A big part of the iGaming experience is bonuses. Promotions come in a variety of formats, and their associated terms and conditions will vary as much as the volume of games that a player can find in a casino’s portfolio.
Online gambling platforms regularly offer promotional deals for either customer acquisition or retention. They are a great marketing tool, but at the same time, there can be something of value in them for players.
Types of Bonuses
It is a good area for players to explore a site to potentially pick up perks. But it’s also a good idea to have a strong understanding of how casino bonuses work, and the types on offer, before spending any money.
For example, ‘no deposit free spins’ can be a confusingly named for a new player with limited knowledge of a platform, and these often come with extra conditions. In a recently published no deposit free spins bonuses guide from Betkiwi.co.nz the site walks players through understanding this process, and clearly breaks down the extra conditions involved:
“…there are requirements that need to be met. Most often, this means that any winnings must be wagered a certain number of times (usually ranging from 20x to 50x) before they can be withdrawn.”
Without a guide like this a player is likely to become frustrated with an experience if it doesn’t function how they guessed it would work. Review sites will often list what types of promotions are available out there and here is a look at some of the best ones to keep an eye out for.
Welcome Bonus Offers
Welcome bonus offers are exclusively for new customers. They will give an incentive, like a first deposit bonus, where the value of that first account payment is matched with bonus cash.
This could be anywhere from a 10% matched deposit bonus to 50%, 100%, and even beyond. A player will deposit into their account and the bonus free cash will be credited to their account when it is confirmed. That bonus amount is not withdrawable or convertible to real cash.
It can only be used for playing games at the online casino. So, once the bonus funds are accessible, you can hit the slot machines and use the bonus balance as a stake, just as you normally would with a cash balance. Sometimes, certain games are excluded from bonus cash play, but typically, users get quite a wide-open playing field.
Any winnings from a bonus stake are not immediately withdrawable, however, unlike profit from real cash. Winnings from a bonus stake won’t be released until the entire bonus amount has been played with real cash. Typically, but not exclusively, bonus cash welcome offers also come with a bundle of free spins.
Free Spins
Free spins are exactly what their name suggests, a free token to have a spin of the reels on a slot machine. More often than not, free spins are limited to one game, or sometimes, a handful of games. Free spins can be collected as part of a welcome bonus package, but there are deals out there that offer them as a standalone bonus.
An example is free bet bonuses credited for playing on a certain day of the week, or through a reload bonus when topping up an account. Free bonuses typically come with much lower rollover requirements than bonus cash and are therefore seen as being a lot less complicated than bonus cash rewards.
No Deposit Bonuses
One of the most sought-after online casino offers is the no-deposit bonus. This is a bonus that’s handed out to new customers without them having to make a payment on the account. These do still come with rollover requirements, but the significant difference between a regular deposit bonus and no deposit bonus is that the latter only comes in small amounts.
It may only be a $10 no-deposit bonus amount, for example, compared to a $100 bonus from a standard offer, but it gives players something to directly start playing with. It can be a great incentive to test out a site before putting money in.
Rewards Clubs
The other big areas of online casino promotions to pay attention to are rewards clubs and VIP programs. These are often based on tiered systems where the more you play, the further up the rewards ladder you can go. The further up you get, the better the bonuses, like quicker withdrawal times, higher limits, the chance to earn rewards points quicker, and better bonus offer terms.
What to Watch For?
The terms of casino promotions are crucial to watch out for. The operators aren’t just handing out free cash for entertainment value, with no set conditions attached. They may put a substantial amount of bonus cash in your account, but to release any winnings, a playthrough must be completed first.
The requirements of a playthrough (or rollover) mean that either the deposit amount or both the deposit and bonus amounts have to be played X number of times. So, a $10 bonus at x35 wagering requirements on just the deposit amount would require $350 staked to complete the offer before being able to withdraw.
Having to complete a bonus offer in a set amount of time is also common, like 7 or 14 days to complete the full rollover for a welcome bonus from the time of registration.
Tips and Tricks for Using Casino Promotions
A common question is whether online casino bonuses are worth it. That will be dependent on the individual player and their level of wagering. A player who has to stump up $500 in rollover but is only a casual player may not see the value of it, while higher rollers, in comparison, may.
Shopping around to find the right casino promotions that are specifically right for you is good practice. The ones with the lowest wagering requirements are ideal.
The most lucrative-sounding offers may not necessarily be the ones for you. Many players see the longer-term value in rewards such as good reload bonus terms and VIP clubs, rather than one-off promotions.
