Take a behind-the-scenes look at the WhichBingo online bingo annual report 2017

take-behind-scenes-look-whichbingo-online-bingo-annual-report-2017

You read it here first! We’ve been given the lowdown on what goes into creating the industry’s most comprehensive online bingo report with the team over at WhichBingo.

take-behind-scenes-look-whichbingo-online-bingo-annual-report-2017Flying off the press back in 2016, the first version of the WhichBingo Online Bingo Annual Report caused ripples throughout the entire online bingo industry. Never before had the industry been analysed in such an all-encompassing way. Fast forward into 2017, the latest version of the report has even more detail and analysis.

Creating the report itself is no mean feat! The entire team over at WhichBingo HQ in Leeds get involved. The team contribute sections of the report relating to their areas of expertise alongside utilising their ‘little black books’ to get in touch with the biggest brains in online bingo (industry experts!) for the prediction section of the report.

Simon Jones, Commercial Director at WhichBingo who is heavily involved in the industry predictions section of the report mentions:

“We have a lot of contacts in the industry and people love to be quoted and get involved! We also look to get different perspectives to mix things up a bit to show it’s not just all about us!”

A labour of love, 12-months in the making

The data for the WhichBingo annual report is collected, collated and analysed over a 12-month period. Again, the entire team are involved in this process, deliberating which data pockets will be the most interesting for the online bingo industry.

This part of the process is usually finalised by January, leaving just the external contributions to attend to. Over a 6-week period, the industry experts help to refine and edit their predictions before going into the artwork and printing studio.

Spreading the word…

The reports are released in conjunction with a large gaming event or conference. Timed perfectly, this year’s report launched at the London Affiliate Conference and the ICE Totally Gaming Conference in February. A captive audience of industry experts combined with a suitcase full of printed reports led to mentions and quotes within a number of sessions and tracks at both events.

This was not the first time this tactic has worked well. Previous reports have been mentioned at industry events such as Affiliate Fest, Amsterdam Affiliate Conference, Berlin Affiliate Conference, SiGMA and EGR Power Affiliates to name just a few!

We’ve also heard through the grapevine that data from the report has been quoted around the boardroom tables of some of the biggest bingo brands, including Gala, Mecca and tombola.

A rewarding process from start to finish

Whilst producing the report to the allotted timescale and deadlines is quite stressful, flicking through the freshly printed copies, hot off the press is one of the most rewarding feelings for the whole team involved.

Something as simple as watching the download figures increase each day and hearing the report cited at the various events around the world makes it worth any stress and panic that may have been felt through those 12-months.

The future of the WhichBingo report

With 2018’s annual report well underway over at WhichBingo HQ, additional sections of the report have already been discussed and plans are beginning to take shape.

Alongside the existing section predicting new online bingo sites, the future of online bingo brand marketing in areas such as PPC and social media are set to be hot topics in the next report.

Keeping it real

When you offer the most comprehensive analysis of the online bingo industry, there’s a certain amount of pressure to keep the information you’re offering relevant to the target audience. Feedback and analysis from industry figureheads is therefore essential at this point to help shape, improve and grow the report at the same rate that the online bingo industry is.