Attractive gambling offers like Free-to-Play sessions or bets-on-the-house are among the most popular and frequently used retention tools in the amusement segment. Operators spend a lot of money providing these incentives in an attempt to receive a wide base of regular, loyal customers.
Such a strategy is not always profitable with some audience categories, though. The University of Nevada, Las Vegas experts reached that conclusion in their new study.
Key Findings of the Research
Anthony Lucas, a specialist at UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hospitality, analysed the performance of F2P retention programs. He proved that reducing the number of free campaigns has almost no effect on punters' overall visitation and spending.
The researcher does not imply that such casino incentives are bad. However, they show decreasing efficiency across many gaming locations, and returns from these tools become indefinite. Casino operators should at least consider other instruments for retaining customers to maximise productivity.
Mr Lucas said that free sessions and similar offers have 2 main goals:
- increasing visitation levels;
- enlarging the client’s average check.
The study demonstrated that such content does not deliver the desired outcomes. The researcher noted that modern players prefer variety. F2P options used to cover that need, but now, they are slowly losing positions in this regard. The time has come to implement new casino marketing tools.
Basis for the Conclusions
Mr Lucas has studied the gaming vertical for 40 years and has collaborated with the UNLV since 2001.
The expert’s responsibilities include consultations on the following aspects:
- financial audits;
- promotion campaigns;
- management of operations.
The research, which questioned the effectiveness of F2P instruments, was conducted using information from a tribal casino in the Western States. In the 1st year of the investigation, 400 establishment visitors received $ 15 a week each for free bets on the machines. During the next 12 months, the audience was divided into 4 groups, regularly receiving $ 0−15 from the institution.
The analysts wanted to see how visit frequency and spending change in different circumstances. The study surprised everyone by showing that the parameters did not decline after reducing the incentives. Only players who enjoyed gambling without F2P bonuses at all demonstrated a drop in visitation by nearly 20%.
Free Games Effectiveness: Final Notions
Gambling facilities demonstrate impressive competitiveness and constantly increase their spending on bonuses. A typical American casino can invest 10s of millions of dollars a year to maintain its F2P program. This situation is caused by the limited amount of available clients and the need to work harder to interest them more than other venues do.
Mr Lucas mentioned that some operators find it hard to change marketing campaigns as this may increase risks. Nevertheless, it is impossible to neglect the study’s results. Money spent on free content could have covered other essential business aspects, such as levelling up customer service or renovating halls. These improvements also positively affect player loyalty and average check.
You can learn more about the key gaming trends and order a turnkey online casino project with top-notch software at our studio.
We also help operators with other crucial tasks, such as licensing, promotion, business plan development, scaling up, etc.
If you want to strengthen your gambling project with up-to-date technology and strategies, feel free to contact the managers at the Casino Market aggregator.
Have questions or want to order services?
Contact our consultants:
- e-mail: manager@casino-market.com
- Skype: support.casinosupermarket
- feedback form.
Check the information used to contact us carefully. It is necessary for your safety.
Fraudsters can use contacts that look like ours to scam customers. Therefore, we ask you to enter only the addresses that are indicated on our official website.
Be careful! Our team is not responsible for the activities of persons using similar contact details.
