How To Start An Online Casino Business

Starting an online casino might sound incredibly daunting, however, it is possible! The online casino industry is surging, and many people are wondering how they can start a business in the online gambling industry. This article will cover some of the main steps needed in preparation of creating online casinos in India. So, how hard is it to start your own online casino? According to industry insiders, starting a real money online casino can be quite a headache, with plenty of factors that one needs to take into consideration. For example, there are gaming licenses that need to be applied for, and online casino software providers that need to be partnered with. There are 3 ways to start an online gaming business: 1) Most Expensive - Design and implement all gambling software for an online casino, sportsbook and multiplayer poker room which could cost you millions of US Dollars. You will also need to obtain a gaming license to run your online gaming business, which requires approval from most governments. 1 day ago  How to Start an Online Casino Business. Online gambling is a popular entertainment type. Due to its high demand and increasing popularity, this business is one of the most profitable nowadays. Here is the list of the main components of launching a gambling business.

Online gambling has always been one of the most lucrative and desirable areas to explore for business owners regardless of whether they have experience in the field. In order to open a successful online casino that will benefit an owner and bring pleasure to customers, one needs to follow the proper sequence of steps paying serious attention to all details. As an online casino software provider, SoftSwiss is glad to share its experience to help future online casino owners avoid common mistakes that may impede business launch, inflate budget or even close the business down.

Step 1. Preparation

a) Legal issues

Online gambling is subject to licensing, thus an essential thing is to think about choosing the jurisdiction and obtaining a license. There are two main venues where it can be done: offshore countries and the European Union countries. Each has its pros and cons – budget, time, reputation. Usually, it takes from a couple of months to a year to obtain a gaming license, for example, 6 months in Malta.

The next step after choosing the jurisdiction is to register a legal entity – a gaming company, opening a bank account, and making agreements with payment system providers which will make the legal and financial infrastructure complete.

As an alternative to this method, there is a white label solution scheme which means leasing of software together with the gaming license and financial infrastructure from a software provider and operating your casino under your own brand but with the ready-to-use infrastructure. Such a scheme protects from excessive legal and banking bothers but involves additional costs.

How to start an online casino business

b) Software

As soon as all legal issues are investigated separately or simultaneously, it is time to choose a professional online casino software provider. While searching the market it is wise to evaluate the price and quality balance. Besides the attractive design and a set of popular games, a quality product shall also include a reliable gaming platform that allows for effective management of casino business and includes the following components:

Online

• CMS
• Player management system
• Bonus and promotions management system
• Game management system
• Payment system management interface
• Cashier system
• Reporting engine
• Support of different roles for administrators
• Affiliate management system
• Anti-fraud system
• Retention email system

The regular software and game updates, hosting, and technical support shall also be part of the provider’s package. Professional suppliers always take the responsibility for the full technical support of the after-launch product operation.

The software package that includes all of the above components might be on the upper edge in terms of costs, but the financial investments are worth it because as a result, you get a reliable partner ready to support you during the whole project life cycle. Be aware of the fact that buying a cheaper solution might result in double spending in the future.

c) Marketing planning

An effective marketing strategy is a key point to online casino success. At this stage, it is strategically correct to make a rigid competitor’s research. First of all, it will provide you with a full picture of the market: who the leaders are, what strategies they use, what return on investment they get, etc. Thus, knowing the game rules allows creating a unique offer that customers won’t be able to decline. Using the method of benchmarking plays perfect for the good of online casino success, and what is more important, it is free. Plan your marketing strategy by adopting the best practices of promotion, advertising, and brand development.

If a company starting an online casino is operating a land-based gaming business, it is crucial to bring the existing clients to play in Internet-casino by offering attractive bonuses and thus developing loyalty and respect to the website. Any know-how are always welcome but be aware of wrong calculated ideas from the mathematical point of view.

The next move is to contact internet marketing companies or individuals specializing in online gambling: SEO agencies, email marketing companies, media resources providing casino overviews, etc. This will help define the best offers on the market and choose the right partners before the website is ready to launch.
At this stage, it is also time to think about your future bonus policy and affiliate marketing strategy, as well as check if the selected software provides the appropriate technical opportunities.

d) Budgeting

Once the costs for legal issues, software and marketing are defined, it’s time to plan your budget. The best option for startup companies is to set the budget at least for the first year of operation, whereas for experienced companies who are entering the igaming market, the budget shall be defined for as long as possible. Don’t plan your budget after setting up the online casino website, plan it before. If you are a startup-company you have to understand that your costs will be higher. Your goal is to earn trust of players from the beginning. Existing land-based brands already have trust.

