Martyn Hannah, Ghostfoundry: "Affiliates are effectively content hubs"

Martyn Hannah, director of content marketing agency Ghostfoundry, stressed the benefits of content marketing in an exclusive comment piece with SBC Americas, and explained why affiliates are essentially content hubs. Read an excerpt from the feature below.
First things first, what is a content hub…
A content hub is a dedicated page attached to your online sportsbook or casino that is packed full of news, features, interviews, guides, videos and more. Think of it as an online resource for players and a place where they can return to daily, weekly or monthly regardless of whether they wish to gamble or not.
Established European online casino brands such as 888 Casino have been running content hubs for several years now. Some of the most popular posts include blackjack strategy tips, insight into how slot machines are built and even an innovative card counting tool.
When it comes to sportsbook operators, the likes of bet365 and William Hill take this a step further by also offering live streams from certain events. These can take the form of live radio broadcasts or even video broadcasts featuring commentary or studio-based discussion and debate programmes.
The advantages of investing in a content hub…
There are many upsides to launching a content hub, but the most important is that it helps online gambling brands to engage and connect with potential players. Consumers in the US are just as savvy as they are in mature markets such as the UK, and they want to digest as much information as possible about casino/sports.
Remember that for most consumers, betting – whether casino or sport – is a passion and a pastime for them, and they want to be connected to it as much as possible. Leading on from this, content hubs help to build trust among players. By providing consumers with information and entertainment for free it is possible to foster incredible loyalty by making them feel like you are not going in for the hard sell.
Of course, if you keep providing them with content that engages, educates and entertains, when they are ready to wager they are highly likely to do so with you. This is particularly important for US sportsbook operators as sports media giants such as TheScore are partnering with betting technology providers to launch their own books.
Other benefits include the tremendous SEO value that a well-executed content hub can deliver, helping casino brands climb up the SERPs. Indeed, the majority of online casino brands invest heavily in SEO and particularly link building, but a regularly updated information portal can be just as, if not more, effective.
Finally, online gambling brands that launch their own content hubs can mitigate the need to rely on affiliates to drive new players to their sites – affiliates are effectively content hubs. What’s more, by launching their own portals, operators can be 100% certain the content they publish is within the rules set out by that state’s gaming regulator or advertising watchdog.
Read the full article here.