What Are Coupons: Perks, Use and Tips from Gambling Experts

Coupons explained: see your choices!

Now that we’ve seen a promo code’s meaning, it’s time to delve into the various types of coupons you may find on the online marketplace.

These are some of the main categories that you’ll encounter:

• Percentage offers: a percentage set by the company is subtracted from the original price of the item;
• Public promotional codes: they are addressed to anyone who will enter that specific website;
• Bonus codes for new customers: as already implied, only new clients can benefit from these ones;
• ‘Rewarding’ codes: these are specifically directed towards people who have consistently made purchases in the same place and, thus, have spent a fair amount of money and effort into it.

Online casino bonuses

When it comes to online casino offers, players have a multitude of options to choose from. According to CasinoAlpha statistics, here are some top searches:

• Match-bonuses;
• No wagering offers;
• Minimum deposit bonuses;
• Free spins promotions.

Are they worth it?

Yes! These offers are advantageous for both clients and companies.

For the first, the primary benefit is that they are easy to use and, sometimes, the promotion could be substantial. They can also be used on a mobile device.

Companies, on the other hand, may use these tools for marketing purposes, mainly to see if a coupon campaign was successful or not and whether to continue using or discard it.

This is extremely helpful for those looking to assess and address the needs of their target audience, but also for the people involved who will receive offers akin to their preferences.

Case study: the Black Friday concept

You get one day (or, in some cases, more extended periods) with extreme sales that significantly reduce the initial price of an item. Its meaning is rooted in North American culture and has been assumed by many countries over time.

Black Friday and gambling

This phenomenon has gradually taken over a pool of different fields, from coupon book publishers to retail and, of course, to gambling.

Each year, online casinos roll up their sleeves and put at your disposal a great range of promo codes for all sorts of games, all trademarked under the concept of ‘Black Friday’.

They may include extra rounds, weekend bonuses, weekly promotions and so on.

Coupon facts: know them one by one!

Here’s where we present a compact timeline of the history of coupons throughout modern history.

• The rise of coupon codes: the ‘Beetle’ that offered car coupons

Volkswagen was the company that revolutionised the card industry by introducing coupons as payment.

The release of the famous Volkswagen Beetle in 1938 offered a secure and cost-effective means of transport.

Yet, the First World War took a toll on people’s financial status, and most couldn’t afford to pay the entire sum upfront.

The solution? Monthly instalments

Each German citizen who wanted to purchase this car would have to pay a monthly instalment until they reached the initial price.

Then, they could get their car with a special coupon.

• Food stamps saved millions from hunger

There’s no doubt that Great Depression was an extremely rough period that left millions crippled by hunger and despair.

One solution to strike back was to introduce food stamps for people on relief programmes. People could use these and provide food for themselves.

The results

20 million people were saved by these specific coupons in the span of 4 years, and this ‘strategy’ was later on reintroduced by President John F. Kennedy.

• Drinks masked as coupons in land-based casinos

Brick-and-mortar casinos are known for offering drinks ‘on the house’ or, in some cases, appetisers for those who become customers.

Of course, the offers vary depending on the respective casino and its location. We’ve gone on a virtual tour around Europe in 17 casinos and found the top European casinos to play at, from luxurious or historical buildings to even secluded ones, in the heart of the mountains.

Going professional: bonus codes in companies

Companies choose to provide promo codes to their customers in order to fulfil some professional objectives:

• To grow their client database: most of them are based on either subscription or on creating a special account on that particular platform. So, in time, clients constantly receive other promotions that may tempt them to make purchases.
• To analyse their audience: this is especially useful for creating online metrics and statistics and capturing the behaviour of that particular category of clients – such as conversion rates and customer retention rates.
• To improve the social media algorithm: think about social media channels, such as Instagram, Facebook and others. Businesses may create specific bonus codes for each one according to their audience so that, when you’re scrolling through your feed, you will get exactly what you’re interested in.

Promo code mechanism

Now that we’ve answered: “what are coupon codes?”, it’s time to see how they function!

Promo codes have become increasingly sought for so much so that many online and offline businesses adapted to this trend and included them in their marketing scheme.

Simply put, you can find them literally anywhere!

In ‘offline environments’, you can get one mostly via:

• Newspaper;
• Leaflets or flyers;
• Product packaging.

