How to Get in on the Online Gambling Craze Is it time to make a safe bet on the 160 million people who use the world wide web as their casino?
By John Rampton
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Online gambling is not new: Way back in 1994, software developer Microgaming is thought to have developed the first true casino software.
The advancement of technology, however, soon resulted in many gaming companies exploring online venues. As an example, in 1998 Planet Poker was established, followed in 1999 by ParadisePoker.com. The number of online players doubled, every year, from 2003 to 2006.
If that was considered a "Poker Boom", then we're currently in the midst of a "Poker Kaboom."
Loving legalization
The American Gaming Association's Commercial Gaming Revenue Tracker reports that sports betting generated $3.16 billion in the first ten months of 2021, nearly 230 percent more than that of the same period in 2020. Expect that increase as more states permit online gambling.
In total, this online indulgence and betting (casino) industry size statistics are predicted to reach over $100 billion by 2026, according to Facts & Factors. Other research anticipates the industry to grow at an annual rate of 11.7% from 2022 to 2030.
As such, there's definitely opportunities to cash on on the craze. Below are some of the most effective ways to make money from online casinos. Better still, you can tap into this market without actually playing or card-counting to beat the house.
Related: The History of Online Gambling (Infographic)
Embrace affiliate marketing sites
"Many are drawn to the affiliate industry because of its low barriers to entry," writes Erik Bergman in a previous Entrepreneur article. "Every business has hurdles to overcome before you can launch, and some of those hurdles are shorter or taller than others."
"What's more, the sky is the limit when it comes to earning potential," adds Deanna Ritchie, a financial editor at Due. "In fact, it's totally possible to make six figures with affiliate marketing."
Bonus: You can start affiliate marketing, right now, for almost nothing.
All you have to do is sign up for a program, purchase a domain and hosting service, create a site and use affiliate links to post content. However, to really become successful, you also need to organically join your audience's conversations. This is simply commenting with affiliate links. If possible, leave these comments where your audience hangs out, whether it's on Reddit, message boards or forums.
Optimize optimization
Additionally, it's not necessary to develop a complex website to make money. But you should create an optimized website if you want to stand out from other casino affiliates.
- Write quality content, often: You'll be rewarded by Google if you consistently deliver higher quality content as it relates to casino reviews, gambling news or more tips on betting than your competitors.
- Zig while others zag: Because there are millions of terms people search, you don't always have to compete for the hardest ones. Alternatively, you can specialize your site for more specific searches like branded terms and long-tail keywords.
- Don't neglect technical SEO: Creating ideas will help your ranking and highlight other technical aspects of your site. Make sure your page is technically sound, from its page load speed to its mobile optimization.
Read the room
An online affiliate's aim is to get people to click on their links. To deliver the best results, casino options should be thoroughly familiar with their target market. A few main reasons generally lead players to pages include...
- It is important for them to find the best option: Let's be honest, the term "best" is subjective. A good affiliate will rank online casinos based on different attributes like promotions, game library, reliability and customer service.
- Bonuses are important: Online areas use bonuses to attract new players and encourage them to play on their platforms. An affiliate might be visited by players who wish to view active promotions.
- They are seeking entertainment AND information: Visitors may land on a website if they are interested in a specific topic or looking for more tips. If a person wants to learn how to play slots, he or she might look up a resource on playing them via an affiliate.
Capitalize on coaching
Are there any tips you'd be willing to share with others? If so, you could start home-based business. Examples could be starting a blog, YouTube channel or podcast where you share your knowledge. Other ideas would be creating an online course or self-publish a guide. Since gamblers are always striving to improve their skills, they are constantly looking for new methods.
Moreover, you could earn thousands of followers if you are a coach. Since poker depends heavily on skills, you could earn a great deal of popularity. In short, every player who wants to improve must invest in learning.
What are some of the ways a gambling guru can earn money? One way is to offer free lessons. Through advertisements, you can monetize your website and attract an audience. Eventually, you might introduce a subscription service or course. Even better, these can become a passive income source.
Transition to Twitch
There's a lot of people streaming on Twitch. The Amazon network attracts casino, slot machine, blackjack and poker enthusiasts.
Streamers with the most followers broadcast for hours on end. This attracts audiences of 10,000 or more.
With Twitch, you can donate to your favourite content creators and subscription plans range from $5 to $25. You can even sell your own swag. With the right circumstances, Twitch streaming could become a full-time job.
Saluting stocks
A share of 888 Holdings was worth $85 in 2020 and, by December 2021, it was worth $320. That's a gain of 300% within two years. Like any other investment, there's risk involved due to market volatility. Example: In June 2022 a share of 888 holdings fell back to Earth to around $117.
The investor has to risk his or her money on a company doing things right and hope to reap the rewards---888 Holdings and Bet365 are two examples of options you can risk investing in individually.
Alternatively, you could purchase an Exchange Traded Fund. ETFs allow you to invest in multiple companies at once. If the stocks increase, you get a share of the added value.
If one company doesn't perform well, you don't suffer large losses. In contrast to buying individual stocks, returns from mutual funds are relatively lower.
Related: 5 Reasons to Invest in the Online Poker Gaming Industry
Tap an app
You don't have to posses programming skills to create an app. If you want, you can hire someone or,you can go another route and create your own slot machine using templates from AppsGeyser, Drimify, or Shoutem.
It is incredibly easy to learn how to build this business option in 2022. After completing a six-week online course, you'll be able to arrange your first application. Nevertheless, creating a gambling app that provides enjoyable games is the main objective. By clicking ads and purchasing in-game credits, people can come back to play your games daily, making you money.
Create your own casino
In all parts of the world, online casinos are booming. However, new casinos often fold within the first year of operating. And, there are some challenges you'll need to overcome.
For starters, launching your own version isn't cheap. You can pay as little as $5000 in the UK and Malta to over $1M in the US for licensing. It may be more convenient to secure a gaming license from companies like SoftSwiss.
There's also website development, management, and marketing to pay for. As a new online casino, you have to wait a while before you start making money.
Here are some tried and true tips...
- Choose a currency: Rewards play a major role in gambling. The appeal of gaming is to be able to make a lot of money in a relatively short time period. Because of this, you should have a secure payment portal and begin verifying registration processes. Instead of using real money, free-to-play and trial games use bonus points.
- Provide a wide range of games: Some of these include roulette, blackjack and baccarat. This provides users with a variety of options---and to enhance authenticity---use real-life photographs and videos.
- Set up a loyalty program: Offer bonus system and implement retention campaigns, as well. This will help you gain a new audience and encourage them to return.
Related: A Step-by-Step Guide To Building Your First Mobile App
