casino (©Longxiang Qian)

When online casinos first emerged during the early days of the internet in the mid-1990s, few could have foreseen the gargantuan industry which has now come about. Astonishingly, the online gambling sector is continuing to grow and, according to Mordor Intelligence, is projected to rise at a CAGR of 8.77 percent between 2019 and 2024.

With climbing revenues come greater numbers of players and, of course, more places to play. For this reason, operators need to incorporate a number of techniques to attract and retain players.

Building a solid reputation

To determine what the best techniques are for online casinos to use, it’s wise to look at a brand which has managed to survive all the various changes to the sector over the years. Jackpot City is one of the stalwarts of the industry, having been in existence since 1998. Over the past two decades, the Canadian site has built up a reputation for being trustworthy and reliable with a great selection of games and bonuses.

It’s the bonuses and promotions which act as the main selling point for online casinos to draw in customers and keep them playing at a site. The giants of the industry can obviously afford to offer more than the newcomers, which helps them to bring in players. Jackpot City has a highly lucrative welcome bonus of up to C$1600 with 60 free spins. This can give players a vast amount of free playing money with which to explore the site. This can give players enough time to fall in love with the games at the site and make them want to continue playing there.

Retaining customers through special promotions

Once online casinos have attracted players, they want to retain them. In order to do this, loyalty schemes are often seen as the best option. Jackpot City has a VIP program which gives players privileges along with a personal host to handle their accounts. There are also special promotions which come in the form of daily and weekly prizes.

New and existing iGaming operators should use the tried-and-tested methods of successful businesses from the inception of the industry up to now. But they should also be looking to the future and aiming to predict what players may want from an online casino in the years to come.

What does the future hold?

One of the biggest emerging trends is eSports and the competitive gaming sector is beginning to form strong links with iGaming. This has been seen with a number of land-based casinos in Las Vegas and Macao building eSports stadiums in recent years. Online casinos that offer some form of competitive gaming could attract eSports aficionados and encourage them to play casino games.

When it comes down to attracting players, a wide selection of games and lucrative bonuses seem to be key. For online casinos to retain these players, they need to offer reward programmes as well as develop a solid reputation.