Things change when we switch to online

In this case, the primary rule customers must obey is to only rely on secure sites. Otherwise, they risk losing their money and even having their card details stolen.

They are, indeed, more practical than the classical printed ones and, implicitly, easier to access, yet they also imply patience and an extensive market study.

Can anyone use promo codes?

Anyone can successfully access such voucher codes, be they new or regular customers.

It is possible for some companies to offer a promo code only to those who have just arrived on their website upon subscription.

On the opposite end, suppose someone has been ‘loyal’ to the same company for a while, they might be rewarded with a special kind of promo code.

Switching to gambling

The gambling industry relies on the same principle.

One thing to remember is that most promotions are directed towards new players rather than regular ones, although the latter may receive more substantial earnings if they get into the VIP club.

Want to use a promo code?

Here is what you must keep in mind if you wish to go further than simply answering “what are coupons?”:

Check the spelling!

One of the most common mistakes that impede the correct and efficient use of promo codes is misspelling them.

Since they vary so much, you must pay attention to the manner in which they are written. This highly depends on the company policy, so you should consider even the finest details: from letters in caps to numbers and even special symbols or blank spaces.

Double-check each one to ensure complete accuracy.

Keep an eye on the time limit!

Most such offers have a set amount of time to be used before they expire. The exact date is usually stated in the promotion itself or within the terms and conditions.

There are cases, however, when the site chooses not to specify a time limit. This case may lead to confusion, so it’s best to get in contact with the website if there is a Live Chat feature at your disposal.

Make sure the website is safe to use!

In this day and age, you can very well encounter scams at every corner, and you should know how to divert them as fast as possible. There are two aspects that make the difference between a safe and a sketchy site:

1. The licensing of any kind – from specialised industry regulatory companies to governmental bodies);
2. The reputation – here, we are talking about ratings given by customers either on the official website, other forum sites or even social media, or reviews written by people with vast experience in that respective domain.

Inform yourself of restrictions!

If you’re on the lookout for a specific item you wish to receive and hope a promo code could be attached to it, we advise you to pause for a second before jumping in and reading the Terms and Conditions.

Truth be told, many sites impose conditions when it comes to the applicability of their promotional palette, that range from the type of payment to the actual benefits.

Where are coupons now?

Coupons have set themselves to be one of the most used methods to persuade customers to join a certain website, but also a manner in which clients themselves choose to do their purchasing. They are easy to use and may offer great profits.

Nonetheless, due to this reason exactly, some have gone to extremely great lengths to avoid any costs and create a coupon strategy which led to the so-called extreme couponing phenomenon.

The extreme couponing phenomenon

The use of this concept has spread in recent years throughout the entire globe. It relies on mastering the art of buying as much as you can with little to no money (as impossible as that sounds, it is feasible).

If some people ask themselves what coupons are, some make it their daily challenge to buy more for less to no spending.

Of course, it implies a careful analysis of the market and of all the available options as well as a vast but concise comparison between numerous products. It takes tremendous time and effort and may even develop into an obsession.

The psychology behind it

Usually, those who resort to paying for anything with coupon codes have an incredible sense of creating and sticking to a budget. One psychological reason could be that they were forced to do so in order to survive and provide for themselves early on in their lives, so much so that it has become a habit.

It is true that many donate the things they buy to charity, yet the habit itself never disappears; it has become an intrinsic part of themselves.

Promo codes in the future

Both clients and companies will use this type of offer onwards, be it for their marketing strategy or their motivation to spend less money.

Consequently, this means of purchasing became so common that customers expect to receive their offers from the online retailers of their choice as recognition for loyalty.

And not only that, but online businesses have also directed their strategies more towards the client’s behaviour by making statistics, collecting data based on previous purchases, using social media algorithms and so on specifically in order to create personalised promo codes that respond with clarity to their client’s desires.

Promo codes and online gambling

The high frequency in use by both parties has also been noticed in the online gambling industry. So much so that some choose to grab as many as they can, without thinking about the serious after-effects, such as gambling addiction or bonus abuse.

We, at CasinoAlpha, encourage only responsible casino play and our experts make sure to keep you informed on gambling addiction and its consequences, as well as how to overcome it.