The social gambling market is burgeoning, as more and more players discover the benefits of playing casino games for free on social networks such as Facebook. The market is vast and diverse, and gaming operators should start getting to know their target audience. IGT’s new Social Casino Index offers up this type of insight, providing statistics about social casino players and their behaviour.

“As the world’s largest social casino, we are always seeing to better understand our players and their preferences,” says John Clelland, IGT’s Vice President of Global Marketing. “The Social Casino Index gives the gaming industry a truly detailed look at social casino player preferences for the first time”.

Some of the Social Casino Index’s most interesting findings concern the differences between men and women in the social gambling industry. While gambling is commonly considered an activity that is targeted towards men, women are much more active in at social casinos According to the Social Casino Index, women wager 30% more than men do when playing social gambling apps.

The most populous demographic of social gamblers is women aged 45 to 55. They are also the most active players, as they spend more money than their male counterparts when they play social pokies and other casino games on Facebook. Whereas men will spend no more than 7.5 million virtual casino chips, it is not uncommon for the average female player to spend upwards of 10 million chips in a single session.

The Index has not yet delved into why women are bigger spenders in the social casino realm, but we can speculate. Men are known to be more active gamblers in the land-based market, and gambling in brick-and-mortar venues has become a male-dominated activity. Many women who want to get involved may feel more at ease by playing casino games online, especially when no real money is at stake.

Social gambling presents an outlet through which female players can safely obtain the thrill of playing casino games, so they spend big in the virtual realm.

About the Author

George Anderson
Author George, has over 25+ years’ experience in the Pokies and Casinos industry throughout Australia and New Zealand. Loves to research new Pokies games on the block and follows announcements from top industry providers about their upcoming releases. As soon as a new interesting pokie game appears on his radar, George is there to check it out and give you the scoop before anyone else and tell you about all casino sites where can play the latest game. Before this gig, George worked as Pokie game tester, making him an ideal candidate for this genre of work. He is also an animal lover and a proud owner of three dogs.