Note on Casino Sign-Up Bonuses: It’s important to remember that the value of casino sign-up bonuses can fluctuate throughout the year, and the terms and conditions of the promotions can change. Always double-check the terms and conditions of the promotions prior to opt-in.

How do casinos operate?

Casinos operate on a simple principle: the more players they attract and retain on their platform, the more revenue they generate.

As we have learned, all casino games have a built-in house edge that essentially guarantees them profit in the long run.

Traditionally, land-based casinos employ various tactics to attract and retain new customers such as giving free comps, offering VIP treatments, and discounted hotel stays.

Online casinos operate similarly to brick-and-mortar casinos except they focus heavily on bonuses and promotions to attract new players, such as lucrative welcome offers, referral bonuses, and VIP/loyalty programs.

These types of promotions are designed and structured to be so enticing that they are able to attract new players, especially high rollers, to sign up. With the growing legalization of online casinos across multiple states, there’s a race between many online casinos to capture a larger market share.

But just how good are these promotions really? Let's take a look at some of the notable current and past offers

• BetMGM - 100% deposit match of up to $2,500 plus $50 on the house and 50 free spins 
• Caesars - 100% deposit match of up to $2,000 plus $100 gas gift card
• WynnBET - 100% deposit match of up to $1,000 plus 1000 free spins
• betPARX - 100% deposit match of up to $750 plus 500 spins 
• Hardrock - 100% deposit match of up to $1,000 plus 50 spins
• Fanduel - 100% net-loss bonus match of up to $1,000 for the first 24 hours
• Barstool - 100% net-loss bonus match of up to $1,000 for the first 24 hours

It doesn’t take a genius to see that these offers provide significant value. But there's a catch.

Because these promotions require you to play through your deposit and the bonus multiple times before you can withdraw your winnings, the expected value of the promotions is typically less than the face value of the bonus they are offering. Nevertheless, the cumulative effect is that online casinos offer thousands of dollars in value to new players.

So why do online casinos give away so much money?

The idea behind this marketing strategy is similar to why banks and credit card companies offer lucrative sign-up bonuses and recurring rewards: to attract new customers and retrain them as loyal users.

Casinos use this same tactic to attract new players to sign up for casino accounts and deposit money, hoping they get hooked on gambling and continue wagering on their platform instead of going elsewhere. While these offers might initially operate at a loss for the casino, they will eventually recoup their loss and ultimately profit from the acquired users as they become regular patrons.

This is a proven and frequently used marketing technique. You may already have noticed these sign-up offers pop up on your social media feeds as more states legalize online gambling.

How can we profit from this?

The inherent value of these sign-up offers provides a significant short-term advantage over the casinos. By focusing ONLY on these profitable promos, we can tilt the odds heavily in our favor and see a substantial profit.

In the next few chapters, I will discuss different types of casino promotions, emphasizing the importance of identifying the RTP (Return To Player) of a casino game and how to calculate the expected value of any given promotion. You’ll learn strategies that are mathematically profitable, minimizing risk and optimizing profitability.