Churn-and-burn, bonus abuse and soaring acquisition costs mean iGaming operators–especially those in mature markets–are under increasing pressure to rethink their operational strategies, writes Lauren Harrison.
According to Marc Burroughes, Chief Commercial Officer of the Casino Division at EveryMatrix, the smart strategy is to move away from expensive acquisition – and refocus on the more sustainable strategy of keeping the players you already have.
Join Marc and iGamingFuture for this exclusive tête-à-tête and hear why he believes that retention–driven by AI-powered personalisation and innovative engagement tools–is the best route to long-term profitability for operators in competitive markets.
From combating bonus abuse, to reducing churn, and building community and loyalty through gamification and branding, read on as we explore the strategies operators can use to stay ahead of the game, and manage the trends shaping iGaming in 2025 and beyond.
The online casino market is showing more opportunities for growth than ever before. As it continues to develop and becomes more saturated, should operators invest more resources into retention tools instead of acquisition?
“The key factor is retention.
“While player acquisition remains a critical metric and a necessary investment for our clients, we’re seeing a clear shift in strategy–particularly among mature operators with established customer bases–towards prioritising retention. In a crowded marketplace, it simply makes more business sense.
“Retention hinges on delivering a superior user experience, leveraging granular data segmentation, and developing advanced insights into player behaviour. These elements enable operators to provide truly personalised experiences, essential for keeping players engaged over time.
“Acquiring customers can cost anywhere from a few euros to a few hundred euros. These costs significantly impact operators’ margins, especially as top-line growth becomes more difficult in a saturated market. That puts additional pressure on profitability.
“Naturally, this is driving a shift toward retention-focused strategies. And ultimately, a well-executed retention plan is more cost-effective and far more profitable in the long run. Increasing player lifetime value is a smarter investment than constantly acquiring new users.
“At EveryMatrix, we’ve seen significant interest in our engagement product, EngageSuite. We’ve dedicated a specialised team to help clients implement and maximise these tools, ensuring they’re set up for success. We’re fully committed to supporting our partners in building robust, data-driven retention strategies.”
Financially-incentivised promotions and loyalty programmes can be expensive and give minimal ROI. How can casino operators sustainably minimise churn by leveraging new gamification-driven tools?
“Creating a strong brand that offers players a personalised, fun, and rewarding experience is vital to success and has also become an expectation for consumers.
“Personalised experiences have been rolled out across multiple product areas: whether going to the supermarket or consuming media on Netflix and YouTube. Personalisation is becoming part of our everyday experience and expectation.
“AI is massively accelerating this process and will continue to do so. AI will soon be leveraged into most products, creating a more personalised and automated player experience related to their play preferences.
“Players want to have fun, but they also crave a sense of belonging, to be part of a community, and to feel like they’re getting something back for being loyal to a brand. This is not unusual to any of us.
“We all like to get discounts through points or vouchers when we shop regularly at a supermarket. Cafes have loyalty cards. And so on.
“But if the key area goal is to minimise churn, this is best achieved with a wide product offering: the more products you can offer, the more chances you have to engage with players.
“Challenges and loyalty systems with tiers, progression, milestones and rewards can be significant in this respect. Personalised loyalty systems, with a choice of different, suitable rewards that aren’t predefined but tailored, are also a hit for retention.
“But it comes down to whether you can satisfy the different types of players out there, understand what drives them, what they’re looking for, and provide a bespoke experience that feels unique to them.
“From an operator point of view, this is a no-brainer as it increases engagement and repeat play and drives longer player sessions.
“And, of course, it offers a much more interesting and fun experience for the player.”
The online casino industry loses millions in revenue annually to bonus frauds, draining operator budgets and slashing campaign ROI. What can operators do to combat this and minimise their losses going forward?
“Bonus abuse has been affecting our industry for quite some time. It’s always been a cost to operators, and systems are becoming more sophisticated. Ultimately, it costs the industry billions in lost revenue.
“It has always been an accepted cost, but now there are platforms, tools, and even businesses specialising in this area that help operators combat bonus abuse and fraud.
“For example, our tool, Bonus Guardian, is AI-driven and deeply integrated into our BonusEngine product. It detects suspicious behaviour and constantly analyses several different channels of user activity, actively distinguishing between legitimate play and fraudulent behaviour.
“Through AI, operators now have the tools to detect and act against fraud. And that has the potential to minimise the costs.
What trends do you see affecting the industry in 2025 and beyond?
“Big data is nothing new. But what is changing is how well operators can use it. Now that they’ve started the process, operators must continue using this knowledge to personalise their customer’s journey and experience.
“We’re only just starting to scratch the surface of this trend. Over the next couple of years, the user-experience will get far more sophisticated and unique to each consumer.
“AI will play a much bigger role in creating these products and guiding the overall experience. For example, churn detection can identify the point consumers are considering leaving the product, provide automated bonuses, and prompt re-engagement.
“I also wouldn’t be surprised if there is more disruptive innovation in the AI field. Whether this happens or not, AI creates space for a different user-experience.
“I think we’ll see a continuation of what’s already happening: greater player segmentation, much more personalisation, greater, more impactful interaction with players, more consumer choice and greater autonomy over the gaming and rewards experience.”
Editor’s Note:
Successful retention is no longer just a strategy, but a survival necessity in today’s largely saturated and competitive iGaming markets. For Marc and EveryMatrix, it’s no longer about pouring resources into acquisition but building on your base and using more innovative and sustainable AI-powered strategies.
Marc advocates that reducing player churn can be as simple as offering a well-developed, rewarding and player-led experience that is fun and creates a sense of belonging.
But a prerequisite for this is a product range that can satisfy a diverse range of players and a data-informed understanding of what these players want, which should then inform the creation of a “bespoke experience that feels unique to them”.
Marc highlights a pivotal point. Driven by innovations in other industries, such as streaming and Netflix, players are no longer captivated by generic norms. Instead, they expect a highly personalised gaming experience.
Looking ahead, Marc believes we’ll see more of the same, but better – with the caveat that AI developments will continue to throw up surprises.
Expect sharper and more precise segmentation and AI tools that predict and prevent churn by enhancing the consumer experience.
