If you are thinking of becoming a bookie, then there are a lot of things that you should know before you get started.
Being a bookie is a pretty big job, and there are lots of things that you will need to make yourself aware of before you get started.
Some of the things that can really help you are dos and don’ts guides. So if this is what you are looking for, you are in the right place.
In this guide, we’ve compiled six of the biggest dos and don’ts of being a bookie. So if you want to be successful in your career, then you are in the right place.
Keep on reading to find out what you should know about being a bookie!
Do: Pick The Right Software
First things first, you do need to make sure that you pick the right software for the job. Now-a-days, a huge part of being a bookie relies on the software that you use.
Odds and angles are no longer manually set by the bookie, instead a clever piece of computer software will do all this for you.
This makes life a lot easier for you as the bookie as the tricky numbers are already calculated, all you need to do is implement them.
Not all bookies will use computer software, and a lot of bookies will not worry too much about the type of software that they buy.
However, for the best results for your business, you really need to invest in a good piece of pay per head software.
This can really launch the success of your business, and make your career a lot more prosperous.
When you are starting your own sportsbook, then there is a lot that can go wrong. Running a sportsbook is no mean feat, and service issues, poor odds and bad customer service can really impact your success.
Using the right software that will calculate your odds for major events, and help with customer service can cause your career to be a lot more successful.
Don’t: Let Steam Chasers Affect Your Business
Moving straight onto a don’t, one of the biggest things that you should never let happen is having steam chasers affect your business.
Steam chasing can have a huge impact on your success as a bookie, but you will never fully be able to understand how until we take a look at what steam chasers are.
Steam chasing is essentially just a tactic that sports betters sometimes use, and it is a technique that has been used for years and years.
When using this tactic, those who are betting will view a live odds board that displays the odds for various sportsbooks.
Across these sportsbooks, all of them will show the same number for one game.
When one of the sportsbooks shifts the odds for the match, steam chasers will immediately place a bet with the sportsbook that is still showing the original odds.
Typically, steam chasing will be practised by sports betting syndicates.
Preventing steam chasing isn’t easy. In fact, it is often pretty difficult to do this. However, being watchful of the signs of steam chasing is the first step.
So keeping a close eye on the type of betters you have utilising your services, and the betting techniques they use is a great way to protect your business against steam chasing.
Do: Prepare Your Bankroll
As a bookie, you need to ensure that yourself and your practices are protected at all times.
Having your bankroll prepared with enough capital to cover any losses is absolutely critical for the success of your business.
Any new business will need to have a bankroll prepared in order to succeed, but this is even more critical when you work as a bookie.
In order to be a bookie, you need to have a large amount of capital in order to fund the business, and without this money available when you get started, then your business will never be able to succeed.
The finances of working as a bookie are a little different to the financial side of other businesses.
You always need to have enough money available to cover losses, otherwise the business will fold pretty early on.
Before you launch your business, you need to have a significant amount of capital if you want to succeed.
It can be tricky to know just how much money you need to launch your business, but a good rule of thumb when it comes to being a bookie is to start with enough capital to cover an entire month of losses.
So calculate how much money you could lose in your worst month and make sure you have enough capital to cover this.
While the chances of you losing consecutively for a whole month are slim, it is better to prepare for the worst than to go under because you failed to prepare.
Don’t: Forget To Market Your Sportsbook
Moving onto our next don’t, this one focuses entirely on marketing and advertising your sportsbook.
As a bookie, you will only be able to succeed if you have enough people playing with you to make money.
So ensuring that you encourage people to join your network is essential for the success of your business.
It is very easy to forget to market your sportsbook. As a bookie, you will have a whole business to run, and that can easily make you distracted from attracting people to your business.
If you want to grow your business and achieve higher profits, then you will need to attract players.
There are lots of different ways to market your sportsbook, and a lot of these are very similar to traditional marketing techniques.
One of the best ways for marketing your sportsbook is to use promotions. When it comes to promotions, you do have to be fairly careful about abiding by regulations.
But a good promotion is a guaranteed way to attract new customers to your business.
It can also encourage existing customers that haven’t played for a while to place more bets and drive more business to your company.
From friend referral bonuses to new sign-up bonuses, there are lots of ways to make your sportsbook business more attractive.
So, if you want your business to be successful, you need to ensure that you keep advertising your business and trying to attract new players.
Don’t become complacent with the existing customer base that you have, keep advertising to attract new customers and increase your profits.
Do: Understand Your Players
The final and perhaps biggest, do that you need to do when it comes to being a bookie is understanding your players.
A huge part of being a bookie is understanding who your players are, what they bet on and the odds that they tend to opt for. Every single person who bets will have a pattern.
That pattern may include betting on specific types of sports, specific scores across multiple games, or similar multipliers every time that they bet.
Of course, this isn’t the case for all players, some players will just place random bets and only play from time to time.
But as a bookie, you will come to notice that quite a lot of your players do have behavioural patterns that you can use to your advantage.
These behavioural patterns will not allow you to make certain amounts of money off of your players, but they will help you to offer odds that attract players.
Understanding your players not only allows you to get a better knowledge of what you need to be offering, but it also helps you get a better idea of what players will be recurring customers and which will be one off players.
This can help you tailor your service to attract players to come back to your company time and time again, and help you make your business more attractive.
So you absolutely do need to understand your players to succeed as a bookie.
Don’t: Forget To Cover All Angles
Finally, as a bookie you absolutely shouldn’t forget to cover all angles, and that is our final don’t.
As a bookie, it is your job to cover all angles to ensure that every single person who wants to place a bet with your company is able to get the odds that they want as this will increase the chances of them placing a bet, and the chances of you making a profit.
When a lot of betters place a bet, they attempt to take an angle that the bookie hasn’t thought of. After all, this is the best way to make a good return on your bet.
However, this can cause you as the bookie to lose money, which is why it is critical that you don’t forget to cover all angles.
As a bookie, you often need to think like a better person.
You need to fully understand your customers and get in their headspace to ensure that you run a successful business and generate enough money to stay in business.
Consider all the angles when you use your sportsbook software to generate the odds for each match as this will help your business become more successful.
Summary
In short, there are lots of things that you need to know about being a bookie before you get started (for example, if you need to know bookie slang, read here).
This job isn’t as easy as you might expect, and that is why you should check out this guide to the dos and don’ts before you get started.
Thank you for reading!
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