Online casinos rising to the challenge of greater customer expectations  

The online casino sector has enjoyed steady year on year growth over the past five years. It is one of the few sectors that was not adversely affected by the unprecedented events of 2020. Indeed, like other web-based activities, online gambling saw a spike of activity during those strange months when other leisure activities were suspended.  

 Unsurprisingly, scores of new entrants have flooded the market and continue to do so. But if they expect guaranteed success and instant profits, some are in for a rude awakening. Customers have become savvy, and with all that competition they have neither the inclination nor the need to compromise. Furthermore, independent reviewers like the Gamble Online site are quick to single out the casino sites with the best offerings (see gambleonline.co/en-in/casino/) so there is really nowhere to hide.  

Online casinos need to do more than just turn up and offer a few free spins. To achieve sustainable success, they must rise to the challenge of customer expectations, specifically in the following areas.  

 Easy sign up and verification 

 Nobody enjoys form-filling and we are all conscious about oversharing our personal data. When the first thing a casino does is ask for pages and pages of information, then it demands copies of personal documentation like passports and bank statements, it immediately puts clients backs up. When it then takes a week to process them, the customer has probably given up and gone elsewhere. 

 Casinos have to perform due diligence and take measures to prevent money laundering, so they walk a tightrope here. However, some have stolen a march on their competitors by partnering with payment gateways to provide pay n play casino services, while others can reduce the bureaucracy at a single stroke with crypto transactions.  

Meaningful rewards 

We touched on free spins earlier. Bonuses like these are always welcome, but casino goers are under no illusion about them. They are soon gone and any winnings they generate are likely to be burned away by the wagering requirements. The point is, a banner shouting about 50 free spins is not of itself going to persuade seasoned casino players to sign up. 

Players are more interested in longer term benefits such as reward schemes and VIP programs – as long as they have genuine, tangible and attainable benefits. 

Premier customer service 

Everyone needs to contact customer service from time to time, and customers expect online casinos to have someone instantly available 24/7. Platforms that merely offer a contact form or email address do not cut the mustard, as players simply don’t trust them to reply quickly. 

Instant webchat, telephone and messenger services like WhatsApp reassure customers that they can reach a real person whenever they need to.  

New products and services 

In a traditional land-based casino, the same players tend to play the same games. Now there are some online players with similar habits, which is why it is important to maintain classic, if somewhat arcane, games like Starburst and Gonzo’s Quest. 

But broadly speaking, online players are more open to new experiences. To keep them interested, platforms need to keep innovating with new games and refreshing ways of playing them.