The choice of GEOs for traffic is undoubtedly great, but India has always been an attractive market for gambling and betting. The reasons are simple: constant population growth and excitement, also cheap traffic. And affiliates don’t miss the opportunity to pour in plus all year round!
In this article, we will tell you how gambling in India works and how to make working with this GEO profitable.
India in 2024
- Let’s start with the fact that India has seen a dramatic increase in internet access, reaching over 52% by 2024, up from 14% in 2014. While these numbers may seem modest, they mean that more than half of India’s population of 1.4 billion people now have access to the internet. This has propelled India to the second highest number of active internet users in the world.
- India is staggering in terms of the number of smartphones. It is predicted that by 2040, the country will have 1.55 billion smartphone owners and by 2023, the number has already surpassed one billion.
- India’s demographics are also contributing to the growing opportunities for online casino promotion. According to Countrymeters, the country’s population is expected to grow by around 50,000 people per day in 2024, creating a huge and growing potential market for online gambling in India.
- However, the regulation of online gambling in India presents a challenge for advertisers and gambling operators. Gambling laws in the country are complex and differ from state to state. While some states have legalized certain types of gambling, such as lotteries and horse racing, other states have made gambling completely illegal or subjected it to strict regulation. Despite these legal hurdles, the gambling industry in India is thriving.
- The high demand for gaming services and the spread of digital technology is expected to lead to a significant growth in revenue for the Indian online gambling industry to USD 2.90 billion by 2024.
Target Audience
According to some reports, the online gambling industry is expected to reach $5 billion by 2025 with around 500 million users. As online gambling is becoming a significant part of the gaming industry market, its growth is indicative of the increasing digitalization of leisure activities.
To launch an Ad in iGaming, it is crucial to understand the tastes and behaviors of the target audience of any GEO.
The most common gambling pastime in India can be termed as card games, roulette and slots.
Social media plays a crucial role in advertising distribution in India. Thus, the most popular platforms are Facebook*, Instagram*, YouTube, WhatsApp, Telegram and WeChat. Incidentally, Instagram was the most popular platform for Influencer Marketing in India in 2023.
It’s also important to note that TikTok* is banned in India due to security concerns, but this has led to the emergence of local alternatives – HiPi. As a result, Meta* platforms, including Facebook*, are some of the most popular channels for casino advertising in the country.
In India, there is a significant income disparity between different social groups. The wealthy tend to be less interested in gambling and sports betting. Therefore, the gambling and betting vertical is more likely to appeal to the lower social strata who want to get rich quickly, even if the winnings may be small.
Engaging with the Indian audience is largely language dependent due to the multilingual nature of the country. Hindi is the most common native language and English is widely used for communication. Although many people speak English, it is important to remember that our target audience may not be fluent in it, which should be taken into account when creating advertising creatives and texts.
To determine the appropriate target audience, it is important to consider the geographic distribution of wealth and income levels in India: many middle class people live in major cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Pune and Jaipur, which are centers of economic activity. Targeting these cities, not just less affluent areas, can lead to better quality potential customers and leads.
Creatives to work with India
The gambling market in India often favors straightforward texts and creatives. Triggers for the audience will include images of wealth and luxury, and convert images of wealthy Indian men with expensive accessories and accompanied by attractive ladies.
In addition to the basic rules of creo preparation in gambling, there are those that work more effectively on this GEO. For example:
- Local elements in the creo
Add India’s cultural characteristics to creatives. Often use local holidays, customs and preferences.
- Mobile Optimization
India has around 800 million internet users and most of them use mobile devices to access the internet. Make sure your creatives and lendings are customized for mobile devices.
- Design
Grab attention with bright colors and dynamic design. This will help your content stand out and bypass the banner blindness that users face on a daily basis.
- Context
Understanding the cultural context of India will allow you to create creatives that resonate with your audience. For example, it is common to see creatives using famous characters or simply celebrities. This raises the user’s level of trust in your ads.
Conclusion
Gambling in India is a really popular way of entertainment for the locals, and for some, an opportunity to earn money. To get a great conversion, analyze the local market, taking into account the specifics and traditions of the country, adapt your approaches to achieve maximum conversion. Work carefully on the elements of creatives. This is all the key to effective promotion of gambling-offers in India. We wish you good luck!
