Casino Bonuses Explained: What They Are & How Players Are Taking Advantage of Them

Most gambling fans are missing out on free money because of laziness. Don’t do the same. Don’t sleep on casino bonuses.

The online casino industry in this country is busier than a Wellington Bar when the Hurricanes are winning.  

In order to stand out and attract customers, companies are willing to offer cash incentives. Cash incentives that most people miss out on, by signing up willy-nilly for the first result on Google.

In this article, we cover everything you need to know about casino bonuses and how to avoid scams, so you can make the most of your time online.

What Are Casino Bonuses?

In short, they are promotional offers provided by online casinos to attract customers.

The most common types are:

• Free Spins
• Cashback offers
• Free plays
• Deposit matches

Typically, these are offered as welcome bonuses to customers, but sometimes casinos offer them sporadically when they want to promote a particular game, or as a loyalty reward.

A lot to think about huh? Well, fortunately there are ways to streamline the process of evaluation bonuses.

Sites like Casino.org have rated and compared the vast majority of online casinos in NZ, a particularly competitive territory. They also have an up-to-date list of all the latest offers, bonuses and more here, helping residents of New Zealand get the best value for money, as well as avoid any unreliable operators.  

Why Bonuses Matter to Players

Loyalty bonuses matter enormously. With an endless amount of choice out there, casino providers need to make their players feel valued.

That feeling of being valued extends to welcome bonuses too. On average, an online casino will allocate will attribute $250-$1150 on customer acquisition.

The reason that figure is so high, is because of the incredibly high Lifetime Value (LTV) of an online casino player. In basic terms, providers stand to make a lot of money from every customer that they get to sign up to their website.

So, if an online casino isn’t offering a bonus, players rightly feel undervalued and cheated.

Their custom is obviously being overlooked, and in a challenging economic climate, what player can afford to go with a stingy provider as oppose to one that offers them rewards? The answer – not you!

What Are Wagering Requirements

There’s no such thing in life as a free lunch. That principle applies to online casino bonuses too.

99% of casino bonuses come with a wager requirement. For example, a headline bonus might read:

$200 in free bets when you sign up to ‘Sly Susan’s Slots Shed’

The small print underneath though, when you take a closer look, reveals that you have to deposit $500 and spend $250 on blackjack before receiving the $200.

Now not all online casinos have as dramatic caveats as ‘Sly Susan’s Slots Shed’, but it’s still worth reading the small print to find out what the wagering requirements are before you sign up.

Most people come up short by rushing to take advantage of a welcome bonus that can only be taken advantage of by playing a game they don’t like. Read the small print and you’ll avoid making the same mistake yourself.

Bonus Value vs Real Player Experience

The above is just a fancy way of saying – is the bonus worth it?

The answer to that question depends on your personal preferences. Everyone loves free cash, so if you can get a bonus with very few or simple wagering requirements then naturally, that’s going to be a good bet.

Where it becomes a matter of personal preference though is when the bonuses are nuanced. $200 in free bets once you have wagered $400 on roulette might seem good on paper, but if you don’t like roulette is it really that good of a deal?

If instead of roulette, you adore slots, would you get more enjoyment out of 100 free spins at a dollar apiece than $200 in cash once you’ve spent $400 on roulette? That’s a question you have to answer for yourself.

The Nitty Gritty

Here is where wager requirements get tricky to understand. Typically, players favour higher RTP (Return to Player) games, which is to say, less risky games. Games with a lower house edge.

In the small print of some bonuses, you might find that certain games with high RTP’s are excluded. If this is the case, look elsewhere.

You will find an online casino offering bonuses without stipulations on RTP, and when you do, make sure you take advantage by spending your bonus money on the highest RTP games available!