Industry News
The future of influencer marketing in the igaming industry
Author: Anna Zhukova, Team Lead (iGaming vertical) of Famesters agency
Influencer marketing is no longer a way to promote a new mascara. Today, it is a dominating strategy for complex brands, products, and platforms. From 2016 to 2022, the average annual growth rate of the influencer marketing industry was 46.9%.
9 of 10 iGaming industry players use this channel permanently as a powerful way to connect and engage with their target audiences. It is easy to explain: smart leveraging the power of influencers can bring tremendous results already during the test launch.
Why use influencer marketing for iGaming?
By partnering with influencers who have a large and engaged audience in the iGaming community, brands can tap into a highly motivated audience that is more likely to respond positively to their marketing messages. Additionally, influencers provide a level of authenticity and trust that is difficult to achieve via traditional advertising channels, especially for those products that are not easy to promote due to legal risks. Finally, iGaming brands can leverage influencer marketing to stand out from competitors and stay on top of mind with consumers in a skyrocketing competitive market: the iGaming industry, comprising online gambling, sports betting, and casino games, has experienced rapid expansion in recent years. In 2021, the industry was estimated to be worth $61 billion annually, and has projections of an 86% growth rate by 2028.
Current situation and upcoming trends
As the iGaming industry evolves year by year, brands build their communication and expand the audience with content creators. According to the BuzzGuru research, 89% of the marketers admit that ROI from influencer marketing is higher than from other channels.
Year by year, by allocating influencer marketing budgets, iGaming brands gain the ability to expand their reach to new audiences and improve performance among existing ones. This advantage enables iGaming industry players to skyrocket. Today, we observe the rise of brands’ collaborations with micro-influencers: 77% of the brands prefer working with this type of creators. It is easy to explain: collaborations with niche creators usually bring better performance. Micro-influencers are seen as more authentic and engaging than larger influencers, that is why they can help build a more loyal and engaged customer base.
The trends in influencer marketing shaping the future of the industry are:
1. Diving deep
Influencer marketing is evolving towards a more comprehensive approach where content creators are deeply involved in promoting products. This approach goes far beyond traditional CPA deals, where influencers are paid based on the results they deliver. Today, we see creators who use iGaming products they promote regularly and at the same time express genuine excitement towards them becoming brand ambassadors. This leads to more genuine promotions because the creators provide not just the basic product information, benefits and bonuses the platform prepared for new users, but also their own unique experience. As a result, the promotions become more authentic and resonate better with the audience.
2. Long-term partnerships
More and more iGaming brands prefer to build long-lasting relationships with influencers, rather than one-off campaigns. This approach kills two birds with one stone: brands build more authentic and loyal relationships both with influencers and their audience, thus enlarge their own and attract new users. A successful approach is to build long-term relations for iGaming brand is to collaborate with influencers who already performed well and seek out content creators who are alike. Niche creators often form small communities, so partnering with such influencers can help broaden your brand’s reach by tapping into their audience.
3. Transparent messages
There is a growing emphasis on the transparency of ads. Simple promotions of casinos and betting platforms on YouTube and Instagram are forbidden, that is why the ad messages should be native and transparent. Tell about the benefits of your platform, its USP, and bonuses new users get after registration. At the same time, be clear in calls for action and use simple ones, such as ‘click here’, ‘register now’, ‘use a promo code’, and others.
Opportunities and challenges
Promotion of betting platforms and online casinos through influencers unlocks new possibilities for brands to expand their existing audience, including the opportunity to target new geos, build brand awareness and trust, and, finally, attract new players.
Let’s see how it works: an influencer showcases a bet slip or a feature they find impressive in an iGaming app or platform, along with a hyperlink in their post that leads to a casino lobby or a betting platform. This provides the audience with a clear and understandable picture of what they can expect from the app or a platform from a trustworthy creator they follow.
The success of an influencer marketing campaign highly depends on certain factors: creatives’ quality, relevant creators and their audiences. It is crucial to find influencers who have a strong performance and whose values align with those of your brand. One key aspect to consider is the relevance of your product to the content produced by the influencer. For example, at Famesters when planning integrations for betting platforms, we prefer working with influencers who create sports or entertaining content – they usually bring the best performance.
However, alongside opportunities come challenges. First, it can be difficult to find influencers that are experienced in the iGaming industry and are ready to take the risks: if a creator is caught in promoting iGaming, they get a strike from a platform, after 3 strikes the platform bans their account. Second, it is better to make sure you target the right audience. So it is better to identify them first. The ‘golden’ and the most desirable audience for iGaming brands is usually solvent males above 20. As for creatives, it’s essential to highlight any unique information or bonuses your platform provides. It’s also crucial to emphasize the expected action several times, at the same time this call-to-action should be clear and easy to understand.
