FDJ United Rewrote the Rules with Optimove’s Positionless Marketing
“In the past, we needed seven teams and six weeks to send a single campaign. Now, one person can do it in a day.” – Rachel Parker, Global Head of Customer Marketing, FDJ United (formerly Kindred Group)
FDJ United, a major global gaming and sports betting operator with more than 33 million players across multiple markets, faced a familiar and increasingly perplexing marketing challenge: complexity.
A legacy structure involved multiple brands, fragmented systems, and overlapping teams. Marketing campaigns, even those of modest scale, often required seven different departments and several weeks of coordination to execute. If one group experienced a delay, the entire process stalled. Campaigns frequently missed critical windows of opportunity, and performance was difficult to track or improve in a unified way.
The structure had grown cumbersome, unsustainable, and out of step with the speed and precision required in modern iGaming marketing. FDJ United needed an innovative approach that would reduce friction, eliminate silos, and empower its marketers to act with agility and confidence.
That new approach came in the form of Positionless Marketing.
Positionless Marketing, as introduced by Optimove, is a marketing philosophy and technology framework that removes traditional role-based bottlenecks. It enables any marketer to perform the full spectrum of tasks like data analysis, campaign creation, content management, and optimisation without waiting on technical, analytical, or creative teams. For FDJ United, this marked a profound shift, not only in operational workflows but also in company culture.
Three strategic imperatives to guide the transformation to Positionless Marketing
The company’s transformation was guided by three strategic imperatives: standardisation, automation, and optimisation.
The first step, standardisation, involved consolidating platforms and aligning on a shared set of global channels and use cases. Redundant tools and conflicting processes were phased out, allowing for more efficient planning and execution.
Next came automation. The team carefully deconstructed their campaign workflows, identifying each component task and determining where automation or self-service capabilities could replace manual steps. This was particularly impactful in areas such as creative production, segmentation, and data reporting functions that previously required handoffs between teams.
Finally, optimisation. With real-time measurement built into the system, marketers could analyse campaign performance instantly and refine their approach continuously, rather than relying on post-campaign debriefs.
Immediate and substantial results
The results were immediate and substantial. Campaign lead times were reduced from six weeks to a few hours. What once required coordination between seven teams could now be completed by a single marketer. The gains in efficiency translated directly into improved responsiveness, greater personalisation, and increased business value.
For example, FDJ United now uses pre-built templates and autonomous workflows to respond instantly to jackpot drops, gaining a competitive edge in time-sensitive communications. In another case, the onboarding process for VIP players, which had previously required 32 hours of work from an account manager, was fully automated, allowing staff to redirect their focus to relationship-building activities.
Positionless Marketing went beyond operational improvements
The impact of Positionless Marketing was not limited to operational metrics. It also instilled a new sense of ownership across the team. Campaigns were no longer the product of disjointed handoffs; they were the responsibility of individuals empowered to own the process from start to finish. This shift created greater accountability, faster learning cycles, and a stronger sense of pride among team members.
“In the past, we had shared responsibility, which really meant no responsibility,” said Georgi Pepelyankov, Head of Marketing Transformation at FDJ United. “Now, one person owns a campaign from end to end. They build it, launch it, and learn from it.”
As the company looks ahead, it plans to deepen its Positionless capabilities by consolidating more platforms, expanding automation to additional customer touchpoints, and advancing its personalisation strategies through AI and machine learning. Every initiative is informed by the Positionless mindset: eliminate barriers, increase trust, and equip marketers with the tools they need to succeed.
The experience of FDJ United demonstrates that Positionless Marketing is not merely a trend or a technology; it is a fundamental rethinking of how marketing can and should work in a fast-paced, customer-centric world. By removing friction and reimagining responsibility, the company has built a marketing function that is not only faster and more efficient, but also more resilient, agile, and accountable.
FDJ United stands as a clear example of what is possible when teams are empowered to move beyond traditional limits. Today, success requires more than doing one thing well; it demands the ability to do anything and be everything. FDJ United has proven that with the right mindset and technology, that vision is achievable.
