Creating a Winning Identity Verification Experience for Operators

In the gaming industry, creating a smooth onboarding process which is both robust and efficient is no mean feat, especially with increasingly strict KYC & AML laws.

But, there are ways you can employ smarter methods of identity verification to win more ‘good’ customers and have them using your services as soon as possible…

Below is a list of all the topics we will cover in this article. Go ahead and click on any of these links, and you’ll be taken to that specific section.

• The Gaming Landscape
• Speed Things Up!
• Provide Greater Confidence
• Enable as many People as Possible
• How We Can Help

The Gaming Landscape

Today, gambling is a global industry worth $443.2 billion and still growing. However, it continues to face intense scrutiny from both the media and regulators, due in some part, to a perceived failure to prevent vulnerable people from gambling.

Traditionally, when performing some form of identity verification or onboarding, businesses would use methods such as proof of address or sending a copy of a passport and manual checks. These outdated processes can be time-consuming, frustrating and create a poor user experience for customers who may be likely to move to a competitor. Gaming customers (or ‘players’) infamously have some of the lowest tolerance for cumbersome ID checks out there, and a poor onboarding experience can see up to 45% of players drop off. Relying on traditional data to verify identity doesn’t just alienate the modern digital customer, it can also lead to huge demographics being unable to access the services they want.

Gaming has moved largely into the digital space in the last decade which has created exciting opportunities for operators and their customers. It means greater access to platforms from anywhere in the world, at any time and the ability to make choices and changes in real-time. This has had huge rewards for operators, allowing them to increase engagement with customers, offer new rewards in seconds, and add real-time decisioning to enhance the customer experience.

This shift has seen tighter regulations implemented and there are a number of measures operators need to take to ensure regulatory compliance which can challenge their ability to quickly verify and onboard new players. However, there are some key areas operators can address to ensure their processes are optimised.

Speed Things Up!

One of the main reasons for customer abandonment is the speed of the onboarding process. If your process takes days or even weeks to arrive at a decision as to whether a customer is being approved or disapproved, they’re very likely to go to a competitor where they can be up and running in minutes.

This is especially prevalent when running promotions; if a business is running a promotion for a big horse race, a new customer will want to be using their service before the race so they can make use of this promotion. If the onboarding process is taking too long to come to a decision, the customer will use a provider where they can bet on the race.

It goes without saying how important it is to stay abreast of industry regulations and perform necessary KYC and AML checks when onboarding new customers, but completing manual identity proofing measures in order to remain compliant can lead to long and cumbersome account opening processes that drive away new users. According to American Banker, adding 5 minutes to the onboarding process can increase drop off rates by 200%.

Provide Greater Confidence

Employing a robust and efficient onboarding process increases customer satisfaction with the level of data security and reassures customers of the diminished risk of fraud and account takeover.

Neglecting regulatory compliance can come at a considerable consequence; some companies have been put out of business by enormous non-compliance fines and some big brands have suffered huge reputational damage. The challenge going forward is to meet regulatory requirements without adding friction and delays, which lead to customer frustration and drop-offs.

Enable as Many People as Possible

Relying on manual processes can eat into an onboarding budget and using ‘old-school’ methods of identity verification means that many good customers are turned away. A vast number of millennials do not have CRA data so if this source is used, they are rejected. Equally in countries with thin files, where traditional data does not exist or is scarce, an advanced, automated product offering can be used to qualify and verify new customers.

Automated processes are quicker, more accurate and they give customers the highest chance of passing through your onboarding process, thus increasing acquisition and lowering costs.

How We Can Help

Here at Acuant, our solutions ensure businesses onboard their customers as quickly and efficiently as possible. Our single API platform, Sodium, serves our whole suite of products which can be tailored to the specific needs of a business. This solution enables all data sources to be cross-referenced and deliver truly enhanced customer due diligence.

A unique and real-time ID scoring system intelligently verifies identity through a combination of data sources, including digital footprint verification, document authentication, facial recognition matching, liveness verification, live utility data address verification and CRA identity checks.

Utilize a single element or multiple processes – it’s entirely up to you. Learn more about how we can help to automate and simplify your verification processes to help you to learn more about your customers.

Book a demo today and see for yourself how powerful our suite of solutions are.