Bookmaker Bonuses as the Best Tool to Attract the Target Audience

Sportsbook owners dream of good traffic to their sites and try to get betters to actively register and make deposits. It is possible to achieve these goals with the help of a balanced bonus policy.

The Online Casino Market company explains what types of promotions are offered by modern bookmakers and shows how they affect traffic and the profitability of iGaming sites.

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What are Bonuses from Betting Sites?

A popular type of reward for gamers gives a good multiplier effect with minimal start-up costs.

Operators encourage customers to fill out a registration form, make a replenishment, place a stake, and be active on the betting site.

Bonuses allow entrepreneurs to:

• attract solvent traffic to sites;
• increase the number of re-registrations;
• improve communication with clients;
• launch an image advertising campaign;
• improve the position in the highly competitive betting market, etc.

Bonuses have become one of the main means of fighting for customers. Each bookmaker offers at least one welcome prize, as well as sign-up and referral rewards. Operators also encourage high activity on their sites and participation in various tournaments and contests.

Rewards are one of the key elements of affiliate programs and a mandatory cost item for entrepreneurs. Bonus payments are included in operating expenses. They are used to calculate NGR (net gaming revenue), ROMI (return on marketing investment), and other metrics.

Why Bonuses Attract Solvent Internet Traffic

Every year, projects launch more interesting advertising campaigns. The central place is occupied by bonuses. They make up the lion's share of marketing costs, along with fees for the services of an SEO specialist or the cost of banners on third-party resources.

The benefits of using bonuses to increase online traffic are as follows:

What Formats of Rewards Do Operators Offer?

Consider popular gratification options:

Sign-Up Bonus

This is a no-deposit reward. It is accrued to all customers who have filled out the registration form on the site and successfully passed verification. Sign-Up Bonus sometimes may require wagering. However, the reward amount will always be small.

The distribution of no-deposit bonuses is an image campaign for bookmakers. It contributes to the rapid growth of Internet traffic. Nevertheless, the operator's revenues do not increase at the same rate.

Free Bet

Such bonuses are credited to:

• new customers after making an initial deposit;
• regular players before special occasions (a better’s birthday, New Year holidays, a wagering shop’s anniversary, the start of a major sporting event, etc.).

The main condition: the money is not credited to the player’s balance. However, it is provided as a free bet — one or more. Moreover, in case of a victory, only the winnings will be credited to the gambler’s account without the cost of the initial bet.

For example, a client placed a €20 FreeBet-Bonu and won €60. The balance will only increase by €40 (€60 minus €20).

Free Play

This type of reward is similar to the previous one. However, funds are credited to a special bonus account only after the better has met the specified conditions:

• subscribing;
• a stake in the online totalisator;
• registration in the prediction tournament, etc.

Cash Bonus

This is the most popular bonus among bookmakers. The gambler is charged a certain additional amount for each bet made. Most often, it is a percentage of the sum. For example, a client deposits €100 to the balance and receives another 20% — €20.

It is not possible to withdraw money from the bookmaker immediately. First, the punter has to wager it several times.

Reload Bonus

This type of reward is given for renewing an account or re-depositing.

Money Back

This is the type of insurance. The bookmaker will return the client the whole bet in case of loss, but only if the wager was made following the previously determined conditions of the sportsbook. Most often, this is the coefficient, the lowest bet size, the sport or the nature of the competition.

Referral Bonus

This is a reward for inviting a friend. Registration of a new member must be completed using a special referral link.

A regular client of the bookmaker and a verified gambler will receive good bonuses on their gaming accounts.

Special Bonus

These are rewards prior to major tournaments and crucial sporting events.

The bonus can be presented as:

• a free bet;
• additional cashout;
• loss insurance, etc.

Comboboost

This bonus is credited only on multiple bets (on several unrelated events taking place at the same time). The bookmaker gives the gamer additional sets of odds that increase the potential prize.

The betting provider presents Comboboost to regular customers who:

• stay on the gambling site for a long time;
• make bets constantly;
• are active players.

