Each generation is different from the one it follows, but none is as drastically different than the Millennials, or so they say. Millennials don’t fit in any categories, think differently from all other previous generations and act accordingly. This is due to the fact that Millennials had something that none of the previous generations had, internet and technology. Individuals born in this generation were exposed to digital technology and the internet since they were young and thus had unlimited and unrestrained access to all the information they needed.
The convenience of the internet and smartphones opened a whole different world of possibilities to this generation which, due to the fact they grew up with all these facilities, were able to adapt in a way which older generations were not. Studies show that Millennials spend around 18 hours per day on smartphones, while on multiple platforms, in order to exchange information, to discover, read and socialize. On social media, this generation is known to spend around 5 hours per day, every day. This has transformed how this generation interacts socially, making them unique in terms of relationships which they handle mostly online.
This behavioral trend has created in the beginning a huge gap between Millennials and veteran brands, which realized that the old ways they used to communicate with their customers are failing and has to adapt their strategies in order to survive. Newer brands, which emerged directly into the internet and digital technology era thrived and created a new way to interact with their customers because they were speaking the same language.
All these changes affected the gambling industry as well. A survey conducted in the US revealed that only 21% of the individuals considered Millennials included gambling in their important activities list, whereas the percentage was double in other age groups. Another study found that Millennials prefer to spend their money on going out for food, drinks and clubbing instead of gambling. This study also revealed an interesting fact, that Millennials tend to prefer pokies which are more challenging, requiring an element of skill and those which they can enjoy with friends and family.
The facilities and design of the brick and mortar casinos haven’t changed fast enough to accommodate the new generation and Millennials demonstrated that the same old thing will just not work anymore. Most of the land-based casinos noticed that Millennials spent more money on food, drinks and other activities when visiting, rather than on gambling.
Experts in design and architects implied that casinos should completely re-think their layouts in order to appeal to this generations, create more open spaces, make the layout easy to access and navigate, as well as make the whole place more vibrant and alive. As Chief Marketing Officer at Gamblit Gaming LLC, Darion Lowenstein, says, Millennials want to enjoy games which are similar to those they grew up with, such as PlayStation, Xbox or mobile games and casinos need to keep up with that demand. And we could not agree more if brick and mortar casinos want to remain visited as they once were.
Are Millennials immune to gambling?
Land-based casinos realized that Millennials just won’t gamble the way their parents or grandparents did, so they started making changes to attract them. Therefore, you may find different attractions in a casino, others than pokies or table games, such as e-sports arena or Instagram-worthy attractions. Casinos expanded online, offering everything you can find in a brick and mortar casino, tournaments and all sorts of promotions and no deposit bonuses within reach and without the player having to leave the pool. Online pokies, online table games and everything was mobile optimized as players needed to access them as fast and as easy as possible.
InterCasino was the first online casino, which was based in Antigua and offered only 18 games. It was launched in 1996 and, in the following years, many others were to soon follow. The gambling industry realized that this was the way to appeal to Millennials, offering them a different kind of experience and thus led to little resistance from their behalf.
Millennials demonstrated that they are attracted to fantasy-inspired online gambling, including fantasy-themed online pokies and sports bets. Mobile apps followed to appear and offered users the possibility to download them and play whenever and wherever they felt like it. The PlanetPoker was the first online poker website, launched in 1998 but online poker did not become so popular at first. Not until the World Series of Poker became popular on TV in 2003 and was followed by a boom in online poker websites.
The internet and technology made online gambling available 24/7 and gave anyone the possibility to gamble at any time, for however long they wanted. And thus, the gambling industry realized that Millennials are not immune to gambling, but rather enjoy some great fun from time to time, they just needed to find the proper way to reach this audience.
Governments followed this trend and regulated online gambling in order to make it safe for both players and casinos, but there are no worldwide regulations to take into consideration, so each player has to research the laws in the particular country he wants to play in.
How much do Millennials like to gamble?
