As you probably know, land based casinos give their customers different complimentary things to make them happy and keep them playing today and in the future. It starts off with the free drinks and snacks on the casino floor, goes on to free meals, hotel rooms, valet parking, VIP membership points which give benefits every visit and many other tricks we all know about but still love.
Best casino online will do the same, with one difference. Because you, the player, is usually sitting in the comfort of your home in your slippers in front of your computer, giving you a free hotel room won’t do, will it? Instead they give players extra money to play with either as a standard offered to all players, all the time, one off promotions due to some event or holiday (The Olympic games, Christmas & Halloween are good examples) and lastly there are promotions based on the customers VIP level, or in other words, good customers get better bonuses.
Online casinos try to keep a steady stream of players coming to their properties and like in most other industries will make an extra effort to encourage players to play at time slots or specific periods of the year when traffic is down. The way they can do this is by offering special bonuses and promotions which you can claim at a specific time only. The rationale behind this is that the best gamblers are normative people who gamble regularly, on a daily or weekly basis (even if they aren’t high rollers). If there is a change in routine, or a holiday/event of some sort they will not play.
The main down periods when the most attractive bonuses and promos are offered by online casinos are Sundays (or weekends in general), Summertime (August especially), national holidays such as Memorial day (in the US), Halloween, Bank Holidays (UK), religious holidays such as Christmas and Easter, major sports events (Olympic games, World Cup, UEFA finals etc) and generally any event or day in which people will tend to be away from their computers and out and about. So now you know that its important to take into consideration the time of year and whether there’s anything more attractive going on in the real world which can move you away from your computer.
You can opt to accept bonuses and you can also request not to receive them. Usually the default option is to receive, so if you don’t want to receive, make sure you tick the right box and/or notify online player support.
Its important to understand a bit about bonuses before claiming them so you don’t get annoyed or disappointed because you didn’t know the rules. Here’s a few things you should know about and clarify before claiming a bonus.
Wagering requirements: Most bonuses come with wagering requirement, meaning that you need to play a certain number of time before you can request a withdrawal from your account. On average it tends to be between 15 to 40 times, also depending on the size of the bonus you are given. Its important to pay attention to what you are required to wager. At some casinos you are required to wager both the bonus AND your deposit amount in order to meet the wagering requirements, whilst at other online casinos you are only required to wager the bonus you received X number of times. This is important because usually bonuses are matched 100% to what you deposited so paying attention to this can double or half your wagering requirements.
Another tidbit you should pay attention to with regards to wagering requirements is, that at most online casinos, if you request a withdrawal before you have completed the wagering requirements, all your winnings to date will be void. Not really fair, but this is reality.
Games: You can generally wager a bonus on any game you like. Many, if not most, online casinos make blackjack and roulette exceptions to this rule. If you want to claim a bonus and play blackjack or roulette, make sure you read the T&Cs
Minimum deposit requirement: Usually, in order to claim a bonus you need to make a minimum deposit, which again can vary. Its generally a small amount which you will probably deposit anyway.
Types of bonus:
Match bonus: The most common type of bonus. It basically means that for every $ you deposit, the casino will match that by a certain %. For example, if a casino is offering a 100% up to $100 match bonus, you can deposit $100 and the online casino will give you an extra $100 in bonus money so you actually start playing with $200. They will match whatever you deposit, up to $100 in this case. Some casinos will offer super high match bonuses (of even 500%) but then the wagering requirements you need to meet in order to withdraw your cash if you want are ridiculously high, meaning chances are that by the time you do meet the wagering requirements you’ll have lost all your money already.
Welcome bonus: A bonus given by online casinos to new players who sign up to the casino. The welcome bonus is the sum of all the possible bonuses you can accumulate as a new player at the casino over a specific period of time, usually a year; so if a casino advertises a $3000 welcome bonus, its actually the maximum you can get with the 1st deposit bonus, second deposit bonus, monthly bonus etc.
Sticky/Play only bonus: You cannot withdraw this type of bonus from your account. If you win and make a withdrawal, the bonus amount you received will be deducted off your account. For example if you received a $100 play only bonus and you have a lucky streak which brings your player account balance up to $1000. You now wish to withdraw your winnings from your players account. You may only withdraw $900 because $100 was claimed as a play only bonus. Play only bonuses are usually numerically higher than usual with lower wagering requirements.
Payment method bonus: Many online casinos will give you an extra bonus for simply depositing with one of many deposit methods such as Neteller, Skrill , Wire transfer, Visa etc. Make sure you check the bonus section for this as the bonus can be an extra 10-15% on top of all other bonuses. Note, wagering requirements and roulette/blackjack limitations generally apply here as well.
Loyalty Club/VIP bonus: In many online casinos you can accumulate points as you play and eventually convert them into bonus money. The more points you earn, the better the bonuses become.
No deposit bonus: A bonus given by the casino for you to test it out without having to deposit any of your money. The bonus is usually $10-15 and as usual comes with a wagering requirement and game limitations. All you need to do is download the software and register for a real money player account. The bonus will usually be automatically issued to your account.
It is always important to check the specific T&Cs at the online casino you’re playing or plan to play at because often you will not be allowed to withdraw the bonus amount or the bonus amount can be docked off your winnings.
Bonus abuse, also known as bonus whoring is an issue online casinos have to deal with on a daily basis. Online casinos spend a lot of resources on preventing bonus abuse. If a player is even slightly suspected of bonus abuse, first of all his or her player accounts will be locked. In the case of a group of casinos, all accounts might be locked as well. Online casinos are extremely sensitive to this issue and its super important you don’t abuse the information given to you here at online-casinos-winner.com.