Emerging technologies and their use for iGaming brands
The development of technologies does not stand still. One of the technologies to use for influencer marketing of iGaming brands is virtual and augmented reality: create immersive experiences for the audience, allowing them to see the creator in a ‘real-world’ casino or sportsbook. This can be especially effective for online casinos, which often struggle to replicate the excitement and atmosphere of a physical casino.
Another technology to be used is artificial intelligence (AI). On the one hand, AI could analyze data about the influencers’ account, including audience, the engagement rate, number of comments and others. Some AI, like BuzzGuru, help get a clear picture of competitors’ influencer marketing strategies, including paid and organic mentions, lists of influencers involved, videos links released and budgets spent.
On the other hand, AI can assist in creating more engaging ad messages for the audiences, as well as developing tasks and briefs for creators, diversifying scripts and thus making every single launch unique.
The importance of analytics in influencer marketing
As an agency, we stake on a deep analysis of current campaigns. This approach always helps understand the key audience and provide recommendations for further launches – by cutting off non-working solutions, we easily increase the performance on the go. By going deeper into creators’ analytics such as audience data, engagement rates, average views and reach, in addition to previous launches’ performance for the similar products, we are able to make a clear estimation in order to squeeze the maximum possible outcomes.
Besides, the industry is growing very fast and we’re always learning. The reality shows that even small changes in strategy can affect the whole launch significantly and only a proper analytics and the ability to overview things from the subtle side gives the luxury to absorb the newly came information.
Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news and new partnerships. Read on and get updated.
Latest News
Scientific Games was recognised with three prestigious honours in the 23rd Annual American Business Awards. The global lottery company won two Gold ABA awards for its retail technology, SciQ and PlayCentral Powered by SciQ, in the Operations Management Solutions and Emerging Technology categories, respectively. Scientific Games’ recently retired VP, Instant Game Production, Joe Bennett, earned a Silver ABA Award for Achievement in Management—Manufacturing, recognising his career contributions in secure lottery instant game production. This year, more than 3700 nominations from organisations of all sizes and industries were submitted to the ABAs. Winners were scored by more than 300 professionals worldwide during a rigorous judging process evaluating innovation, integrity, effectiveness, creativity and growth.
MGM Resorts has announced that it has reached a new employment agreement with CEO & President Bill Hornbuckle through December 31, 2028. As part of his new employment contract, the Company has also agreed to offer Hornbuckle an advisory agreement at the end of the term to assist with its integrated resort project in Osaka, Japan until its opening. As CEO, Hornbuckle oversees all aspects of MGM Resorts’ strategy, operations and hospitality and gaming development projects. He leads the company’s global development efforts and its digital gaming strategy.
Minimum Deposit Casinos (MDC) has released new insights into the tightening regulatory landscape for sweepstakes-based gaming in the US. Recent moves by lawmakers in New York, Louisiana, and Montana suggest a coordinated push to eliminate or restrict these alternative online gambling models. In New York, Senate Bill 5935, introduced by Sen. Joseph Addabbo, has advanced through the legislative process and targets the operation and supply of sweepstakes-style platforms. The bill specifically addresses platforms that use two forms of digital currency — one of which can be redeemed for real-world prizes — a setup now under scrutiny by state regulators.
New Partnerships
Rush Street Interactive (RSI), in partnership with Integrity Compliance 360 (IC360), has launched a new initiative called Gaming Literacy Aiding Decisions (GLAD), an innovative programme designed to assist educators in enhancing high school student gaming literacy and promoting that cohort’s responsible relationship with this ever more socially prevalent activity. The GLAD curriculum will initially launch in New Jersey and Delaware where, this spring, RSI and IC360 have been working with educational districts on a speaker series and educator curriculum delivery. These initial efforts will help define success metrics and gather feedback to shape the programme’s future, which will ultimately be available to educators more broadly to curate the content that resonates best with students.
The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) has selected Caesars Entertainment as the Service Provider in the Windsor Casino procurement process. This is the final procurement process in the OLG’s land-based gaming modernisation initiative. Caesars Entertainment and its predecessor companies have partnered with the OLG to operate Caesars Windsor (fka. Casino Windsor) since the opening of the temporary facility in 1994. Caesars Entertainment will assume responsibility for gaming and non-gaming operations of the Windsor casino on behalf of the OLG under a 20-year operating agreement, which is expected to begin in 2026.
The post Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – May 12-18 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
BC.GAME, a global leader in Web3 gaming, has officially launched its refreshed brand identity—marking a significant step towards building a more diverse and globally integrated Web3 entertainment ecosystem. The brand upgrade includes a redesigned logo, updated colour palette and the introduction of a new slogan, “Stay Untamed”. This move also highlights the platform’s deepening presence in the crypto space, reinforcing its position as a pioneer in the Web3 and crypto entertainment industry.
