Starting a business is a momentous undertaking; fraught with risks but ultimately immensely satisfying if successful. It is important to choose an industry that is already thriving but still has room for growth. The UK gambling industry is just such an industry and if you’re looking to start a casino, the remote sector should be your focus. Real-money online casinos account for at least a third of the UK gambling industry’s annual GGY (gross gambling yield), raking in approximately £5bn in 2018 alone. New real money casinos hit the market regularly, so you’ll be faced with stiff competition from the get-go, however; if you play your cards right, your new casino venture could come out on top.
Check Out the Competition
Launching a new online casino is fairly straightforward. In this article, we’ll lay out a few salient points that will hopefully help you come out of the gate with a fighting chance of success. Your first port of call should be to high-authority page where you’ll be able to research all the latest new real-money casinos in the UK. It’s important to know your competitors. Take the time to read as many independent reviews as you can because they will give you a clear picture as to what elements of an online casino gamblers are responding to and what puts them off.
Know Your Audience
Many successful casinos credit their success to the fact that they have focussed on a niche market. Women, for example, account for around 50% of online casino customers in the UK. With this in mind, many new UK casinos have designed their sites in such a way as to specifically appeal to the female market. Their choice of colour scheme, the types of games they promote on the homepage and the tone of voice they use to communicate with customers; nothing is left to chance when it comes to targeting a specific audience. It’s prudent, therefore, to have a clear picture of who your intended audience is and then devise a design and marketing plan that will appeal to that particular demographic.
Focus on Web Design
Invest your time, energy and a generous portion of your finances into the design of your online casino site. It only takes a second to put off a potential customer. But it also only takes a second to impress them and this is why your casino lobby is the most important page on your site. All the relevant information regarding your casino must be easy to find and easy to digest.
You’ll need to show off your games, your bonuses and your credentials without overloading your potential customer with too much information and the sign-up button must be easily available at every turn. Navigating away from the homepage must be intuitive. It should be easy to get in touch with customer service and a comprehensive FAQ page is always welcome. If web design is not your area, find a professional design team that can take your ideas and make them work in the best possible way.
Get the Best Games
Online casinos are nothing without their games. Your choice of software could be the single most important decision you make when setting up your brand-new casino. There are two options open to you in this regard. The first is to develop your own software and then use the fact that your games are exclusive to your site as part of your marketing plan. This option is both costly and risky, however; if you are a software designer and you have the skills to develop a suite of exciting games that appeal to a wide range of players, developing your own games could be extremely lucrative. One of the biggest software developers is Microgaming. Microgaming were also one of the first companies to launch an online casino and they did so with a game library filled with their own creations. 20 years later, Microgaming’s games can be found in almost every online casino on the market.
The second option for your new online casino is to launch with all the latest games from the most renowned software providers. One way of doing this is to approach a B2B iGaming software provider. Every Matrix, for example, will power your casino and provide you with a huge selection of games from a wide range of software providers. There are quite a few trusted companies that offer this service, so you’ll need to shop around in order to find an iGaming solution that works for you.
One of the benefits of doing it this way is that you’ll be working with a fully licenced company that will ensure all the games on your site are licensed and regularly audited. Of course, you also have the option of approaching independent software companies and creating your own specific collection of games. Either way, this is where the costs start to add up.
Foster Trust
Licencing and security should also be at the top of your list of priorities. A casino licence can be obtained from a number of governing bodies, so you will need to decide where your company will be based and which licence you’re going to go for. The UK gambling market is one of the biggest regulated markets in the world, and a licence from the UK Gambling Commission will automatically give your new online casino the gravitas it needs to show customers that your site is a safe place to play. A licence from the Malta Gaming Authority is also well regarded, as is one from Gibraltar.
It is essential that you foster trust with your clientele. The best way to do this is to show that you take your business seriously and that you put online safety at the forefront of your business model. Your site should be well-protected by the latest SSL encryption software and you must provide your customers with a number of payment methods through trusted payment providers. What it boils down to is this: If you look after your players, your players will help you make your online casino a success.
