More and more fans of games of chance find online betting to be one of the most entertaining activities in the digital world. That’s why different iGaming providers aim to attract and retain loyal clients on their online platforms.

The industry is highly competitive, making it challenging to keep pace with the top players in the gambling field. To attract more players to your platform and maintain a high pace, you need a robust marketing and promotional strategy.

Coming up with a viable business plan focusing on attracting and retaining players might sound like an easy job, but rest assured, it takes a lot of preparation and resource management.

How to attract players?

Attracting new players in a segmented market is difficult and continuous work, that requires careful strategizing and focus on your platform’s advantages over the competition. The online casino employs several methods to attract new players. We will go through the most common ones.

Visual appeal

Players are attracted to visually appealing games with innovative features and frequent payouts in online casinos. Leading companies within the industry are aware of this preference and prioritise enhancing their platforms’ visual and auditory aspects.

They cleverly incorporate popular culture themes to create a more captivating site and attract a more extensive user base. Therefore, it is important to note the crucial role of market research, as in different countries different visuals attract potential players.

Website efficiency

To gain a competitive advantage is crucial to create a positive User Experience. This includes optimising your website to load fast and prevent from making your visitors wait.

In addition, it is necessary to make your platform mobile-friendly and ensure that your payment system is working efficiently. Therefore, another essential component is creating a user-friendly interface, which will navigate efficiently your customers and will improve their experience.

Attractive bonus system

An online casino seeking to expand its user base should regularly provide promotions and bonuses to its players. One of the strategies that is very efficient in attracting new players is introducing welcome packages.

In addition, among the most popular promotions are no deposit bonuses, which require no initial payment. Furthermore, online platforms should offer free spins, allowing gamblers to try their favourite slots without risking their funds.

By introducing innovative concepts and promotional offers, casinos can enhance their players’ overall experience and reward them.

High payouts

The payout percentage signifies the money slot players can potentially receive from their wagers. Online casinos present a range of payout percentages, typically between 94% and 98%. For instance, if a slot offers a 94% payout rate, players can anticipate receiving €94 for every €100 wagered.

Customers consistently seek casinos with the most favourable payout percentages to maximise their betting returns. When examining various online casinos, it becomes clear that many promote high payout percentages to attract customers.

Run special offers

Various promotions and bonuses effectively incentivize users to register an account, make deposits, or engage in specific games. Promotions are a valuable tool for cross-selling, as they can intrigue enthusiasts to try sports betting.

Special offers regularly used to attract new players to online casinos include free spins and bets, sign-up and cashback bonuses, and referral and loyalty rewards.

How to market your online casino?

In an increasingly competitive market, it becomes vital for an online gambling enterprise to evolve constantly, and creating a solid marketing strategy might be the best advantage.

A prospective player can be transformed into a lead by harnessing the appropriate strategic marketing resources. To optimise your conversion rate, exploring which marketing tools prove most efficient at every point in the client‘s journey is crucial.

Sponsorships

Legal constraints frequently bind conventional advertising approaches, yet sponsorships provide a means to increase brand recognition while complying with advertising regulations. This collaborative model is mutually beneficial for gambling brands and third parties and has gained widespread prominence in the gambling industry.

SEO & PPC

A crucial element of a successful marketing strategy lies in SEO optimization. A well-optimised website can secure a top spot on the first page of search results, which might contribute to improving brand awareness.

Despite the organic traffic, gambling websites employ paid advertisements as well. Various online advertising techniques are available – however, during the initial phase of promoting an iGaming venture, pay-per-click (PPC) and display advertising are the most effective.

Partnerships with iGaming operators

Unless you only offer your in-house games, you would want to team up with someone with the reputation and expertise in iGaming entertainment. Therefore, variety is among the main requirements so that you can match as many potential players as possible with their specific desires.

Working with partners that offer diverse products will give you that, especially when they have proven to be player favourites.

Content

Consistently sharing casino-related content on your website and social media channels, such as trending online casino games, top slots, tournaments, special events, and favourite casino experiences, can be highly effective. The reason is that most people are looking for recommendations before playing at an online casino.