Bonus Wagering Requirements

Almost all types of rewards are provided with a wager.

This is a set of commands and characteristics. By completing them, the gambler receives bonus funds. Most often, it is displayed as a coefficient (for example, x3 or x10) — the number of bets that the gamer must make before withdrawing them.

Sometimes bookmakers set additional wagering requirements:

• types of bets (single, express, total, handicap, etc.);
• sports (soccer, hockey, basketball, and others);
• specific events (for example, the Grand Slam tournament);
• the period during which the gambler should wager the money.

The features of withdrawing bonus funds are as follows:

1. About 10% of bookmakers set the maximum wager. The gamer has to bet the bonus money 8-10 times before withdrawing it. The rest of the sites offer more loyal terms with x3–x6 wagering requirements.
2. The optimal period for winning back funds is 7-10 days. This time is quite enough to bet the received amount with a given coefficient.
3. Almost all bookmakers prohibit withdrawing funds without fulfilling the wager’s conditions. Until this moment, the money is blocked on the game account.

The use of wagers is one of the key elements of the sportsbook’s bonus policy. The solution allows operators to adequately distribute the costs of the affiliate program. The money is not wasted. It immediately goes into the turnover of betting resources and brings additional profit.

Wagers increase the effectiveness of the fight against bonus hunting. This strategy provides for the registration and verification of users on different sites to receive free promotions. Reward hunters are not initially set up for the game. Therefore, they do not generate income.

Wagers allow entrepreneurs to weed out unscrupulous gamblers even at the stage of signing-up and making an initial deposit. Thanks to them, the bookmaker spends money on attracting only solvent Internet traffic.

The Legislation in Leading Jurisdictions

Bonuses are an integral part of the betters’ attraction and retention policy and are strictly controlled by the gaming commissions.

In some jurisdictions, this issue is not regulated in any way. However, a trend towards tightening the conditions for accruing prizes has been observed recently. The state is trying to control the advertising of bookmakers.

The features of regulation in leading gambling jurisdictions are as follows:

1. Sweden. From June 1, 2020, the maximum reward per player is capped at 100 SEK ($10.7 equivalent). In addition, the country has a “one player — one bonus” rule. Leading bookmakers (William Hill, Betsson, Kindred Group, etc.) expressed dissatisfaction with the innovations. However, all top companies continue to work in the local market.
2. Spain. The country has an extensive regulation program — Royal Decree. It controls the betting market communications segment. Thus, bookmakers are prohibited from mentioning bonuses in their advertisements as they are a method of attracting new customers and retaining the audience. The welcome reward is capped at €200 per user.
3. Great Britain. The local regulator UKGC has introduced a tax on all bonuses accrued to bookmaker visitors. The requirement applies to free bets, welcome gifts, cashback, and other types of promotions. The tax rate is 21%.

The Main Things about Rewards for Bookmakers’ Clients

The distribution of bonuses is an effective method of attracting solvent Internet traffic.

• The advantages of the solution include getting exclusive attention from the target audience, enhancing the conversion on the site, growing turnover, improving image indicators, and increasing the return on advertising costs.
• Bonuses are an integral part of the bookmakers’ operating expenses. They are used to calculate NGR (net gaming revenue), ROMI (percentage of promotion return), and other KPIs.
• The main types of gratification are no-deposit rewards, welcome gifts, first-deposit incentives, free bets, and cash bonuses. A gamer can receive several types of prizes at once if this is not prohibited by law.
• Almost all reward options come with wagering requirements. This is a requirement for betting with prize money. Bookmakers set the coefficient with which the user needs to wager money on the site, the time frame, and preferences for bet types and sporting events.
• The legislation of the leading European countries is aimed at limiting the accrual of bonuses. Regulators set daily and weekly restrictions on the amount of remuneration, introduce additional taxes, prohibit mentioning the rewards in advertising, etc.

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Online Casino Market provides useful iGaming services:

• the connection of a bookmaker site under a franchise agreement;
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