Below there is an approximate expenses separation a future casino owner shall have in mind while developing a detailed budget within a business plan.

Pre-Launch expensesAfter-Launch expenses, 1st year
Company set up – 3-7%Company running – 5%
License set up – 10-30%License fees – 1-10%
Software set up – 25- 35%Software support – 10%
Staff hiring – 10-20%Games Providers – 5%
Pre-Marketing – 15-20%Marketing – 50%
Other costs – 5-15%Staff – 20-30%

How To Make A Casino

At the pre-launch stage, the biggest budget share shall be devoted to software setup in order to provide future users with a quality product. But after the launch, it is vitally important to address half the funds to casino marketing and promotion.

Step 2. Launch

The time frame for an online casino launch depends on both, business owner and software provider. Usually, it takes up to 3 months for the provider to set up the software. It includes website design, platform, and games set up, custom settings, and possible individual features. The business owner may speed up the process of launch by providing regular feedback to all questions that designers and programmers might have. Any issue can be resolved if discussed in time.

Besides, the business owner shall timely address the issues discussed above:

• Obtaining a gaming license;
• Opening a corporate bank account and merchant account;
• Making agreements with payment system providers.

How To Start An Online Gambling Business

Setting legal and financial infrastructure is the task that only the business owner can accomplish. In SoftSwiss we provide consulting services (best options, contacts, etc.) on such points but we can’t guarantee success as the whole responsibility lies on the business owner. You will have to collect a bunch of documents for lawyers and banks like certified passport copy, utility bill copy, certificate of non-criminal records…

Step 3. Marketing

The secret of the most popular and successful online casino success and popularity is not about the top-notch design or billions of games included. The best online casinos are simply designed and contain 500 games on average at the beginning. The secret is in responsible marketing strategy implemented on all stages of the project. The online casino market is an extremely competitive one: first, it is very hard to break into it, and then it is even harder to take a firm stand. Thus, a company has only one chance to win a fierce race among competitors. Below is a list of points that are vital for any online casino that is planning to be prosperous.

Positioning – Gather professional marketing team and develop strategic and tactical development phases, announce your goals (business, company, brand), and mission. Determine what niche you would like to step in, how you are different from the competitors, what unique features your casino has, and what steps you are going to make further.

Use only quality games from trusted game providers. You can start your casino with a limited number of game providers, with a focus on games based on HTML 5 technology. This technology allows users to enjoy rich graphics games and enhance the overall experience of playing casino games on mobile devices. At SoftSwiss, among our own high-quality HTML5 games we offer game content from well-known providers, such as Amatic Industries, Microgaming, NetEnt, and we are sure about their quality.

Prelaunch advertising campaign – Announce your casino, inspire your potential customers to wait for its launch; use all possible methods: online advertising, presentations, publications, etc.

Online casino promotion after launch – Use SEO, online advertising, banner networks. Everything will work in such a competitive market.

Client attraction and retention campaign – Establish an efficient support service or 24h call-center which your customers can address at any time. Take care of your clients by making navigation through the website: create “How to” sections or FAQs, write manuals on how to play the games, provide demo versions, make everything clear and understandable.
Develop a bonus system, make auctions and entertain and reward your customers all the time.
Remember! Only business owners can establish the right content on the page. The software provider should give you the possibility to work with the content, but not create the content.

Implement affiliate networks – Develop contacts with partners which will be an impetus to online casino development.

Additional Step 4. Bitcoin casino

Forward-looking online casino software providers offer Bitcoin as an alternative payment system for their solutions. Online casino owners all over the world appreciated such advantages of Bitcoin casino as significant savings on license application costs and monthly fees, increased customer loyalty, fast payment processing and many more.

As an acknowledged Bitcoin casino expert, SoftSwiss would like to recommend all potential Bitcoin casino owners to get a clear understanding of the cryptocurrency, research the peculiarities of Bitcoin gambling, and learn how transactions work by making a couple of bets at an existing casino. Understanding the core of the payment system is essential in business, moreover, it will help to build a strong marketing campaign and further manage the Bitcoin casino. Contact SoftSwiss for professional advice on Bitcoin casino launch.

Managing an online casino is hard work but with all legal and financial issues resolved in a timely manner, quality software chosen, and a strong marketing strategy in place, it can be successful. The demand for online casinos will increase – specialists predict 40% growth of this market segment in the nearest year. Following all the steps described above will help a newly made online casino to develop sustainably and outweigh the competition. Good luck!

