to actively invest in influencer marketing and streams, as well as partnerships with athletes and clubs. This analysis illustrates the key trends in marketing in recent years, focusing on influencer marketing.
