How the No Deposit Bet Became the Norm

There was a time when the betting public had to suffer enforced odds at their local betting shop. In many cases, and especially outside of cities, a car journey was the only way in which punters could get the best odds from their bookmakers, and even then this was not guaranteed. The free market dictates that competition breeds customer benefits, and nothing has freed the gambling market up more than the Internet. Now, with competition rife, bettors can enjoy scores of different betting bonuses that allow them to cash-in from the comfort of their own homes. One of these bonuses has leapt to prominence: the no-deposit bet.

A no-deposit bet is a bet that requires no outlay from the punter. In previous years, this would be akin to walking in to a betting shop for the bookmaker to grant you a free £10 bet, "on the house". Any veteran of that old-school gambling scene will refute any such likelihood, but the online game sees bets such as these made every day. Such is the competition between betting houses in the ferocious online marketplace that such bonuses are readily offered, with sites like bestfreebets detailing run-downs of all the different no-deposit bets available from all of the bookies online.

These kind of betting offers have their origin in welcome bonuses, namely deposit-matching funds offered by bookmakers to punters for opening an online account with them. Through customer feedback and research bookmakers discovered two things: firstly, customers enjoying a site would readily stay loyal to it; and, secondly, that those same punters would be made even more content if they enjoyed reward schemes that had become so prevalent on the high street.

Knowing that customer interface and satisfaction was paramount and understanding that these factors would be the key to retaining customer loyalty, those brands confident in these areas of their sites promptly began to offer no-deposit bets. Fearing being left behind by this innovative approach to betting, sites followed suit with no-deposit offers. Now, customers enjoying free bets with this bookmaker (Blue Square) could also do so at most of its competitor sites.

The loyalty aspect of these schemes was ramped up by a number of bookmakers who routinely offered specials – including free bets – to their customers. As an attempt to drive brand loyalty it was exemplary, with many customers feeling looked after by their bookmaker and returning for business on the next match day or race meeting. This communicative process can be seen as a relationship-building exercise on behalf of bookmakers, but it is also a revolutionary force in online gaming. Thanks to the no-deposit bet, betting online will never be the same again.