How important is offline promotion to you?

[p.arena]

Hi everyone, I was browsing through past polls and couldn't find any dedicated to this topic, so I thought it would be interesting question to put forward.

How important is offline promotion to gambling affiliates?

And also, which method do you find works well for you? seminars, radio spots, flyers/pamphlets, or something else entirely?

[MichaelCorfman]

Offline promotion activities are pretty important to the GPWA and to Casino City and to Casino City Press, but we generally don't track it directly to affiliate income, and in most cases our objective is not directly tied to the affiliate revenue based portion of our business.

However, a few years ago we actually ran a promotion for Casino City on one of the electronic billboards in times square in New York City with the hope we would generate corresponding affiliate revenue. We were never sure whether than was effective or not.

We frequently have booths at trade shows to help promote awareness of our brands and product offerings, and we know that helps to increase our overall level of business.

Michael

[UltimatePokerBonus]

I have never tried anything offline. I am sure it could work if done properly but..........

[Chips]

I think you will find the majority of US based affiliates shy away from offline marketing. There are a few that do postcards and mailers but the shae of the landscape can really keep one away from the added exposure. This may all change when/if we get regulation but I don't see us standing on the corner with handbills for an online casino, poker room or book.

[baldidiot]

There have been a couple of threads discussing this on various forums (here and PAL I think). It's something that I've considered a few times but never really got involved with.

My new project (ukcasinoguide.com) is going to be largely aimed at B&M players, so I intend to experiment more with different ways of offline marketing.

[lowrisk]

Interesting poll Peter, interesting results too, with the most popular answer being "I have never tried it, but it has crossed my mind". Ourselves included we have thought about it but never got around to doing it. Probably because SEO is always on the top of the agenda, but I have often thought a well-designed leaflet could bring in some decent players. I mean how many times have you received a leaflet advertising a gambling portal? I’m guessing not many. Has WBX’s affiliate team every considered paying towards the cost of design and distributing a leaflet? For instance if the main focus was WBX?

[LaughingMind]

I have done it before but had little success.

[LaughingMind]

I think that Facebook offers more opportunities for promotion.

[LaughingMind]

Sorry for the post above, wrong topic

[p.arena]

Interesting poll Peter, interesting results too, with the most popular answer being "I have never tried it, but it has crossed my mind". Ourselves included we have thought about it but never got around to doing it. Probably because SEO is always on the top of the agenda, but I have often thought a well-designed leaflet could bring in some decent players. I mean how many times have you received a leaflet advertising a gambling portal? I’m guessing not many. Has WBX’s affiliate team every considered paying towards the cost of design and distributing a leaflet? For instance if the main focus was WBX?

hi lowrisk, thanks - and thanks to everyone else for the responses too!

Yes we have had a couple of enquiries about it recently and so offline promotion is something we are currently looking into.

I think that for sharing leaflets or other costs we would have to look at it on a case by case basis, and find out more about what the affiliate plans to do. If it is something with the potential to promote our brand in a way that cannot be done online we would definitely consider it.

We are always interested in people taking the initiative to try something different and want to support that in any way we can.

[baldidiot]

I think with something like leaflet drops you need to be a bit less obvious than just promoting a gambling portal - stuff like that will pretty much always end up in the bin. Or you could make it as obnoxious as possible and see if you get any press coverage out of it...

But a well timed subtle leaflet could be effective - for example with the start of the euros the leaflet could be a list of fixtures with times and channels for the games which is "sponsored" by your site or has something like "for previews of the games, news and offers head to yoursite.com/euro2012".

Actually that's a bloody good idea, shame I didn't think of it a week ago

[lowrisk]

I think with something like leaflet drops you need to be a bit less obvious than just promoting a gambling portal - stuff like that will pretty much always end up in the bin. Or you could make it as obnoxious as possible and see if you get any press coverage out of it...

But a well timed subtle leaflet could be effective - for example with the start of the euros the leaflet could be a list of fixtures with times and channels for the games which is "sponsored" by your site or has something like "for previews of the games, news and offers head to yoursite.com/euro2012".

Actually that's a bloody good idea, shame I didn't think of it a week ago

Yeah it's a great idea - give people a reason to keep it rather than just bin it! Choose big sporting events and send out something relevant. I like your thinking baldidiot. In my experience leaflet drops are pretty cost effective method of advertising. If you're sending them to a predefined landing page its great for monitoring how successful you've been. It all works in principle, it's a case of taking the plunge.

[Smoking]

hard to say exact % , but many many off line ways are inexpenive to do and really cost less then buying a link.

Just think outside the box !

[lowrisk]

I mean, if for instance, we got some leaflets sent to us by an affiliate program, solely promoting a Euro 2012 offer and had a specific landing page etc. I would get them out in no time. Also, I think with the Euros being hot in the media, they'd surely get some sort of attention. I am sure they'd pay for themselves in no time at all. Plus, if the programs were sending a lot out to a lot of interested parties, I am sure that with their buying power, the cost would be minimal.

[oc+]

There is a fine line between a ROI on offline promotions/advertising and a loss. The internet plays such an important role in so many's lives that offline advertisements always tend to find their way online too.

Some of our clients have found it's not best to invest heavily over many regions, focusing in fact on just smaller parts of their core demographic before increasing exposure in other areas. IE Some would look to target London alone, rather than the whole of the UK. this certainly helps where reporting is concerned.

Other offline promotions such as television, horse racing and snooker sponsorships always end up on online. An advert on television is very quickly put onto youtube. While sports in particular, if sponsored means your brand is put all over the place including the national newspapers.

Smaller campaigns, such as flyers, posters and free gifts can work very well if you offer something for free. In a perfect world you want someone to pick up your flyer then purchase your product, sadly it's not like that. Offering something for free though by a way of information on the leaflet or flyer means your potential customer will keep hold of it.

Baldidiot's idea is very spot on. You are offering something that the majority of households will find interesting and useful. the fact your brand is written across it will sink in to them subconsciously and could eventually gain you a buyer. Think of those who get your leaflets in the local area, will they talk about it in the local bar? Will they tell others about it? If it is just "This Is My casino Chaps!" Play Here Now for a free bonus" they probably won't talk about it at all.

With regards tracking where offline is concerned this can be difficult to do but the obvious option, especially when we have started campaigns regarding posters, taxis, buses and so forth have been for the client to use a short tracking code, small, catchy and to the point. Some have even chose to use unique mobile number short codes whereby the customer would send a text to that on the poster or leaflet. This would give the client details on the time they sent the text, where they were, and of course whether they converted. The other option is to ask the visitor how they came to your site, IE Search engine, friend, leaflet. This is great but it rarely works and most do not have the time to fill in such questionnaires.

I suspect the importance of offline is not too appointment to those who are not interested in building a brand. certain affiliates for example with longtail domains would not really need to promote offline however it would be wise to test the waters in your local area. For many, branding is big business, but it does not have to cost big.

Something I pointed out before was about Richard Branson and his balloon trip around the world. It was never going to work and they knew that. The publicity around it though was huge. When it did fail all the national newspapers had the words Virgin written on their front pages - now that's cheap advertising! Not that I suggest you all start thinking about a balloon ride around the world though.

[ocreditor]

We've done it at event brochures but that's about it. Inside the industry we would consider it, but otherwise we're all on-line!