Bingo is back in fashion in a big way with more and more online sites popping up and an increasingly generous kind of bingo deposit bonus being offered by many of them.
But it’s taken quite a long time for us to reach this stage. Infact, it sometimes seems like the game of bingo has been with us forever although it was really only invented in its current form in 1930s America.
The story of its birth is quite a fascinating one. A travelling salesman by the name of Edwin Lowe used to travel round the many state fairs in the country. He found a game called beano being played at many of them – it had that name because players put dried beans on the squares as the numbers were called out.
Lowe saw huge potential in the game and was sure that it could attract a wide audience. So, he decided to call it by the far catchier name of bingo and get people to mark off the numbers on their cards with pens, or dibbers as they would come to be known.
The rest, as they say, is history.
Bingo today
Today, thanks to the incredible popularity of the online version of the game, it is very much in fashion and there is massive competition between the many sites out there to keep up a steady flow of new players.
It’s quite easy to see just why the game is so popular online, it’s quick and easy to play, whenever you have a few minutes so spare and some of the prizes can be very substantial indeed.
But even if you’re only playing for pennies, it can still be a very exciting experience. And, now that more and more people are playing on mobile devices, it’s also more convenient than ever before.
It’s bonus time!
But with so many sites to choose from, it can be quite a struggle for some to break through and get the attention that they deserve.
So, one of the keyways that many strive to do this is by their use of the bingo bonus.
This is a simple technique that can equate to giving new players what is effectively free money to use in playing their favourite game.
The most usual way in which it works is that a player is asked to make an initial deposit. The site then offers to match, or even offer more than the amount deposited, in the form of a bingo bonus.
This then goes into a separate “pot” and can be used to pay for entry into bingo games. At this point, the bingo bonus isn’t cash, as such, because it can’t be withdrawn by the player. It can only be used to pay for more games.
However, any winnings from those games do become actual cash that the player can withdraw once they have reached the necessary level in something called the “wagering requirement”. This means that a player has to wager a multiple of their initial deposit plus its bingo bonus equivalent before they can get their hands on the cash.
To give a typical example, some sites require players to wager double the amount of their deposit they used to claim the bingo bonus plus the value of the bingo bonus itself. So, if a player deposits £10 and gets a £30 bingo bonus, this adds up to £40. So, they need to wager £80 before they can claim any winnings.
You are allowed to withdraw winnings before completing a wagering requirement, but it generally means that the unused bingo bonus will be forfeited.
Why you should take advantage of the bingo bonus
There are several reasons why it’s a good idea to take advantage of the bingo bonus. The first, obviously, is that it’s the equivalent of free money.
Typically, online bingo sites have a wide number of different bingo games to play. Using your bingo bonus gives you a chance to try them out for free. When you’re just getting used to a new site this can be very useful indeed.
Plus there’s the fact that, whatever way you look at it, you’re being given the chance to play for free. Then, as long as you fulfil the wagering requirements stipulated, you could be in the money by reclaiming any winnings you scoop up when you’re playing your favourite games.
What’s in it for the bingo operators?
As any marketer knows, promotions make for a successful business. So, the bingo bonus is a watertight way for the sites to drive new customers towards themselves.
By including wagering requirements that are also protecting themselves to a certain extent as well as encouraging loyalty.
After all, if players believe that the bingo bonus is worth claiming they will continue on that site at least until they’ve fulfilled their wagering requirement. At that point they will probably also decide to stick with site on a longer-term basis.
Finally, it gives the bingo operator a clear point of difference from key competitors, especially if they also combine the bingo bonus with a set number of free spins on popular slots games.
So, as you can see, the bingo bonus adds up to a win-win situation for the player and the bingo operator alike. Each is getting something from it – and everyone is getting to enjoy the great game of bingo!
