The Basics of Bonuses.
Most online casinos will offer the player a bonus to open an account and play at their site and the purpose of this article is to explain the different types of bonuses as well as the pros and cons of bonuses in general. If you’ve never played at an online casino before and don’t know where to begin, reference these two articles first, Online Casinos and Where to Start, and Types of Casinos, Download or Flash
Match Bonus
There are several different types of bonuses that online casinos offer to entice players and the most common by far is the Match Bonus. Other types such as the “No Deposit” make it too easy for the bonuses to be abused by players who sign up strictly for the bonus and then leave without depositing any money. The Match Bonuses are given by the house as a percentage of the money that the player deposits and therefore help to protect the casino from unscrupulous players. Over time and across different online casinos the bonuses will vary greatly and change according to promotional activities.
50% Match Bonus
Quite plainly with this bonus the casino will give you half of everything you deposit back to you in the form of a bonus. So if you were to deposit $1000, with a 50% match bonus the casino would deposit and extra $500 into your account so for your $1000 you actually have $1500 to play with.
100% Match Bonus
Far and away, the match bonus you will come across more than any other at online casinos is the 100% Match Bonus. The reason being is that the 100% Match Bonus is equally fair to both the player and the casino. Simply the casino will match your deposit Dollar for Dollar, or Euro for Euro depending where you play. Many time you will see the bonus quoted as ‘100% match bonus up to $300′. What this means is that the casino will match your deposit up to a certain limit,in this case $300.
200% or More Match Bonus
Much less common are bonuses that exceed the players deposit. Online casinos will sometimes offer bonuses that are 200% or more of a players deposit usually up to a certain limit. This means that the house will give the player a bonus in excess of the deposit up to a limit. Because the casino takes more risk there are usually restrictions and/or requirements that are attached to these sorts of bonuses.
A final thought on Match Bonuses
On occasion you will see bonuses offered which far exceed the players deposit 400%, 500% or maybe more. If it seems like a huge gift I would recommend caution, look around and see if there are player reviews and what they say. Only if and when you feel comfortable should you go ahead with a bonus that seems too good to be true.
No deposit Bonuses
As opposed to a match bonus which requires you to put money in your account before you receive a bonus, a no deposit bonus does not require a deposit. All that is normally required is for the player to download the casino software, open a real money account without a deposit and claim the bonus.
It’s not very common to find this anymore as casinos have been taken advantage of in the past and most are reluctant.The reason online casinos began no deposit bonuses were to calm the fears of people who thought online casinos weren’t above board but over the years the opposite has proven to be true.
Reload Bonus
The reload bonus is offered to existing casino customers who make additional deposits. It is offered as an incentive to keep customers playing at the same casino. Similar to a sign up bonus it will usually be offered as a percentage match bonus.
High Roller Bonus
Just as land based casinos offer high rollers perks such as rooms and show tickets, online casinos will offer high rollers bonuses in the form of cash. A high roller bonus is usually offered as a percentage of a large one time deposit with a minimum deposit amount.
Loyalty Bonus
Just like other types of business online casinos will have loyalty clubs and VIP clubs. Whereas land based casinos will give a player a loyalty card the online casino will keep track of player through the information on their player profile. As the customer continues to play and wager they earn loyalty points and as the points accrue better and more lucrative bonus will be offered.
Cash Back Bonus
A cash back bonus is exactly what it sound like. If a customer has shown loyalty to a particular online casino and has continued to play through wins and losses a casino may offer a cash back bonus. The bonus is given as a percentage of a customer’s losses. Let’s say a customer loses $1,000 the casino may offer the player $200 back if they have a %20 cash back bonus rating. By looking for cash back bonuses you can find a good way to extend your playing time.
Summary
By reading the previous articles, Online Casino Bonus Basics 1 and 2, you can see that there are many different types of casino bonuses offered. The smart player, by looking around can find casinos that will offer exactly the type of bonus the player is looking for and if you do your research the bonuses will definitley help fatten up your bankroll and keep you winning longer.