Theses social media platforms have been able to democratise access to entertainment information. The iGaming industry caught on to this quite early. Online casinos nowadays use social media for everything, from sponsored advertisements to sharing the stories of past winners, ongoing promotions, and lots more.
It’s no news that the majority of online communities are now being built on social media platforms. The integration of social media with iGaming has also allowed players to create iGaming communities online where players can share winning strategies, celebrate big wins, and watch others play, thereby changing the iGaming scene. In this piece, I’ll make clearer the many ways in which social media platforms have changed the way we connect, compete, and win online.
iGaming Before Social Media
The state of the iGaming industry before the advent of social media is a stark contrast from its current state. Online gambling and betting platforms used to rely on static websites, email marketing campaigns, and the often-overlooked banner advertisements. Reaching a global audience was hard, and it usually required operators to invest substantially in geographically specific advertisements, all while trying to be compliant with regulations.
The user engagement back then was quite limited to basic forums, static website chat rooms, and once-in-a-blue-moon in-person events and tournaments. These forums used to offer some sense of community, but they can’t compare to the real-time interaction and community-building tools that social media platforms offer.
Compared to today’s social media integration, which allows for targeted and interactive marketing strategies, iGaming before social media was confined to old ways of marketing and connecting with players. However, the change is here, and I’ll proceed to address them in the following sections.
The Influence of Social Media on iGaming
The iGaming industry is well-known for being at the forefront of incorporating advancements in technology. If you’re an operator and you’re scared of new tech, you’re not going to be able to compete with other leaders in the iGaming industry. Recently, we’ve seen more operators adopting tech like AI, VR, and blockchain. Social media is also one of these cool tech innovations that they have been quick to adopt, and it has been able to influence the industry in various ways, which we’ll discuss below.
Influencer Marketing
Unlike traditional advertising, where you get iGaming products shoved in your face involuntarily, social media campaigns nowadays make use of the existing connection that influencers have with their followers. Trust and responsible gambling are two major forces that surround the iGaming industry, and a recent digital marketing survey revealed that 69% of consumers trust influencer recommendations.
Influencers have always been able to engage their audience and create relatable content. In my experience, these influencers do not run out of ways to market the iGaming industry. Let’s say, for example, you’re scrolling on TikTok and find a sports influencer who has a video where they demonstrate how they use a sportsbook bonus that applies to a specific Premier League match their audience is likely interested in. This sort of promotion will lead to more significant conversions compared to generic banner ads for betting bonuses with long lists of terms and conditions.
However, influencer marketing isn’t an unregulated area. The UKGC does its best to make sure online gambling remains responsible and safe. It is with this in mind that rules like age verification, responsible gambling messaging, and clear disclosure of sponsored content are paramount. Personally, I have noticed a trend of iGaming operators partnering with influencers for game reviews, tutorials, and even live gameplay sessions on Twitch and YouTube.
Community Building
The role of social media in community building has helped both the players and operators build meaningful relationships. Now, we have access to these brands beyond the promotional messages being broadcast every day. Some of these casinos host live sessions on X, formerly Twitter, and allow players to give feedback and make inquiries about their services in real time.
Online communities have been proven to increase customer advocacy by 25%, and these numbers have had noticeable effects on the iGaming industry. It is now very easy to find like-minded individuals on Facebook Groups, Discord servers, and even subreddits to discuss strategies and share experiences with. Some even find iGaming job opportunities on these social media platforms.
Some of these communities organise live-streamed “bet-alongs” that allow viewers to wager alongside hosts, creating a blend of entertainment with participation and fostering a tribe-like loyalty.
Gamification and Social Features
You must have also noticed that most casinos are now prioritising mobile-first design, mainly because 70% of social gamers play on their phone. Players want to easily swipe between bets and banter, and casinos that have been able to adopt a mobile-first approach have seen increased user session duration. Socially enhanced platforms are undeniably sticky.
This is why many social media platforms now offer mini-games and gamification features. I have come across some casino games on apps like Facebook or TikTok, and all I had to do was click to start. There is no need to download extra software or leave the app. Five of the top 23 games on Facebook in 2013 were casino games, and the number might even be higher now. This trend is quite interesting to see, and a strong pointer to how closely the iGaming industry and social media are starting to blend with one another.
Real-time messaging and live chat options are now available in many casinos. You will find live chats in many live dealer versions of casino games and even sportsbooks, with many of the comments on these sites being hilarious and engaging. You will also find that some common social media features, like friend lists, messaging, and groups, have now been integrated into iGaming platforms. These changes are an effort to create an experience similar to social media.
User Engagement
Social media allows brands to create a large variety of interactive content that goes beyond static advertisements. Nowadays, operators make use of quizzes, polls, contests, and even live streams to involve users in the brand experience. Social media-based giveaways among UK iGaming operators are getting more popular by the day.
Many platforms are being used for several reasons. I sometimes come across live updates on odds changes on X during a sporting event, or even quizzes on Instagram stories related to popular slot games. I have now grown accustomed to them and even engage with some of these posts if I have any contribution to make.
Some of these brands even offer customer support services on their social media platforms. Thinking back to the former state of the iGaming industry, you would have had to write several emails and wait for hours before you could achieve what you can now do in two minutes on social media.
Technological Innovation Driven by Social Media
Social media is responsible for many developing trends in the iGaming industry. Let’s take cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, for example, which was highly popularised through social media. Cryptocurrency payments are now one of the fastest payments in the iGaming industry, with many online casinos making crypto payments their major selling point.
Play-to-earn models are growing fast, with many platforms offering players tokens or digital assets that can be traded in or used in other games. The trend towards integrating social trends is likely to continue as both industries evolve together.
Broader Implications of Social Media and iGaming
Looking ahead, the iGaming industry will most likely be able to use predictive analytics, driven by social media, to personalise the gaming experience for users. Even though social media marketing is serving the industry well enough, it will most likely also become a common platform for promoting responsible gambling messages.
Companies may use pop-ups, educational content from influencers, or even support resources to address gambling risks. These will help placate the public and regulatory pressure concerning gambling ads on social media.
While some of these changes offer opportunities, some challenges may also present themselves, because
- iGaming companies will have to adapt to frequent changes in social media algorithms to maintain their visibility
- Negative viral content or misinformation spreads fast on social media and could harm brand trust to an extent that they can’t control
- The use of users’ data for personalisation will raise privacy concerns, necessitating that companies make use of transparent policies
To Wrap Up
iGaming has become a lot more accessible and community-driven with the influence of social media. The future of social media in iGaming is bright but complex. However, if operators can continue to effectively navigate regulatory challenges and ethical concerns, the industry will be able to grow with social media at its core.
Giuseppe Faraone has been working in the iGaming industry for over five years, making him a real expert in online casinos. He makes sure to keep on top of any new developments in the industry, and in 2022, he even published The Untold Story of Online Gambling, his first book. He has written a wide range of articles but specialises in gambling laws, responsible gambling, and players’ rights.
