Dont gamble when it comes to an online marketing

Despite many contemporary experts fearing the credit crunch may affect the gaming industry as a whole, because of the obvious concerns that people wont have the disposable income to use for gambling, one area in particular is actually beginning to rise in popularity belaying recent worries.

Card games are on the up according to a survey by leading Playing Cards Company Waddingtons Number 1. It suggests that because people are more likely to stay indoors due to the economic conditions, rather than going out in the evenings, helps to explain why sales of playing cards are up by 75% since last June. The survey even went on to show that Poker is now the nations favourite card game with 39% of an online vote.

This would appear to indicate that Poker is now as popular as ever, despite the fears that some sites may have had that its popularity had reached a peak, and is indeed encouraging news for the many websites that run gaming software or sell poker chips and equipment online.

Couple this with the fact that Google have now allowed gambling related sites to run Pay Per Click (PPC) campaigns it is as important as ever for online marketing executives to have effective plans in progress to make sure they are taking their fair share of the revenues on offer.

One of the areas that Marketers should be careful not to overlook within the gaming industry is the hugely beneficial use of social networking.

A lot of gaming sites, especially the ones with affiliate schemes, have historically relied a lot on banner advertising. The main reason for this is to try and get a quick visual message across that hooks the viewer, especially as many of them offer sign up deals where you can get money added to your account if you deposit a certain minimum amount.

This is all very good; especially as with an affiliate you only need to provide the banner itself and is extremely cost effective, but a potentially fresh customer base of more discerning players is maybe being overlooked.

Many of the poker players that have taken the game to their heart in the last few years during the boom of online poker did so because they saw the game on television and wanted to have a piece of the action. However, the people that didnt take to it immediately or, dare I say it, a younger generation who were still at school when the game took off will be more likely to be influenced by word of mouth from friends, virtual or real, who are already involved in the game.

This is exactly why the use of forums, blogs and the syndication of interesting and helpful content on the internet is a must to get your message out there. It is as important as ever, especially in the wake of a couple of high profile scandals within the last couple of years, that online Poker sites are seen as being transparent and communicating with the customer, keeping them updated with the latest news, tips and being totally accessible.

The underlying point is that Poker is an extremely sociable game. Even Facebook have got a Texas Hold Em application to encourage people to use their site rather than their competitors. In the real world more and more pubs, the very ones that it has been suggested are being deserted for home games, are having to come up to speed and offer Poker as a modern alternative to the old favourites like darts and dominoes just to try and bring the punters back in. So, dont be shy with your customer base get the wheels rolling on a social networking online marketing campaign today if you havent already done so.