Bingo is one of the most popular games on the Internet. Online bingo began in 1996 when the first online playing site was launched. Since then the industry has grown to thousands of sites with more than three hundred in the United Kingdom alone. These sites are available in different languages to attract international players. The continuing growth of the industry results in a competitive market environments for the site operators.

The competitive nature of the industry means that site operators must compete for customers, and this makes it good for the players who benefit from the competition. The site operations are for profit forms of business in an industry that results in a small amount of revenue from each customer. This means that site operators require a large active customer base in order to generate sufficient revenues. They need to find ways to retain their existing customers while attracting new customers. There are a variety of marketing tools that the firm can use to accomplish this goal.

One of the most obvious ways of attracting new customers is through advertising in the various media. This is a good way of making the brand name known and reaching a large segment of the population. However, since the bingo company is a gambling enterprise, there may be restrictions that apply as in the United Kingdom where the site's licensing jurisdiction must be on the government's White List of approved jurisdictions. In addition, the adverts themselves must conform to the government's prescribed standards. Advertising is a good way of drawing potential customers to the site and of informing existing members of big games and events if they have been absent from the site for a while.

Another tool that is successful in maintaining player satisfaction and loyalty and in attracting new customers in the offer of free bingo games. The offer of free bingo is a good public relations tactic for the bingo site. People like to receive free gifts and bingo players are no different than other people in this respect. The free bingo lowers the effective cost of playing at the site for members. The player who feels good about the site she currently belongs to will not be so quick to jump to another site in response to a good offer. The offer will have to be pretty good to top what she already has. The potential customer will look at the kinds and quantity of free bingo offerings and will find the site to be more appealing. This can be a factor in the visitor's decision to join the site.

The free bingo games can be offered in different ways. New members are usually given a welcome bonus. This usually consists of free bingo games and a match deposit bonus. The composition and amounts vary from site to site but can amount to a very significant number of wagering credits for the new member. The welcome bonus is one of the most effective ways of attracting new business to the site.

Free bingo games are also popular with the site's existing members. The site may offer sessions of free bingo as specials. There may be regularly scheduled sessions with lower prize amounts. One of the most popular forms of free bingo are the Buy One and Get One Free sessions. Some sites offer a variation of this with a different purchased card to free card ratio. Bingo site operators have also been known to offer a session of free bingo as a way of thanking their members for the success of a promotion or holiday season.

Free bingo benefits both the player and the site operator and as a result, is a very common online practice. Individuals can learn more about the free bingo offerings at the different playing sites by consulting a good online bingo portal. These sites will provide information about the bonuses, promotions and events at the various sites as well as news in the bingo world.