The world of online casinos is an incredibly competitive one and developers look for every edge to steal a march on their peers.
For businesses in other sectors, this is important because we see companies that understand and adopt new methods of attracting customers originally developed in the casino sector can often become more competitive in their own sector.
So how are online casinos changing and how can other sectors benefit from the developments?
Focusing on mobile
Online casinos used to be the domain of the desktop and laptop user but operators rapidly realised that the ability to appeal to users of mobile devices was crucial to their growth. And indeed they weren’t wrong. In fact, more than half of internet traffic worldwide comes from mobile platforms.
Building a website that only works on less than 50% of devices is madness and yet that’s what many companies in other sectors do. Executives are often to be found checking that their websites work on their desktop and ignoring mobile completely which seems ridiculous in light of the statistics.
What’s interesting in growth terms is that emerging markets appear to have almost entirely skipped the desktop phase of development and adopted mobile. This means that for online casinos as well as other businesses, growth is now most likely to come from emerging markets and that means mobile.
The message for other sectors is simple – if you want to grow then you ignore mobile at your peril.
It’s long been known that Google favours sites that work well on mobile devices and for businesses in sectors away from gambling this is an important point that online casinos have rapidly grasped. High search placement means more hits and for businesses that depend on internet sales search is a key part of their strategy. But oddly, many businesses simply spend more money on paying for placement and advertising rather than exploring the potential of the mobile market.
For any business that wants to use the web to its true potential, mobile is the way to go.
Accepting crypto
Cryptocurrencies like bitcoin used to be on the fringes of society but now more than ever, crypto is becoming mainstream with many developing countries looking at the benefits of mining and adopting it as a stable legal tender option.
This means that cryptocurrency is a much more viable payment option and online companies have grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Making payment easier for customers such as in an Ethereum casino is an important feature of any forward-thinking business and accepting crypto is simply another way of adding customer focus to the payment process.
If customers enjoy the games and are able to pay in a way that they feel comfortable with then that is likely to encourage repeat custom. Whilst it is true that the crypto payment landscape is still emerging there is an important point here. First movers are likely to obtain a significant competitive advantage and this is especially true of companies that sell to early adopters. Early adopters of crypto are likely to be younger, be more tech-savvy and be working in sectors such as tech, marketing or gaming and some of them are very very rich. The question for companies that serve these markets is what advantage would it give them if they were the only car dealer, accountant or even coffee shop that accepted bitcoin?
Gamification and community
Repeat custom is the mainstay of any business and for online casinos, it is even more important.
With such a high level of competition, it is important to ensure that customers visit over and over rather than conducting a Google search every time they want to play. What has been interesting is that in order to develop repeat visits, online casinos have taken a leaf out of their online game counterparts and developed gamification strategies.
Giving people rewards for repeated visits, implementing different levels of membership dependent upon time spent on the platform or carrying out tasks enhances the experience. Alongside this adding in a community aspect with chat functionality, ‘teams’ and groupings gives people more reasons to visit rather than just to gamble. All of these aspects mean that the user forms a habit of visiting the site and doesn’t need to look for another provider.
Companies that can use the twin aspects of gamification and community building are more likely to develop a loyal customer base and see repeat purchases.
Summary: Why businesses should watch online casinos
There is an old saying that “when America sneezes the rest of the world catches a cold” and to an extent, the same cause and effect relationship is true with online casinos and more traditional businesses.
Online casinos were at the forefront of SEO, UX design, UX analytics and remarketing – all things that are now accepted as part and parcel of a holistic web strategy, In other words, whatever online casinos are doing today, other businesses will be doing tomorrow.
Like all things businesses have a choice; they can develop their marketing strategy when they are forced to by the competition or they can be at the cutting edge of web marketing for their sector by watching developments in the ultra-competitive world of online casinos and then asking themselves how they can apply that to their own business.
Any company that wants to develop or maintain its competitive advantage has to look outside of its sector and the online casino arena is certainly one to keep an eye on.
Please play responsibly. For more information and advice visit www.begambleaware.org
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