How online casinos can unwrap 85+ more FTDs this Christmas

Joonas Karhu, Chief Business Officer at Bojoko, gives online casino operators the gift of 85 additional FTDs between now and Christmas.

Marketing is one of the great challenges online casino operators face, both in terms of how to capture player attention and doing it at scale and for a favourable ROI. This is certainly the case for smaller operators that don’t have the multi-million-pound budgets of their larger rivals.

This is why a lot of new online casinos turn to affiliates to aid with player acquisition, with sites such as Bojoko providing a cost-effective way of engaging players and converting them into first time depositors. Effectively, operators pay for what they get.

Bojoko has been sending players to online casino brands for more than three years now, and over that time we have generated tens of thousands of FTDs for our partners. This has enabled us to gather reams of data, which we believe can help operators drive conversions and FTDs.

With Christmas just around the corner, we want to share this unique data with online casinos so that they can tweak their propositions and better meet the needs and preferences of players that arrive at their casino either through an affiliate or any other marketing channel.

Those that do react to the data and suggestions we provide below and sign up to, and list their sites on, Bojoko could unwrap an additional 85+ first time depositors between now and Christmas.

Low minimum deposit:

The first thing operators should do is remove the “cost” barrier to entry by offering a low minimum deposit for new players. This can be applied only to their first deposit and then the standard £10 minimum deposit applied thereafter.

Our data shows that online casinos that offer low minimum deposits of £1 – £5 can enjoy an additional 3 – 10 FTDs per month. We recommend going as low as possible (so £1) but our partners that offer £5 deposits achieve good results too.

Some casinos apply the low minimum deposit to all future transactions, but if you are worried about the cost of doing so just offer it for the first deposit.

No deposit bonus:

Online casino operators spend huge sums of money in order to retain the players they have acquired but churn comes down to a magnitude of factors and most of which fall outside of the remit and the control of the marketing team.

With that in mind, we recommend that marketers divert additional budget and resources towards player acquisition and one of the most effective ways to do this is with no deposit bonuses. These are a great way of standing out from your rivals and introducing players to your brand.

Not many casinos offer no deposit bonuses – which can be offered as free cash, free spins or a combination of the two – so can be used as a real point of difference. They also allow players to try your casino before depositing and playing with their own money.

Our data shows that the no deposit bonus does not have to be overly generous – 10 free spins on registration will suffice – and much of the cost associated with offering the free bonus can be recovered through wagering requirements on any winnings.

Those that do offer a no deposit bonus could generate between 5-15 additional FTDs per month if listed on Bojoko.

No wagering bonus:

More than ever before, players understand the terms and conditions that bonus offers come with and in particular wagering requirements. As such, we have seen a huge rise in interest around online casinos that do not impose any wagering requirements whatsoever.

Our unique data shows the optimal new player acquisition bonus is No deposit free spins on registration + no wagering free spins on first deposit. As mentioned above, the number of free spins does not have to be great – just 5 or 10 will suffice.

When it comes to no wagering free spins, operators that can offer 30 or more could enjoy an additional 40 FTDs each month.

200% + first deposit bonus:

Players love it when the online casino matches their deposit up to a certain percentage and value, and the higher the percentage the more value they see in the offer. In fact, players are more concerned about the percentage than the value it is matched to.

This means operators could actually lower the cost of the bonus by offering a higher percentage match but smaller matched value. For example, offer 200% up to £75 instead of 100% up to £120. Those that do could secure up to 12 more FTDs per month.

Offer alternative payment methods:

A growing number of players are using alternative payment methods such as PayPal, Boku and Paybymobile and Skrill to deposit into and withdraw from their casino accounts and wallets. Online casinos should recognise this and add as many APMs to their banking as possible.

By doing this, they are removing a barrier to entry and also offering players a superior experience. Casinos that offer APMs and are listed on Bojoko can enjoy between 4-10 additional first-time depositors each month.

Bojoko has been sending players to online casinos for more than three years and the data we have gathered over that time shows exactly what they are looking for when deciding where to play.

By implementing all or some of the above, online casinos can ramp up FTDs not only for Christmas but beyond.