Deposit bonuses, a common offering from bookmakers, hold potential betting opportunities for first-time users. These bonuses, often presented as sign-up incentives, are designed to attract new players to betting sites and bookmakers. These could be presented in a manner of different ways however. Therefore, we will delve into the various forms of these deposit bonuses and how you could potentially leverage tools at Oddsmonkey to use these in a strategic way that can see margins of profit secured.
Deposit Bonuses Explained
A deposit bonus is when a bookmaker gives customers a free bet or additional funds in return for depositing real cash on their website. These bonuses are most popular for sign-up promotions and are also frequently rolled out around significant sporting events such as Cheltenham or major football tournaments. The bonus is usually credited straight away after the first initial funds are deposited; however, if the bonus comes in the form of funds, these usually cannot be withdrawn from the bookmaker directly. These offers can be changed to be no deposit bonuses, which means players do not have to deposit any funds into the account in order to claim these types of offers.
What Forms Do Deposit Bonuses Come In?
Most of these offers come in the form of free bets, with users who take up the offer being able to use the free bets on the same bookmaker. For example, these could be presented as ‘deposit £10 and get £20 in free bets’. It is worth noting though to check the terms and conditions as these free bets might have deposit limits. To learn more about how to use free bets, check out our free bet guides on different bookmakers, such as the free bets on William Hill and free bets on Ladbrokes.
These deposit bonuses can also come in the form of matched deposits too, meaning the player could get a percentage of their funds matched up to a certain amount. For example, an offer might see players get 100% of deposited funds matched up to £100, with this potentially seeing another £100 added to the account in the form of free bet credits. These funds usually cannot be withdrawn from the bookmaker’s account, with the free bets having to be placed on the same bookmaker.
Deposit Bonus Examples
With some real-life examples, the previously mentioned Ladbrokes bookmaker has a deposit bonus on offer, with the current new customer offer being “Bet £5, get £20 in free bets”, which is a Bet X Get X offer. This offer is a classic example of a deposit bonus, as the bonus is only unlocked when funds are deposited into the account.
Another example of a classic Bet X Get X offer is the offer from Bet365, which gives the player £30 of free bets after betting £10. Bet365 has plenty of different offers to explore, so why not check out our Bet365 free bets guide here at Oddsmonkey.
How Do Deposit Bonuses Link To Matched Betting?
As these deposit bonuses offer free bets, experienced matched bettors know that these free bets can be used to help lock in a profit with the matched betting approach. Matched betting is a strategy where a player takes advantage of the free bet offers from bookmakers to secure a profit, regardless of the outcome of the event. This is achieved by placing a back bet (betting for an outcome to occur) and a lay bet (betting against an outcome to occur) on the same event. By using careful mathematics this removes the reliance on luck completely.
However, this is only done when the mathematics are calculated correctly. To ensure you have locked in profit, you can use our very own matched betting calculator to make sure you are using the right odds and stakes.