Guide to Bingo Loyalty and VIP Schemes
Before joining an online bingo site, something that many players like to consider is the bingo site’s loyalty and VIP scheme.
While some sites reward loyal players fantastically well through these schemes, others aren’t so great and this is why it’s important to understand them so you can make sure you’re signing up to a site that provides a great gambling experience for years to come.
Carry on reading if you want to learn more about what loyalty schemes are, how to choose one that is right for you and whether new UK legislation could make these schemes relevant from 2021.
What are Bingo Loyalty and VIP Schemes?
First things first, let’s go over what exactly bingo loyalty and VIP schemes are. Most experienced online bingo players will be aware of these but for new players who haven’t used them before, or for experienced players who want to get more out of their bingo experience, this is important.
Bingo sites are always looking for new and exciting ways to attract new players to their sites, but what happens after you’ve taken that shiny and attractive welcome offer? To retain players and keep them coming back, many sites will offer these schemes which are interchangeably named either loyalty or VIP schemes.
Essentially, with these schemes, the more players deposit and play on the site, the more rewards they will receive. These rewards will make gameplay on the site even better and are a great incentive not to leave and join another online bingo site. Usually, players will be awarded a specific number of loyalty points for each pound that they deposit. For example, this could be one loyalty point for every £1 deposited.
The more loyalty points you earn on the bingo site, the more perks and rewards you can expect to get. These points will normally help players to work their way up the loyalty ladder, which each level offering bigger and better rewards. Furthermore, at each level, players may be able to swap their points for perks of their choosing.
Rewards from Online Bingo Loyalty and VIP Schemes
Each site will offer its version of a bingo loyalty and VIP programme and so the perks and rewards will be different at each one. It’s always worth checking this before signing up to ensure you are getting good value for money and that you’ll be appreciated as a returning player. Here are some of the fantastic perks players can look forward to with a good VIP scheme.
Access to VIP Bingo Rooms
In the bingo lobby, you may notice that there are some games that are only accessible to VIP players. This is a common perk for loyal players which gives them access to designated rooms that are solely for VIP players. These rooms are usually quieter, giving you more chances to grab the jackpot prize.
Personal Account Manager
Many bingo sites will offer their most loyal players a personal account manager. This is a great benefit and gives players a direct line of contact at the site to help them with their account.
Cashback
Cashback on losses is another popular and fairly common perk for VIP players. This varies from site to site but generally players can expect to receive a percentage of their losses paid back to them.
Exclusive Events
For those at the top of the VIP scheme, exclusive events are not off the table. Many of the biggest and most popular bingo sites will offer their most loyal players invitations to popular events such as sporting events or concerts. VIP hospitality is usually included with this and players are treated like A-listers. This is not a common or frequent perk though as it will only be offered by the biggest brands on rare occasions.
Better Conversion Rates
With some VIP schemes, the higher you move through the levels, the better your point to deposit conversion rate will be. For example, you may currently receive 1 point for every £10 deposited but as you move up to the next level this increases to 2 points per £10 deposited and so on.
Birthday Bonuses
When you join any online casino, you’ll need to enter your date of birth and the casino then may use this information to award a birthday bonus to VIP players. This is always appreciated by players and is a lovely extra touch. Gifts can include a bingo bonus, free spins or something else of the bingo site’s choosing.
Free Spins and Free Bingo Tickets
As you move up the loyalty ladder, something that many bingo sites offer is free spins and free bingo tickets for specified games. These free spins will usually be for some of the most popular online slot games and designated bingo rooms will accept the free bingo tickets. This gives you hours of exciting gameplay without having to spend your own cash.
Exclusive Promotions
Some promotions will be reserved only for VIP players. These tend to be big, exciting and are more exclusive as the number of players who can take advantage is more limited. A common exclusive promotion found on many bingo sites is access to a monthly jackpot game where there are more chances to win due to fewer players.
How to Join a Bingo Loyalty and VIP Scheme
At most online bingo sites, when you sign up and make your first deposit, you will automatically be added to the VIP scheme. This is done free of charge and makes the process much easier as you can simply sign up and play immediately without having an extra step in between.
At other bingo sites, you won’t be automatically added to the VIP scheme. At these sites, the rules are usually different and so not every player is asked to join the loyalty programme. Instead, as you deposit and play on the site, the site will decide when to invite you to join. This is usually an automatic process but if you want to query why you haven’t been asked yet, you are free to do this with the customer support team at the site.
Before joining a bingo site, always check the full terms and conditions if you have a preference over which loyalty scheme you prefer so you don’t get caught out after making a deposit!
Are Bingo Loyalty and VIP Schemes Worth It?
Bingo loyalty and VIP schemes will vary in worth depending on both the site and the player. These programmes can add to the overall gambling experience as they can potentially make players feel special and provide great extras like exclusive rooms and cashback. However, it can be very difficult to deposit and play enough money to get substantial perks and this will really only be valuable for high-rolling players. For those playing on smaller budgets, the VIP scheme won’t be one of the biggest factors to consider when joining an online bingo site.
Will there be More Restrictions on UK Bingo VIP Schemes in the Future?
Players should always remember that when playing at online bingo sites, the main goal is to have fun and to always keep strictly within your budget. Players should not be trying to reach the highest levels of VIP schemes and going over their budget to do so. This can lead to some players losing more than they can afford.
The UK Gambling Commission and VIP Bingo Schemes
The UK Gambling Commission has grown increasingly concerned over VIP schemes and their contribution to problem gamblers. While most players are sensible with these schemes, for those with gambling addictions they can become an obsession. VIP schemes have become one of the focuses of the commission and new rules came into effect from the end of October 2020. This requires operators to ensure that players spending is affordable, to check for evidence of problem gambling and to ensure the identification of players is up to date. VIP players then have to be verified and monitored on an ongoing basis.
Operators and their VIP Bingo Schemes
With these new rules, some operators have changed their VIP accordingly to ensure that they are complying with the UK Gambling Commission. For example, Jumpman Gaming removed their old loyalty scheme and launched new monthly promotions for all players while 888 Ladies replaced their VIP scheme with a daily rewards promotion that all players can access and changes every day. Other sites such as Mecca Bingo and Dragonfish have retained schemes based on loyalty levels.
Bingo VIP and Loyalty Schemes in 2021 and Beyond
In the future, we could see more changes introduced by the UK Gambling Commission that affect bingo VIP and loyalty schemes. There are no new rules set to come in just yet but this is worth keeping in mind when joining a new online bingo site as the VIP programme shouldn’t be the only consideration. Changes may be required in the coming years that make them less and less appealing to players and so, instead, there will be more promotions for all players which many players will appreciate.