BC.GAME’s new logo combines a classic lowercase “b” with an embedded “c,” creating a sleek and instantly recognisable visual. The “c” not only connects to the platform’s name but also symbolises its deep-rooted connection to the crypto world. Representing both “bc” and “coin,” the logo reflects the platform’s strong foundation in cryptocurrency and signals its ambitious vision to build a thriving ecosystem centered around the $BC token.
The platform’s signature green has also been refreshed to a deeper, more tech-forward tone, enhancing its professional presence within the blockchain and Web3 entertainment space while boosting visual impact and recognition.
BC.GAME’s new slogan, “Stay Untamed,” embodies its spirit of freedom, openness and innovation. As a Web3 advocate, BC.GAME encourages players to break boundaries and explore new possibilities, reflecting the decentralisation, community-driven ethos and ongoing innovation that define Web3.
BC.GAME’s journey in the crypto space began long before cryptocurrency payments became mainstream. From the early days, the platform has explored and implemented crypto-based technologies. Through the launch of its $BC token and a suite of crypto features, BC.GAME continues to deliver seamless and innovative digital entertainment to users worldwide.
BC.GAME supports payments in hundreds of cryptocurrencies, catering to players across the globe. On the technical front, the platform was among the earliest adopters of Bitcoin Lightning Network technology, significantly improving transaction speed and providing users with a lightning-fast payment experience.
BC.GAME offers “Provably Fair” verification to ensure that every game result is both fair and verifiable. Leveraging blockchain technology, players can view and verify the generation process of each game round in real time on the betting page, ensuring that outcomes are free from human interference or manipulation.
The post BC.GAME Unveils New Logo, Embraces Crypto Elements to Reflect Future Vision appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news and new partnerships. Read on and get updated.
Latest News
Bragg Gaming Group confirmed that it will release its first quarter 2025 financial results prior to the opening of the financial markets on Thursday, May 15, 2025. The release will be followed by a conference call at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, hosted by Bragg Chief Executive Officer, Matevž Mazij and Chief Financial Officer, Robbie Bressler, to discuss the Company’s financial results and provide a business update. During the call, management will review a presentation that will be available on the day of the call.
Context Networks Inc, the first programmatic advertising platform engineered for the gaming industry, has announced the rollout of its groundbreaking Deep Intelligence Marketing strategy, redefining how brands engage consumers in bars, taverns and on-premise slot route operations. Leveraging the power of AI-driven data analytics, machine learning and context-aware digital couponing, Context Networks is turning local venues into the next frontier of high-impact retail media. Through its Contextual Promotions Media Network (CPMN), Context is converting digital screens—such as slot machines in bars—into dynamic, smart advertising surfaces. These systems use advanced data signals to deliver highly targeted promotions based on real-time factors like venue type, consumer behaviour, time of day, and even emotional context, moving far beyond traditional static or cyclic Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH) advertising.
ACR Poker’s Blitz Bonus Boost promotion is back by popular demand to supercharger players’ bankrolls, offering a 50% bonus up to a sizzling $500. To take advantage, players need to deposit $25 or more by 11:59 pm ET on Saturday, May 31 using bonus code: BLITZ and ACR Poker will match 50% of it, up to $500.
Partnerships
International Game Technology PLC announced that IGT PlaySports technology is now powering retail sports betting at Silver Reef Casino Resort in Ferndale, Wash. This technology agreement builds on IGT PlaySports’ leadership in the region, marking the 11th casino in Washington State to deploy the Company’s award-winning sports betting platform, and the 10th casino in the State to leverage its trading advisory services.
Playtech and Hard Rock Digital (HRD) have launched New Jersey’s first-ever dedicated trivia experience on the top-rated Hard Rock Bet online casino platform. This milestone establishes Hard Rock Bet as the first operator to launch a dedicated Live Trivia Game Show in the state. Since the announcement of their strategic partnership in 2024, Playtech has provided a wide range of gaming content through Hard Rock Bet, including slots, card & table games, and live dealer games.
Everi Holdings Inc. announced the Company’s digital CashClub Wallet technology is powering Penn Entertainment Inc’s (PENN) “PENN Wallet” at M Resort Spa Casino in Henderson, NV. The “PENN Wallet” offers M Resort guests the ability to access cashless payments throughout the gaming floor via integrations with existing loyalty and payments systems. PENN currently utilises CashClub Wallet technology across 22 properties in 11 jurisdictions. CashClub Wallet elevates patron engagement with frictionless, omni-channel payments. Everi’s industry-leading cashless payments solutions drive additional volume, improve operational efficiencies and transform the traditional casino cash-centric environment into a modern, seamless experience for an enhanced player journey.
The post Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – May 5-11 appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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