Creating a news and blog section for your online casino is an easy first step in online marketing, providing valuable content and building a loyal audience. The best way to improve your website’s search engine ranking is through content optimization. This is the primary way that potential players will find your website.

Retargeting

This online marketing strategy is designed to reach out to individuals who previously visited your casino website or are a contact in your database. That can be users you wish to return to the website or those who departed without engaging in slot games or making a deposit.

These visitors are exposed to your online casino advertisements as they navigate the internet, visit social media platforms, or even check their email. Retargeting provides an opportunity to connect with customers, generate more revenue, and play a more relevant role in their digital experiences.

According to SharpSpring, if visitors express interest in your website, there’s a substantial 70% likelihood that they will re-engage with your establishment. Therefore, retargeting these authentic visitors is beneficial in driving traffic to your website and ultimately converting them into valuable “customers” or “players”.

Cross-selling and upselling are also marketing strategies that aim to increase the value of each customer by encouraging them to play or enter a particular game or tournament, to receive a specific bonus, or to join an event you are planning.

How to keep players?

Attracting people to visit your website and play your games is important – however, keeping them for longer and making them return is more challenging. There are different methods to accomplish this task.

Loyalty programs

Loyalty programs have gained immense popularity within the online casino industry. They serve as an instrument to build a strong relationship with regular users, offering them unique and supplementary incentives.

To launch a successful loyalty program, the iGaming companies should integrate a Customer Relationship Management system. Therefore, this will contribute to systemizing information, keeping track of the player’s activities, and implementing various rewards within your games.

These incentives can take various forms, including extra bonuses, coin accumulation, access to exclusive content, and many other benefits. Rewarding your customers encourages them to remain engaged with your casino for extended periods, creating a sense of enjoyment and loyalty.

Affiliate programs

The internet hosts various websites and platforms with direct or indirect connections to the gambling business, from news and review websites to different online platforms where streamers share their content. Affiliate marketing enables these various content creators to work with online casinos for mutual benefit.

The process looks like this: When a company approves affiliates, they receive unique tracking links, which record the traffic and users attracted. Affiliates curate compelling content across various platforms, strategically capturing the attention of potential customers. They earn a commission through affiliate links for each successful conversion.

Partnering with casino content creators/influencers is an effective advertising method because both companies and creators/influencers benefit from affiliate marketing. Brands receive referrals from relevant and trusted creators/influencers, while affiliates earn commissions through affiliate links. This strategy builds trust in your business while expanding your reach to a broader audience.

In-game bonus system

Providing in-game bonuses is an efficient method for online gambling platforms to enhance customer loyalty. Bonus offers range from straightforward cash rewards to enticing benefits like free spins or exclusive offers. Cash bonuses can serve as incentives to keep players engaged, while other rewards may be linked to a player’s in-game achievements.

Online tournaments

Organising tournaments and races is one of the most powerful player retention strategies in online gambling. This approach effectively maintains player engagement and interest, increasing their time on the site.

It introduces an element of anticipation and excitement, which attracts the player’s attention. Besides the allure of potential prizes, tournaments and races cultivate a competitive atmosphere, which makes participation more enjoyable for players.

Releasing new games
Regularly incorporating new games is a crucial component of an effective player retention strategy for online gambling. Implementing new content into your website provides customers with something novel and exhilarating to anticipate.

It may include a new game genre, title, or innovative feature. Overall, the primary objective is to guarantee that the content is captivating and enjoyable for your players. Equally important is integrating new features within the existing games, ensuring easy discoverability and playability. In addition, promoting the new content is essential to inform players about the novelties within your website.

Conclusion

Digitising the gambling sector enables big data technology to engage, retain, and expand player relationships. Moreover, creating an efficient marketing strategy today goes beyond simply gathering user data.

At the moment, machine learning and automated processes are iGaming’s first stages of marketing evolution. As innovation progresses, sophisticated systems and platforms will complement the gambling industry’s knowledge, increasing product usage and stimulating consumer interest.