BetJamaica is making a name for itself in the offshore sportsbook industry. Some people call it "Lil' Oly," but General Manager Scotty Johnson wants to set the record straight.
It is true that BetJamaica, which will be entering it's third football season this fall, is a property of Spiros and Olympic Sports, one of the biggest, financially sound and most trusted names in the sports betting industry. But Johnson believes that his shop is worthy of standing on its own, as an emerging powerhouse in the offshore sector with a bright future ahead of it.
Johnson sees the nickname as both a blessing and a curse. On one side of the coin, the moniker gives bettors a sense of security with the knowledge that BetJamaica is backed by Olympic, which has been in business since 1995 and is known worldwide as one of the safest and most secure shops in existence. But he also thinks that some customers may get the wrong idea. BetJamaica, while sharing many resources with Olympic, operates as a separate entity complete with a autonomous management staff that has been together for more than 7 years, independent lines and separate bonuses and promotions.
"People have felt very secure with us because Spiros' reputation is flawless," said Johnson. "The nickname of Lil' Oly; we don't want that to be our real name but it is a good nickname because it lets customers know that we have a strong foundation."
BetJamaica is based in Montego Bay in the beautiful country of Jamaica. The company shares a building with Olympic and they also share some of the same bandwidth and telecommunication resources. The two companies, however, have a completely different customer base. Olympic has always been known as a book that takes in heavy action and has plenty of line movement. At BetJamaica, oddsmakers offer the bettor a solid line that tends to see less movement because the book doesn't have a wide influx of professional bettors, who can sometimes send the betting line in all the wrong directions.
While many sportsbooks use bonuses or reduced juice as a way to attract customers, BetJamaica offers the best of both worlds. New customers will receive a 20 percent signup bonus (up to $500) and clients who re-up their account will get an additional 10 percent on all qualified deposits. In addition, BetJamaica offers nickel juice (-105) on Fridays during football season on college and NFL sides and totals. This special promotion takes place between 8 p.m. and 12 a.m. EST every week during the season. BetJamaica also gives customers a "Special of the Day" on individual games all year around. "We try to offer at least one game at reduced juice every day because we know that is something our customers really enjoy," said Johnson. "Most books couldn't survive by offering an aggressive bonus program and reduced juice, but we have developed a system that has worked great for us." BetJamaica also offers a dime baseball line, which has been extremely popular with customers.
Johnson's motto for BetJamaica is "The Players Paradise" although the clients currently seem more attracted to Spiros' guarantee and signature on the home page which reminds players to "Sweat the game, not the payout," with the assurance that they will be paid immediately whenever they request a payout.
Johnson believes his book has had so much initial success because of the outstanding customer service that is offered to his clients. "We treat them like people, not account numbers," he said. "We make them feel at home and make them feel that if there is any problem whatsoever that they will get a fair shake. Olympic has a reputation that is as good as anyone out there. Some people are worried about new books going out of business. A lot of them don't have longevity. We have been able to take the best of both worlds and put them together. We can run with a 'small book feel' where we know you by name but we have the big book power of Olympic."
BetJamaica put a lot of work into its Web site, www.betjam.com, to make it more than just a place to make bets. The site includes a sports database that helps bettors gain an edge with a multitude of sports betting trends, angles and statistics. This makes the sportsbook a one-stop shop for those that want to research their bets before placing them. "We have one of the most appealing sports betting sites on the Internet and it is always changing and improving," said Johnson. "Instead of having 10 Web pages open at once, our customers can find everything they need right there on the site. The feedback has been tremendous."
Part of the reason the management team at BetJamaica know what their customers want is that they have been together as a cohesive unit for so many years. Much of the staff is comprised of the old Royal Sports management team and the group has been together for more than seven years. During this time, they have figured out what works and what doesn't and they have long ago worked out all the kinks in their system. There isn't a new book in the industry that can tout a staff as experienced and knowledgeable than the one at BetJamaica.
And the general operating staff at BetJamaica is very strong because there is an abundance of workers in the area that have been providing customer support for American customers for years. The local English-speaking workforce is very customer-service driven and the sportsbook has managed to hire some of the best and friendliest workers in the city.
Playing with BetJamaica is an experience like no other. Feel free to check out the many features on the site, which can all be accessed with no financial commitment required.
Check out their website at www.betjam.com