Daily fantasy sports operator Locker is trying to differentiate itself from the competition by adding a social component to its platform and partnering with social media influencers to get the word out.
A Different Way to Do Business
Millions of Americans play daily fantasy sports, but DFS operator Locker has founded its new Leagues product to facilitate a more social environment for what is often a friendly competition. A boost of $2 million in capital funding led by Hatchery Investments has allowed the company to spread its wings into uncharted waters.
“We started Locker to digitize the social experience,” CEO and co-founder Noah Bernstein told Covers. “(…) saw friendships growing on the platform, even under these anonymous user names. We had a lot of requests to make private group chats and private leagues so people could kind of separate themselves by their interests. That went in tandem with how we created our Locker Leagues.”
Bernstein got the idea from his days at UC Berkeley, where he graduated with a background in electrical engineering and computer science while having a penchant for starting companies as an undergraduate. The three primary components of Locker’s new Leagues product are sports betting, daily fantasy sports, and trivia, all rolled up into one DFS app.
“One of the things we do well is, I see the questions as a play sheet,” Bernstein said. “As you’re watching the game, we want to release questions where users can use the context of the game to make the right choices.” It’s akin to a trivia night where questions are asked and the right answer is rewarded. Only in this case do the questions pertain to the games being played. For instance, “Which receiver will catch a pass on the next Jets drive?”
Influencers Jumping on Board
Locker is available in 25 U.S. states, and its pick’em offerings can be found in 18 markets. But as the old expression goes, the more, the merrier, and in this case, Locker has partnered with several social media influencers who can attract plenty of customers to the fold. Those who can bring the masses can get a piece of the action. Anyone who brings at least six entries can get paid a commission for their efforts. Like with any form of sales, the more people you get to sign up, the more money there is to be made.
Leagues have designated chatrooms where the camaraderie and the trash talk build throughout the season. One influencer named Ghetto Gronk has a social media following of more than 300,000, and that is precisely the kind of personality the company wants to attract. “It’s a meme page, and he has a couple hundred people who play in Locker contests under his brand and socialize in a group chat,” Bernstein said. “He’s made it more of a community.”
In addition to Ghetto Gronk, familiar DFS faces like RotoWire, Fantasy Pros, and The 33rd Team have all partnered with Locker. “Our company’s done a really good job of networking and establishing relationships with the athletes in our space, but other than that, we set up a big sales campaign,” Bernstein said. “We’re looking for someone who buys into us. We help however we can, and we want them to be successful.”
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