If you are debating whether to open your own bookie shop but worry about not making it in such a competitive industry, then keep reading to learn how to run a bookie operation.
Insider Tips to Ensure Success
Bookmaking done right can become a very lucrative operation, but every startup has risks and in this business success or ruin can come faster than in most other trades. And having some insider tips can make the difference in making your shop as profitable as it can be.
Tip # 1
You are not a gambler, you are a business owner!
This is perhaps the most difficult hurdle to overcome on a personal level. I am going to assume that if you are interested in becoming a bookie, then you have placed a few wagers in your day.
To make your business thrive you need to think like a bookie; this means everything comes down to numbers, the purpose of a business is to make money and the way to do this is by keeping things as balanced as you can. Avoid getting greedy, remember you make money off the losses of your players, having too many bets on one side is a quick way to ruin yourself.
In my experience, the best way to maintain objectivity in this business is by using a pay per head bookie software that knows how to run a bookie operation successfully, a great place to partner up with is Ace Per Head.
Tip # 2
Know your players.
I cannot stress this enough. Try to grow your business by way of referrals, and make sure those referrals are solid and can really vouch for the new guy. Unless you are taking money upfront, then you are putting yourself at risk of not being able to collect.
Tip # 3
Analyze the betting patterns of your players.
It is not enough to know that Doug always bets on the Dodgers. Like with any business, knowing your clientele is key to having success, first, you need to know what they like, and second, you need to be vigilant for any changes in betting patterns.
Key metrics to know:
- What sports do your players bet on?
- Do they like props, alternative lines, and futures?
- Do they wager on other things like horse racing or casino games?
- Do they use mobile devices to place their bets?
- What is the average wager worth?
- Are some of your players colluding?
Keeping up with all of these can be a daunting task, but one reason why AcePerHead.com is the best place to run your business is that their experts are trained to identify these things and they can notify you as soon as something looks suspicious or they see an opportunity for you to increase your profits.
Tip # 4
Understand your Bankroll.
This is an extension of tip # 1. You need to know how much money you have, to be able to cover the bets. Bookmaking is not an exact science and there will be brutal weeks that will wreak havoc on your wallet, if you are unable to pay your players then you have no business.
Keeping a pay sheet is one of the most important things in this business. Your pay per head service will do the bulk of the work for you, they will provide you with detailed reports on players’ win/loss but you need to make sure you collect from the losers and pay the winners.
The priceless advice here is, when you have a good week don’t go out and spend all your profits at once, always set aside a portion of your winnings for a rainy day, week, or month; and always pay your players on time, that way you have leverage on them when you need to collect.
Tip # 5
Work with people who are smarter
…or at least more experienced than you. This is where the staff of your price per head service comes in handy, they have the expertise, resources, and experience to help you turn a profit in the shortest amount of time.
Is It Illegal to Run a Bookie Site?
If you are looking to run a bookie operation and book action for people that you know, the first thing to check is whether it is legal to do so where you are located. The United States has now given each state the option to decide if they want to legalize gambling and there are currently 31 states that are now legal for people to bet in.
So if you are looking to run a betting site, it’s best to check with the local attorney in your area, to see what the specific laws and rules are in terms of gambling and running a betting site. Then if you are lucky enough to be located in a place where it is legal, then the next steps are finding players and getting a website set up.
Getting Players is Fun and Easy
The best way to get players is the old-fashioned way of using word of mouth and reaching out to all friends, family, coworkers, schoolmates, and social media friends. Once you start asking around you will begin to see there are a lot of people that like to bet in some form or another. Some people are everyday degenerate bettors that bet multiple games a day, others just bet their favorite teams, or only on the weekends or when they have a chance to sit and watch a game, others bet only when it’s the playoffs, and others like to bet on a virtual casino or on horses.
Also once you find someone that bets, there is a good chance that person can refer their friends or people they know that would also like to bet, because in general gamblers know other bettors. In addition, you can hang out at sports bars, go to sporting events, the race track, or casinos to recruit people that would like to bet since these are key places these types of people hang out at.
Getting a Website Set Up
The other important part of running a betting site is to actually have a professional-style sportsbook available for players to bet on. This is also very easy because there is an entire industry that is dedicated to providing betting sites to bookies. This business is called pay-per-head, and they provide a fully functioning sportsbook site where they manage all the odds and post thousands of betting options each day for people to bet on. They also grade all wagers and all balances updated after each game ends, directly into the player and agents’ accounts.
They handle all the technical bookmaking aspects for the agent but only charge a small per head or per player a week fee to use the service. The average cost is as low as $3 per active player per week and it’s only charged if the player has a graded wager that week, and a player can bet 1 time or 1,000 times and it’s still the same $3 fee. Then whatever the player wins or loses on the site, you as the agent will handle those payments directly with the player and get to keep 100% of those profits.
Booking action is a very lucrative business, and if you are lucky to be located in an area where it is legal to run a betting site, then this could be a great option to earn some really good money.
Ace Per Head has been in the online bookmaking services business since 1998 running one of the top-rated and most trusted brands in the pay per head industry. We give our bookie agents the personalized dedicated service they deserve.
