VIP and Loyalty Casino Bonuses Get More Competitive

VIP and loyalty bonuses keep people playing at online casinos. With so many operators all throwing bonuses at new players, retention has become even more vital.

Search online for a new casino platform, and you will soon find yourself swimming in bonuses. From free spins to matched deposits, there can often be little to differentiate them. In this competitive field, keeping hold of customers has become just as vital as finding new ones. The result is that loyalty bonuses and VIP rewards are becoming more competitive.

What Are Loyalty and VIP Bonuses?

A loyalty bonus is a reward given to players at online casinos for their continued use of the service. This can take many different forms, from free spins every time they log in to matched amounts when deposits are made. Some of them may even operate a points system, the likes of which you would find in a supermarket.

A VIP bonus is similar, but it tends to exist for the high rollers. These are people who deposit larger amounts at online casinos. They can tend to be tiered, so they may work in bronze, silver, gold, and platinum stages, and the more people deposit, the more generous the bonuses become. While useful, they should never be used to make people deposit more than they can afford and gambling should always be responsible.

An example of this can be found at SpinBet online casino, which even extends to diamond tiers. Each level is staggered and is accessible through the accumulation of points. Higher levels even have physical prizes, such as cars and flights. They also provide free spins every Wednesday for those who only want to play in smaller denominations. This means everyone gets to benefit, and customers can gamble within their means and still get free incentives. While loyalty schemes can improve user experience, operators should ensure incentives do not encourage excessive gambling behaviour.

The Appeal of Customer Retention

Customer retention is the ability to turn a customer into a repeat purchaser. Some businesses naturally lend themselves to this. A refrigerator company may struggle, as they are high-ticket, one-off purchases. Yet for casinos, such as Spinbet, the product is one in which people come back time and time again. The appeal in getting customers to stay on a platform lies in the following:

1. Cheaper than acquiring new customers
2. Worth more to a business
3. Increase customer satisfaction, word of mouth and referrals
4. Customers spend more over time

A study in the Harvard Business Review found that getting a new customer can be between five and 25 times more costly than keeping an existing one. Studies have also shown that existing customers are 50% more likely to buy or try new products than new ones. A further study by Bain and Co found that retaining as little as 5% of a customer base can improve revenue by between 25-95%.

How Will This Impact Casino Bonuses?

PlayToday estimates that there are around 4,792 global online casino businesses, of which 2000 are online. At the time of writing, this is likely to have grown. Thus, competition is as fierce as it has ever been, and the most astute casinos like SpinBet are moving from new customer acquisition to retention.

This has manifested in two additional ways, increasing value beyond just loyalty and VIP bonuses. The first is through the wagering requirement, which is an amount that states how much you must deposit and play through before you can withdraw any funds won from a bonus. Higher numbers are less generous, making it almost impossible to take out money won. The result of this is obvious: people sign up, realise the bonus wasn’t that generous at all, and go elsewhere. On average, SpinBet has wagering requirements of 35x, an industry standard.

Another shift is the one towards cashback. An increasingly used form of bonus, it provides gamblers with a portion of the money they have lost. This taps into fundamental human psychology, in which people would rather save money than get something for free. A study by the Centre for Generational Kinetics found that by providing 5% cashback, millennial and Gen Z consumers spent even more.

Thus, the concept of casino bonuses is changing. Throwing free spins and matched deposits are no longer viable. In a competitive field, increased value is being given to players. This is taking the form of VIP and loyalty bonuses. Yet it is also showing in other ways, including wagering requirements and cashback offers.

Responsible Gambling Disclaimer – Gambling is a form of entertainment, and should never be viewed as a way to make money. If you feel it is becoming a problem, take regular breaks, set limits and don’t be afraid to get assistance. Always use VIP and loyalty bonuses responsibly.