Millennials are known for revolutionizing pretty much everything. They reject the old habits, the rules and the ways people used to do things. On the other hand, this generation may be held accounted for some of the brightest ideas out there and, while older generations tend to consider them as having way less interest for working, Millennials also created some of the richest people in the world.
Talking about not being eager to work but rather find other ways of getting rich, online gambling is a way that many Millennials researched and strategized in order to make money with less effort. Therefore, many were attracted to online gambling and some of these individuals also created a name for themselves. Online gambling attracted Millennials with its promises of easy money and lavish lifestyle with as little effort as spinning the reels implies, making us realize some things never change, no matter the generation. It also seems that Millennials are more attracted by online pokie rather than other online games.
When it comes to online pokies preferences, Millennials seem to be more attracted by colorful graphics and designs, smaller bet options and interactive user components. Ranking at the top of their preferences is Mega Moolah, Wolf Ron, Thunderstruck II, Book of Ra Deluxe and Jumanji online pokies which also do not need to be downloaded in order to spin the reels. Along with the development of high-quality screens on mobile phones, online pokies and even online table games had to keep up with all the demands. Therefore, every day more and more innovative online pokies are created, which are on a race to offer the best experiences.
Despite the rise of the online gambling throughout the Millennial generation, classic table games also managed to retain their audiences, so much more since some players became millionaires playing poker or blackjack. The social media channels added to their success, as followers gathered around these influencers and creating other ways for them to increase their incomes by attracting endorsements of the big brand worldwide. Some of these influencers started playing table games at their friends’ houses and hit big by winning world tournaments and now we can find them as famous vloggers or Instagram celebrities. The influencers trend started to appeal to even younger generations as these individuals are all about trends and social media.
As Millennials have access to generally high-quality mobile phones or tablets every second of their life, the possibility of spinning the reels whenever they want has created a thriving online gambling market on which more and more players want to have their slice of the pie. On the other hand, Millennials found a way to make easy money on the go, should luck be on their side. In addition to convenience, the best online casinos made signing up relatively easy, as well as creating accounts, and therefore started to race each other in order to offer the best welcome bonuses, promotions, all sort of benefits and tournaments, as well as VIP programmes and facilities.
Millennials’ gambling habits
As Millennials found themselves in an economic situation where they have to budget their expenses more than their forerunners, it is only normal they gave a great deal of thought before spending large amounts of money on something they have no control over or has a rather low return of their investments. Therefore, this generation tends to prefer smaller bets when it comes to gambling, be it online or land-based and is considered to be a no high-risk takers generation.
However, this does not mean that Millennials don’t have spending power, but rather they think twice when spending their hard-earned money. Amongst them, there are those which have strong spending power and are willing to spend it big. Also, being a young generation, Millennials have the tendency to spend just to show off or to celebrate their success and those are the ones which will be eager to blow off money on gambling, just to get a slice of that lavish lifestyle everyone is hoping for.
Having grown surrounded by video games, Millennials prefer the games which not only offer impeccable graphics but also creativity and interactivity. Therefore, casinos must offer all these in high-quality when it comes to table games as well as pokies in order to keep them satisfied and keep them coming back. As many exciting features as possible is the perfect recipe when it comes to the new generation of gamblers!
As it seems, this generation tends to want more control over the outcomes of their gambling, treating games just like the video games they are used to and casinos are slowly shifting to more skilled games in order to bring more Millennials towards them and also maintain their profits.
It has been a long way since the launch of the first online casino and today thousands of these exist. That is because Millennials prefer online gambling and this opened the door for an entire online gambling industry which boomed in the past 20 years and is still on a growing path today. This is a dynamic industry which has seen and implemented more trend and innovations than maybe no other in the world and this is probably the main factor which attracts this demographic sector.
It goes without saying that Millennials have a more social character, even if it is mostly concentrated online and through social media channels. Therefore, casinos turned their attention to the mobile and tablet devices and optimizing their games in order to make them that much more accessible.
Online casinos these days offer tailor-made solutions to Millennials in order to appeal to their exact needs and to draw their attention to how fun and exciting gambling can be!