It is no news that the world is facing a health crisis that has disrupted just about every major aspect of people’s lives worldwide. If we are not mistaken, this is the first time in decades that we are having to deal with empty streets and closed places of business even when there is no war and definitely no invasion of uprising. I write about the novel Coronavirus Disease which WHO has aptly named COVID-19. In this article,we will look at its impact on the sports betting industry. Pay close attention. You may be needing to capitalize on bookmakers’ free spin slots online at critical times like this.

Here is some background information that could help you understand this situation the world currently faces, and most importantly, you will have a better idea of the impact one virus has had on the world’s economy in the last couple months.

Businesses Are Closing Up

Brick and mortar business worldwide are taking a solid hit at the moment as they are being forced to halt operations in a bid to stall the spread of this virus. In places like Italy where some 20,000+ persons are reportedly infected, the country is literally on total shutdown. People have been restricted to their homes and the cities look like a post-apocalyptic scene from a movie.

The impact of this to businesses are simple to understand. Businesses thrive with human activityIf people won’t step out of their houses, there will be no transactions and interactions. To say restaurants are critically hit would be an understatement.

Sports betting shops or terminals in these countries are not left out. Casinos and sports gambling as a whole is a $450 billion industry which has made millionaires out of thousands of people and have kept many more gainfully employed.

In most African countries, gambling activities are still on as though nothing is happening. This is majorly due to the fact that the virus did not hit Africa as hard as it hit Europe and Asia. But then, the population that bets frequently is now pretty conservative with the amount they bet with. The global spread of death and gloom mean one thing to these people: the virus could hit the continent greatly and at that point, everyone (including punters)would need as much disposable cash as possible so that they can easily endure the period of staying at home.

In the United Kingdom, the story is even more unpalatable. The British Horse Racing Authority postponed every meeting till the month of May. It is believed that the society would have attained a certain level of stability and the virus would have been contained in the weeks that lie ahead of us. This would mean that bookmakers will be losing out on a whole month worth of punters’ money. Now even if these activities held, participation will not be as high as usual. But they can bear this. The bigger loss came when UEFA (the leading football governing body in Europe) postponed the EURO 2020 to 2021.

A tournament of that magnitude is known to attract hundreds of thousands of sports lovers to the cities and stadia where the games are played. Needless to say, millions will tune in from home to enjoy what is widely regarded as the world’s most beautiful game. But all of that revenue will be lost this year.

At the moment, bookies and gamblers are trying their very best to find games to bet on. Both are failing to say the least. Usually, the homepage of every bookmaker is filled with a plenitude of options anyone can bet on.

How Sports Betting Sites Businesses are Fighting Back

One of the aspects of being in business that most wannabes don’t get told is the fact that business is not glory and glamour all the time. At times like this, the guts of the entrepreneur is tested and he has to go to work on his product and brand. And canny bookmakers are not sleeping. Not at all. From free spins to marcel slots to signup bonuses, they are exploring every option in the book to win during these trying times, or at least, stay in business.

In fact, here are some strategies sports betting businesses and bookmakers are using to stay afloat in the wake of the COVID-19 menace

Higher Odds

While it would seem ridiculous to many users, this is by no means pointless for bookies. Think about it. There are very few things anyone can bet on at the moment. The few available options do not even get a lot of traction as people are skeptical of the direction the world’s economy might take in the coming weeks. But something could possibly make punters a little bit more positive. Higher odds.

When a punter logs into his betting account and beholds higher odds, he gets the relief that things could just turn out fine now or soon. Also, any wins that he gets at such times (when people’s sympathy for the bookmaker is at an all-time low) will have huge but positive financial impact on their personal finance. But this is not all.

Aggressive Advertising

In an age like ours and in a year like 2020, it is very easy for people to get distracted; to forget and to move on very fast. Bookmakerss know that they have to keep punters interested in betting between now and whenever the virus and its pandemic menace comes to a halt. We sincerely hope that by the end of April, things will get back to normal. However, what may not seem so obvious is the fact that over the next four to five weeks, the global gambling industry might lose a decent amount of its patrons to some other industry.

For instance, not every smoker will resume smoking by after staying at home without cigarettes for about one month I places like Italy. Many such individuals will give up smoking totally if they can successfully abstain from it for one month. The same could happen to avid punters. This is by no means some good news to bookies. As a result they have increased the frequency of their marketing operations in these times.

And the platform of choice is YouTube. Why YouTube? It is predictable. In times of massive lockdowns across the world, people who stay at home do all they can to stay entertained. One of the easiest places to do that is on social media – particularly YouTube. The content on YouTube is free and unlimited. No matter what a person’s favourite kind of videos are, the person can be sure to find appropriate content on Youtube.

Since the world is basically turning to YouTube for entertainment at times like this, what better place to catch their attention that the very platform where everyone is headed?

Bonuses and Freebies

Even before now, many betting websites and businesses offer new users some perks such as free spin slots and welcome cash they can bet with. What happens now that people aren’t overly enthusiastic about placing bets? Increase the odds and add more bonuses. Some bookies who do not do this have been forced at this time to offer their new users these perks if they must stay afloat and in business.

Talking about keeping customers loyal, this is also another times to give exiting customers bonuses especially the ones that are still actively placing bets despite the economic conditions now. So think about it: higher odds, free spin slots, more deposit bonus, reward for active users and perhaps, fast cash-out services. Why wouldn’t users stay loyalor at least know what bookmaker to patronize when things come back to normal.

Conclusion

Bookmakers have to put in their very best at times like this if they want to still be around when the dust raised by the COVID-19 pandemic has settled. Punters want to continue betting on the few available games but they need more motivation than ever before. Processing wins faster can be a good encouragement for these bettors. Having a lot of bonuses for both new and existing users is another thing that bookies can use to keep their users loyal. I am confident that this virus and the panic (as well as damage) it has spread will be over in the coming weeks. But until that day comes, they smart bookie must employ every business strategy in the books to stay in business.