If you’re looking for a business idea with a solid chance to become profitable, launching an online casino might be your answer. With revenue predictions soaring to over $100 billion in the next 5 years, it’s no wonder you’ve considered taking your share of this huge pot.
Materializing an online casino idea takes a lot of planning and skill. Still, if you don’t mind competition and you’re ready to face challenges openly, you’ll get yourself to the other side in no time.
Here are the 7 essential steps that you’ll need to go through on your way to launching your first web casino.
1. Analyze the market
You probably thought the first step had to do with picking a catchy domain. You first need to analyze the competition. How do big players manage to keep their businesses profitable? What is the go-to trend in terms of marketing strategies?
There’s no going around market analysis, but luckily you only need keen observation to uncover these facts. Look up the most popular online casino brands in your area. Use reliable tools like Casinobonusca to refine your search. Such objective analysis will help you compare casinos more efficiently since you get all the required information in one place.
Decide what kind of business you want
Would a global franchise suit your needs? Then, maybe an association would be ideal, as it would help cut a lot of work and planning.
Still, working under a famous brand means you won’t have much space to develop your creativity. Then, maybe a white label would be more convenient since it lets you create your brand image. Still, that comes with a cost. Generally, white-label operators pay around 40% of their profits back.
The core takeaway at this stage is to weigh every possibility before actually investing any money. Research is paramount for an ever-changing industry like the iGaming industry.
2. Localize your business
Likely, you won’t launch a global casino right from your first try. So, choose an area of operation and learn as much as possible about your target audience. Study local demographics and aim to reflect an all-encompassing view.
Moreover, choose an appropriate name for your company and find a suitable location. You want your clients and partners to easily remember and locate your brand name.
Renting an office may be costly at first. Still, it’s better to have an actual office than operating the business from your flat.
3. Partner with suitable software providers
Now that you’ve defined your customer base’s general profile and demographics, it’s time to feed them quality games that meet their preferences and expectations.
Ideally, you want to include all popular casino game types in your business, but that might not be easy initially. Some online casinos focus exclusively on slots, for example. Suppose market research shows that your customers are more attracted to a particular game type than others. In that case, you should concentrate your efforts on that.
How to choose providers
You want your software provider to supply various systems like CMS, bonus integration, cashier interface, error reporting, and affiliate management.
Always try to partner with providers that have established a name in the industry because they usually create fair games that already have the required certifications. Big names like Play’n Go, NetEnt, EGT, or Microgaming can’t be missing.
Another essential criterion when it comes to software providers is mobile integration. Not all games or platforms are compatible with smartphones, but almost 75% of gamblers aged 18-34 play on their phones. With that in mind, don’t forget to assess mobile compatibility.
4. Obtain a working license
A license will enable you to operate your casino in the jurisdiction of your choice. It is a fundamental step to show your customers that your brand is trusted and functions legally. Security and fairness are two main pillars of licensing.
First, preparations. You’ll obtain a license to perform gambling-related activities from national or offshore authorities.
Here, too, research is quintessential. Costs, taxation policies, and the time needed to issue your license are all factors you need to compare.
You may need several other certifications, which, although not mandatory, will help raise the visibility of your online casino:
- An SSL certificate that affirms your platform is secure
- An eCOGRA certificate that validates your games as fair
5. Bring payment service providers on board
If you’ve chosen the white label or franchise route, you won’t bother with payment providers. However, if you’ve gone at it alone, you need to make agreements with as many trusted payment providers as possible.
Ideally, the footer of your website should be replete with a lot of icons and logos of trusted entities. Having VISA, Mastercard, and other widely known payment providers mentioned will keep customers coming.
Setting up a competitive financial infrastructure is no easy job. You need to open various bank accounts, collect documents, arrange meetings, speak with lawyers, and sign contracts.
But as long as you manage to make payments at your casinos fast and smooth, with support for numerous currencies and payment services, it will all be worth it.
Alternatively, you may delegate an intermediary to help you with this job in exchange for a certain fee.
6. Prepare the platform for the launch
Now you’re close to the big launch. But is your website configured with all it needs?
We didn’t yet talk about customer support. While this element may come in a particular software provider’s services suite, you should establish an efficient in-house team. Also, you should further boost customer service with helpful FAQ sections and transparent information all over the website.
Once the website has all its features in place, you need to prepare it for launch. In other words, advertise your casino by all possible means. Create some buzz around it online and offline.
Then, you’ll need to hire an SEO expert and copywriters for written advertisements. Still, it would help if you didn’t throw a lot of money on this initially. Go for freelancers, or better yet, take written matters into your own hands, at least until you get the ship sailing!
7. Start marketing and create brand awareness
Besides the image you’re attaching to your online casino, you need to develop marketing strategies that fuel its growth. So, once you’ve established brand identity, the next step is creating and boosting brand awareness. How to do that? A key point is promotions.
Rewarding players with bonuses at sign-up is a common but must-have feature of an online casino. Don’t focus on new player bonuses only but aim to keep all players engaged with a well-planned promotional scheme.
We can’t tell you how to make your promotions meet local standards, but to mention a trend that’s got a lot of traction lately, boost your brand through gamification. Try to deliver a game-like experience all around the casino with avatars, tournaments, XP points, lucky wheel-type games, and so on.
Concluding remarks
Commercial possibilities and business opportunities are endless in our times, where online gambling is slowly replacing traditional land-based casinos altogether. It’s hardly the case that this replacement will ever take place completely. Still, more and more people are choosing online casinos for their inherent convenience.
Thus, the demand for online gambling services is rising. Meet this demand and thrive in the iGaming industry, but don’t forget the key takeaway of our guide: always customize your service according to your players’ needs.
