It is very important for operators and brands to diversify their approach due to the increased volatility in search engine results throughout the last three to six months, SEO consultant and contractor Radoslav Georgiev, Gambling SEO Services, told SiGMA News during an interview at SiGMA Asia 2026 in Manila.
Brands and operators need to diversify their approach
Asked by SiGMA News about how iGaming operators should balance short-term ranking tactics with long-term SEO availability and brand trust, Georgiev replied that while it used to be the case that operators would mainly do forms of SEO and optimisation on their main portal, he now thinks that it is “almost fully necessary” that brands diversify.
He said that things operators and brands can do include optimising on third-party platforms such as Trustpilot and running their own blogs.
“They need to definitely go broader and try more things, because even though some tactics in the short term might not be working in their specific countries or languages, after an update or two, those tactics might actually be winning,” Georgiev commented. “So diversifying, even at times when it’s not really producing results, might be the best form of defence in the mid-to-long-term.”
iGaming SEO opportunities
The discussion shifted to how gambling affiliates and operators are competing for high-intent keywords. With that in mind, Georgiev was asked what he currently sees as the biggest untapped SEO opportunities in iGaming.
“It’s hard to say ‘untapped’ opportunities,” he began, “because, especially affiliates, it’s their job basically to find them, use them, and work with partners and with operators, and to get paid for that.”
He said that the high search volume, high user intent, and high-value keywords related to real money gambling are very competitive, but that there definitely are opportunities.
An example he provided is that affiliates and operators may target generally smaller markets, or markets with “smaller languages”.
He said that going for languages such as English, Spanish, French, or German means entering into markets where the competition is usually “very high to insane,” but that targeting smaller languages or niche topics and keywords can be of benefit to smaller players.
AI’s impact on search results
With the rise of AI and AI-generated content in recent years, Georgiev was asked for his insight as to what separates high-performing iGaming websites from those likely to lose visibility in search results over the coming years.
Georgiev responded by saying that he sees AI content and AI in general as a means of increasing the efficiency of already well-structured companies, teams, and processes. He continued that, with this thinking, AI could be an advantage if one’s underlying strategy and product are already working.
“From my perspective, in the long term, especially for affiliates, it is very important not to move away from SEO, but to add on top of it,” he commented. He added that SEO can be a great acquisition channel, but that in the end, the website, product, or service needs to have something that draws people in and sticks, thereby increasing trust and brand recognition.
Georgiev remarked that if users see some features or usability in a service that they consider to be of their benefit, then that is something which differentiates a brand or service from other options.
He continued that brands which create a good product then create a brand on top of it. “They diversify traffic sources, not only SEO, but for example, social, it can be streaming, it can be anything else.”
Such brands, Georgiev believes, be it affiliates or operators, can go on to have a long-term competitive advantage.
SEO lessons iGaming firms should take note of in 2026
Asked for his thoughts as to what SEO lessons iGaming firms should pay closer attention to in 2026, Georgiev replied that an emphasis on SEO is a good thing, and that focusing on SEO makes more sense for some companies than others.
He said that, in general, he believes there is a definite need to diversify one’s SEO approaches.
“There have been quite a few affiliates which used to be rocket ships a few years ago. They would just create large-scale WordPress-based affiliate websites with exact match domains, no brand, no nothing, but because their underlying SEO processes and product were good enough at that stage, they would just take over a lot of market share and make very good revenue.”
That said, he remarked that once Google “started taking into account different things, those one-dimensional types of companies started suffering really, really hard”.
Georgiev concluded by reiterating the importance of diversifying one’s approach to SEO. He said that diversification is highly advised for both affiliates and operators. He added that, especially in the case of highly competitive industries, making use of other marketing channels is an effective tool.
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