Laying a book
05 Make profits from someone else's research 
/ Betfair Education / 29 January 2008 / Leave a comment
Click on 'Lay All', then offer a slightly better price on all selections - say 1.82, 3.40, 4.10 - forming a market of 108.7% - check this by using the Book % function at the bottom of the My Bets slip (you will need to enter default stakes first). You are now top price on the favourite, but still in the mix on the others, and with some margin (the 8.7%) up your sleeve to manoeuvre later.
Click on 'Liability' to set how much you are prepared to lose on each selection. If you are keen to lay the home side as per the 'expert opinion' of XYZBookie, then offer to lay Aldershot to lose £100, with just £50 of risk on the other pair. With your conservative prices on the draw & away options, you might not get matched anyway. If you wanted to lay all three options for the same amount, use the Payout link instead of Liability. Look at the potential profit & loss figures amongst the teams (you must have the 'What If' feature ticked) rather than the individual liability/profit on the bet slip.
Note that when you are entering an amount as the 'lay' figure, this is the stake that the backer can take on the other side, NOT the risk- so to risk £100 on Aldershot at 1.82, you will need to offer £121.95 on your lay.
Minor markets
In smaller markets, don't expect these funds to be matched instantly. You may need to wait several hours or even a couple of days. Check back on the market every few hours to see your position. If you are still head of the market, then be patient. But if someone has jumped ahead of you, you will have to tweak your odds a little, remembering to keep the percentages in your favour. This might sound like a lot of hassle, but it can reward you greatly if you take the time to mould the market your way.
Popular markets might have thousands of people monitoring them and wanting to have a bet - it is very hard to be smarter than every one of them. But in a market where only 20-50 people are interested, your chances of success are much greater!
And remember this - if you get to the market first, you can post offers as short as you like. The vast majority of exchange punters are market TAKERS rather than market MAKERS - they either don't understand the concept of value or aren't prepared to risk it. Be prepared to ask for a price and have patience. The majority of punters lose - good reason to avoid what most people do. Lay low, back high and you'll be well on the road to success on the exchanges!