Also, learn how to start an online casino with SoftSwiss.

Internet gambling is a relatively new phenomenon that slowly but surely takes over the traditional land-based casinos. Interestingly enough, the first gambling website was unveiled in the 1990s to attract the attention of millions of casino aficionados worldwide.

Online gambling is highly associated with the comfort it offers. Players do not need to follow the codes set by a given casino. Next to that, online casinos are available around-the-clock. Moreover, most well-established gambling sites offer a wide range of games.

Online gambling is a prosperous business that makes a lot of money. Many casino naysayers believe that most gambling sites are scamming people to make money. Truth to be told, rogue online casinos do exist, but not for long. Our experts from Casino Guardian believe that the main ingredient of running a successful online casino is to be 100% honest to the players.

There are some obvious attractions to starting a new casino in 2021 Honestly, it is far from easy to break into this market as it is oversaturated with gambling sites that give an arm and a leg to attract players. In this article, our expert team will provide you with some useful tips and fundamentals for starting a successful online casino.

Obtaining a Gambling License

Obtaining a license has to be your priority as online gambling is subject to licensing. The procedure for obtaining a gambling license is long and expensive, but it is an important step of running a successful online casino business as the license conveys to the players that you are a law-abiding operator. Prior to applying for a license, you need to decide which is your target market and make sure that online gambling is regulated in the selected territory.

How To Start An Online Casino Business

Then you need to choose a jurisdiction to apply for a license. Some of the most reputable licensing authorities are the UK Gambling Commission, the Malta Gaming Authority, the Gibraltar Licensing Authority, Alderney Gambling Control Commission, and others. It is important to inform our readers that there is a difference in the license period, cost, and reputation between the various authorities.

Select a Reliable Casino Software

The creation of an online casino always starts with selecting a casino software provider. The online gambling industry is overloaded with casino software providers. Each software has its own specifications. Some of the key factors operators should consider when choosing a casino software include:

  • Quality of the animations, graphics, and sound
  • Customer support service
  • Security systems
  • User-friendly interface
  • Payment methods and supported currencies
  • Multilingual platform
  • Reputability and licenses

Payment Methods

Build Your Own Casino

When selecting payment methods, you need to analyze the most popular payment service providers in the jurisdiction you like to operate. What is more, you are highly recommended to check the reputation of the payment methods you consider to employ to enhance the integrity of your online casino. Keep in mind that the payment methods differ in terms of speed of the transaction, fees, limits, and others.

For Sweden as example it is common with BankID casino for easy payments.

How To Start An Online Casino Business

How To Start Your Online Gambling Business

Game Content

As we already mentioned above, the competition among casino operators is fierce. To stand out from the pack, you need to offer unique gaming content. There are a good-enough number of software companies specialized in creating casino games. The more software suppliers you employ, the more diverse the gaming content will be. Make sure your gaming library consists of various game genres to cater to the players’ different preferences.

How To Open Online Casino Business

In addition to that, collaborate with software companies that utilize the HTML5 technology when creating their games, so that mobile players can easily reach the games via their portable devices without compromising the quality of the graphics.

Secrets To Gambling

Site Design

Casino operators need also take into account the design of the casino website that should be not only functional and well-organized but also eye-catching. Players should be able to navigate through the different sections of your casino website easily and find the information they are looking for promptly. This means that your gambling platform should not be overloaded with redundant details and information.

To engage even more players, adapt your casino website to mobile screens. It is interesting to mention that various statistics show that players build their first impression of a given website on the colors it features. To touch the hearts of your targeted audience, you can make use of their culture, which will show respect to the people and their country.

Marketing and Promotions

Once you decide to launch an online casino, you should popularize it. You can stimulate players to visit your casino by offering some interesting promotions and bonuses. Giving some freebies is a nice way to attract a great deal of attention. What is more, you can implement affiliate networks to promote your online casino. Operators should bear in mind that they should focus not only on attracting newcomers but also on retaining their already existing players. For that purpose, you can tailor special loyalty programs to reward your regular users.

Final Words
Starting a successful online casino is certainly not an easy job but the effort is worth it as industry experts predict that online gambling will keep on expanding. Provided that you want to start a virtual casino, the tips described above will help you to develop a sustainable casino website that will attract a great deal of attention. In the end, do not forget to put yourself in the shoes of the players and give what you would like to receive.