Did you know that your online gambling platform can now go mobile? Going mobile can provide your customers with a convenient way to indulge in their favorite games without having to traipse back to their desktop at home to play. After all, there’s no dearth of non-moneymaking games available on mobile devices. Why not online gambling platforms?
However, that kind of convenience can come at a price. Some former gamblers have blamed mobile availability for driving their addiction, causing some governments, such as the UK, to consider putting limits on mobile gaming.
Learn how to preserve your customers’ data privacy and protect them from getting in over their heads financially. When you do, you’ll earn their trust – and their recommendations.
Online Data Privacy and Mobile Online Gambling
Recently, the BBC published an article about a man who complained that his pocket-sized “super casino” was the catalyst that took him down the rabbit hole of gambling addiction. The company whose app he used offered him up to £300 in matching funds for depositing money on their site.
He did, and in three months, he was in debt to the tune of £80,000 and thinking about suicide. During recovery, he did some research on the data harvesting that his former online casino and its data partners conducted.
Behavioral profiling can personalize your customers’ experience on your site, but for some customers, it’s simply too intrusive. Or, like in this man’s case, it failed to flag data that could have indicated that he was falling into a destructive pattern.
Protect Privacy with Data-Tracking Opt-Outs, but Identify Behavioral Red Flags
For those customers concerned about privacy, give customers the option to opt out of tracking if they choose. However, at that point, you could also give them an option to track only data that indicates overspending to help them draw their own line in the sand against addiction.
Many casinos have sophisticated programs that can red-flag destructive behavior patterns through AI algorithms with predictive capabilities. Whether it’s a customer-set limit or a pattern of overuse, these programs can be a lifesaver – literally. It’s always a wise idea to publish guidelines in a prominent place on your app or website that help people identify troubling behavior patterns.
Educate Your Customers About the Symptoms and Causes of Addiction
Studies suggest that some people are predisposed to addictions of some kinds. Early exposure to behaviors, chemical brain imbalances, and other factors cause about one in three people to become addicted to something at some point in their lives.
Education about the early signs of addiction, along with advice about what to do about it, can help alert your customers and their families if they are experiencing danger signs. It’s not so much the activity of gambling, drinking, and even playing video games that’s the problem. It’s the underlying cause.
Providing this support is just one more way to go above and beyond your competitors in customer service. Empowering your customers with knowledge, not shaming them, is the best way to allow them to have fun without going over the line.
