Social media is integral in our everyday lives, whether we want to admit it or not. Not all social media platforms were always successful, yet today, we have seen some industry titans truly take shape.
The same can be said regardings casinos. This is certainly the case regarding the boom we’ve seen with online casinos especially. Some have become industry leaders, while others have seemingly disappeared.
There are also multiple ways to enjoy your favorite type of casino game, and it doesn’t always require using actual funds, either. This is where social casinos come into play and could be of interest to many.
Looking closer at what makes a Social Casino?
While many online casinos will have you undergo a registration process, identity verification and eventually push you to deposit funds, social casinos operate with a different model. Social casinos are designed as free-to-play options that are meant for you to enjoy the activity of the casino game while having no risk of losing actual money in bets.
Do remember that you will still have to register in some capacity, but it tends to just be a username and password and will not involve any real money. So with no inherent risk of losing your actual money, it tends to have you playing more, even for fun.
All casino-type games are available, whether you’re looking to play roulette, slots, or more card-based games such as blackjack and poker. There are also plenty of social feature elements, so while you can play by yourself, you can also play with random people online and even with your friends. And what you’re using to gamble with is an in-game currency with no redemption back into real currency.
Who is the target market for social-based casino games?
Anyone looking for an enjoyable distraction or as a hobby to practice when it comes to the real game is who these social casinos are targeting. Everything you win on these social casinos will always be virtual, meaning they’re meant to be more about entertainment than the actual game itself.
There are ways to keep customers coming back. Whether it’s the aesthetic of the game itself or the type of casino game, there are also ways, such as daily bonuses, that have users returning just to cash in additional virtual chips or other rewards. Yet at the same time, minimal commitment is needed, especially compared to traditional online betting casinos.
Yet the experience is the same. The rules of the casino remain the same, and you place bets and earn winnings the same way in these virtual social casinos that you would in a real betting casino.
Social casinos are designed this way to keep players engaged, and that’s why there are easily over 100 million players globally. A significant portion of these players, around 80%, play on mobile-based devices such as smartphones or tablets.
The social features and connecting with friends and family members, along with being able to track their progress, adds another dimension to the popularity of these online social casino games.
How are Social Casinos able to make money?
While it may be free to play on these applications, there are plenty of ways for them to generate income. The primary method is through advertisements. Watching advertisements could lead to additional chips and bonuses to make the game easier to play. This is especially vital if you run out of chips on these social media casinos.
The way you’re able to get more chips can vary. Sometimes there are promotions, especially when you start, that will help you begin with a hefty amount of virtual chips. Then there are gamification items built in that can lead to rewards of large virtual chip amounts.
Typically, though, you’re going to either need to go one of these two routes. You can either buy more chips with real-world money or watch advertisements and wait a certain period to get additional free chips. More often than not, there’s a good chance that you’ll need to top up your virtual chips as your account’s virtual funds run out. These microtransactions can easily boost revenues on top of advertising.
There are also sponsorship deals these social casinos make with real-world online casino sites that also add a form of revenue into consideration.
