Opinion: Can Facebook help revitalize online poker?
Poker Strategy CEO Dominik Kofert considers the benefits of real-money poker on Facebook, and how affiliates will have to adapt to use the platform effectively.
I was very excited when I heard that the possibility of real-money poker on Facebook was one step closer.
This is good news for the poker industry as a whole, as a lot of new players could be introduced to real money poker at a time where the overall industry is not doing well.
One of the biggest challenges of offering real-money poker on Facebook will be satisfying the customers. To entice to the real-money poker audience, software, customer services and integrity need to be as good as they are in classical poker applications and in addition the customers need to be convinced that this is the case.
Alternatively, of course, operators could try and emulate the more fun-based Zynga poker in order to compete in the free to play virtual items category, though this is clearly an area where Zynga has a huge head start. Also, it remains to be seen whether classical gaming companies “with their huge cost structures – could make a model work where the average value per customer is extremely low.
For most affiliates, real money poker on Facebook is more of a threat than an opportunity. Being on Facebook, customer acquisition per se becomes very easy and due to Facebook’s viral nature, almost automatic. Thus, a key function that affiliates usually perform becomes less important.
On the other hand, the key to be successful in a social network is monetizing the customers once they have been acquired. Unfortunately, this is something that most affiliates are not good at, though it’s fair to be said that this applies to many operators as well. Finally, real money gambling on Facebook could drastically reduce the industries reliability on SEO and thus really harm those affiliates that focus on it.
In order to benefit from real money poker on Facebook, an affiliate would need to make sure that they themselves have an enticing presence on the site. For this, great content and great customer service will be key. Content & service based sites like Poker Strategy provide much needed news and strategy advice that the poker audience demands, and on Facebook, the natural virality generated by this will be enhanced further.