Since we’re still a while away from the return of sports, it’s important for those who relied on this for income to pivot elsewhere. A vertical that one could argue is overlooked would be bingo.
Bingo has been a mainstay social event for years and despite attracting an older demographic, much of it has moved online.
Keen to know whether or not this vertical could be a profitable one for you? Well it’s good that you’re reading this, because that’s what we’re going to talk about today.
What does the average online bingo player look like?
According to WhichBingo’s Online Bingo Annual Report 2020, the majority of players fall into older age brackets. 27% are aged 55-64, with 26% falling within the 45-54 category. Meanwhile, 25% are aged 35-44 and 17% 25-34.
The gender split shifts heavily towards females, with 78% of the report’s participants being women.
In general, the largest chunk of bingo players in the survey used between two and five different sites. 28% used just one, while 21.5% shopped around with 6-10.
The number of people playing bingo on only mobile rose from 27% in 2018 to 36.5% last year. 29.5% participated from multiple devices, down from the previous year’s figure of 36%. Laptop usage is also going down, with 18% of individuals playing via this form of technology compared to 25% in 2018.
In terms of bonuses, 67.5% of bingo players said that they would prefer to have no bonus and withdraw at any time (2018: 55%). On the flip side, 32.5% said they would like to have a bonus – while having withdrawals restricted until they reach a specific threshold (2018: 45%).
What are the pros of bingo affiliate marketing?
By dissecting the report’s statistics, it would appear that most bingo players are responsible. They tend to deposit small amounts over the course of a month, with just 13% adding over £100 to their accounts. In addition to this, 71.5% have deposit limits in place.
Moreover, bingo is played frequently by many individuals. 29% of research participants said that they play every day, with 34.5% doing so multiple times per week. 15% play once per week, with 22% responding that they will “every once in a while”. For you, it means that an opportunity exists for you to build an engaged online community.
Cross-selling opportunities for different verticals should also be looked at. In a multiple-choice graph, 57.5% of people said that they also play slots – though this was down from 69% in 2018.
One area where more participants were seen, however, was horse racing – up to 10.5% from the previous year’s figure of 6%. Lottery is also growing in popularity with bingo players (2019: 26%; 2018: 16%), as is sports betting (2018: 5%; 2019: 6.5%).
What are the cons of bingo affiliate marketing?
The standout one is that bingo players tend to use small amounts of money. 30.5% (the largest bracket) deposit, on average, between £10 and £25 per month. 22% put less than £10 into their accounts, with 20.5% adding £25 – £50.
While some cross-selling opportunities exist, it’s also difficult for sports betting affiliates because the figure is still small. The same goes for horse racing, though one might also wish to point to the increasing figures.
How can I increase bingo player retention rates, then?
Be trustworthy in the eyes of a bingo player. According to the research paper, 58% of players are more likely to trust sites that respond to player reviews.
For affiliates, this means two things. First of all, actually have bingo operator reviews on your website. And secondly, interact with players. That goes beyond just replying to their feedback – it also means integrating live chat and similar features. Bingo is social and you need to reflect this in your approach.
That leads us into our second recommendation: work on your user experience. In this respect, 3radical believes that you should offer value in exchange for data. Obviously, this requires both trust and GDPR compliance. Because players know the value of their data, it’s important to “motivate customers to provide self-permissioned data with the promise of a two-way value exchange”. 3radical spoke about this from the context of operators, but applies to affiliates too. The benefit is, if you achieve this, you have more information which can be used to better-personalise your offerings.
Tying in with the above, you should of course create a product which is both fun and unique too. That’s no different to sports betting and can be done by optimising your content, plus offering genuine value. By thinking smarter than the majority of bingo affiliates out there, you’ll give players more of a reason to stay engaged with you.
Final thoughts: is bingo affiliate marketing worth it?
Yes, if you’re willing to put the effort in. Naturally, lower player deposit values mean that you’ll need to attract higher volumes. Either that, or cater for the select few who deposit hundreds each month.
As with any vertical, personalisation is vital if you wish to give yourself the best chance of success. This means collecting data, analysing your site statistics and utilising technologies such as artificial intelligence too.
The good news is that a lot of bingo players also spend money in other verticals, meaning that there’s a possibility of cross-selling. So, if you happen to get your strategy right, you could also find these players to be valuable in other areas.
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