daniel chigunwe
Many marketing strategies are being put up by betting companies to give themselves an edge in the now flooded market, which is also being defined by cutthroat competition. Betting companies are offering incentives that start right at the time of registration, targeting new users as they seek to make them returning customers. Among these strategies, they offer free bonuses upon registration, a move that has worked for some (majorly the big companies) but failed in others. The success or failure of this strategy is down to a number of factors apart from just the size and profile of the company offering. This is a move that has been employed by most of the bookies operating in Africa, and Sportytrader reviews some of the South African betting sites with free registration bonus, offering as much as R5000 on signup.
Advantages and disadvantages
Like in all business decisions, offering free registration bonuses has its advantages and disadvantages. The fact that it can lead to new users signing up with a particular betting company is an advantage, and that’s why in markets as competitive as South Africa’s this is a big deal. The effect of this strategy goes beyond just acquisition of customers; it also involves engagement of customers. Free registration bonuses make it easy for customers to stay on the platform, look at the different markets on offer and engage better with the site’s interface as they look to make the most of the freebies. It is through such engagements that betting companies bring on board returning customers. This further creates good publicity and a buzz about the company, which in turn attracts attention, one of the major goals of marketing. A combination of all these factors, engineered by the free registration bonus is what gives a particular site the desired competitive advantage.
Not all rosy
However, it is never all rosy, sometimes companies go all the way to seek that differentiator from competitors but it all goes haywire, as far as returns to the company are concerned. Some users in the betting scene are only attracted to the free bonus, and once they’ve exploited it, leave to seek other companies with free registration bonuses. This, if not well shielded by the terms and conditions, may end up leaving the company in a worse financial state. It doesn’t also give guarantees to customer retention and may in the end fail to meet the cost-effectiveness measure. Look at free registration bonus as a high-cost venture in trying to woo users, but the real job is making these users invest in betting on the platform with their money. There is a glaring difference from the user who out of their own will registers to bet on the platform vis a vis the one who is enticed by a free registration bonus. An additional headache to the betting company is that there are also regulation challenges to offering such bonuses. Marketing and promoting betting companies are heavily regulated in some countries and regions; some even limit advertising during prime time.
Online Reporter