casino lobby review. - degree 53 gaming€¦ · casino lobby. it sets out to offer guidance for...

Casino Lobby Review.

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Introduction

Improving Your UX

How They Scored Reviews

Key Findings

Methodology

Common Trends

About Degree 53

Contact Us

888 Casino ............................ 14 Betfair .................................... 16Betvictor ................................ 18Betway .................................. 20

Bet365 ................................... 22Coral ....................................... 24 Gala Casino .......................... 26Ladbrokes ............................. 28

Paddy Power ....................... 30Unibet ..................................... 32

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Contents.

Introduction.

Degree 53 Casino Lobby Review 3

How can user experience help to retain customers for an online casino?A seamless and quick transition from a landing page to a favourite game can be subtle to the user, but may hold a significant value to the operator.

User experience (UX) can be a very effective tool in the customer journey of an online casino. If the casino lobby is simple and easy to navigate, users will also find it more pleasant and are more likely to return, thus increasing their spend with the same brand.

While many online casinos have been improving their online services over time, some still lack the key features that make up a good UX. Poor UX can be an expensive problem to have and potential punters can move on to a competitor in no time.

This report reviews the UX of desktop online casino lobbies of ten operators, who target the UK market as listed in eGaming Review’s Power 50 2016. They were selected as some of the leading companies in the gambling industry.

The report aims to provide objective evaluation of the different UX features of each desktop casino lobby. It sets out to offer guidance for operators in overcoming UX challenges to optimise their desktop casino lobby for an improved user journey. This report does not review any mobile versions of these casino lobbies and solely focuses on the desktop UX.

Andrew Daniels,Managing Director


The objectives of our report are:

Enhancing operator knowledge about the casino lobby UX

Highlighting key trends, strengths and weaknesses in online casino UX

Offering the potential to build on existing features and work on any improvements if required

The Degree 53 team has been working with gambling operators for over a decade, helping them to innovate online gambling services with their mobile app and web development solutions. Degree 53 holds the Remote Gambling Software Licence accredited by the UK Gambling Commission which enables it to provide software development services to the UK gambling industry. The experts have an in-depth understanding of the challenges operators frequently face and how to overcome them with digital solutions. Degree 53 carried out research for this report and evaluated casino lobbies utilising a standard usability review to score different UX components (homepage, error prevention, consistency, common functionalities). The review can be applied to any website which helps to establish a basic level of the features a site should have. More about the usability review can be found in the Methodology section.

Objectives.Degree 53 Casino Lobby Review 5

6

Key Findings.


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1.http://www.gamblingcommission.gov.uk/news-action-and-statistics/Statistics-and-research/Statistics/Gambling-key-facts.aspx

2.http://live-gamblecom.cloud.contensis.com/PDF/survey-data/Gambling-industry-statistics-April-2013-to-March-2016.pdf

The growth of digital and mobile technology has opened new doors for casino operators to provide online gambling services. The most popular games are slots, table and card games. Today, virtually every gambling operator in the UK has an online casino outlet, offering a number of those games and their variations.

The online experience is different from entering a real life casino. As it isn’t a physical establishment customers can walk into, operators attract them with various promotions and a selection of games. The gambling industry relies heavily on its customers and their retention to maintain profit. Operators spend significant amounts of money on marketing and user acquisition to obtain consumers.

Yet there is always the question of whether they will return after the first visit. Most operators have the same types of games. To stay ahead of the competition, operators need to review their customer strategy and focus on offering a good combination of bonuses and user experience to create brand loyalty.

£2.5 BILLION GGY IN 2016

BETTING, BINGO & CASINO

GAMES

The UK Gambling Commission reports that

Online casinos in the UK alone take up

market share of the gambling industry belongs to remote

gambling, such as1

of the market share, having generated around

Key Findings.Degree 53 Casino Lobby Review 7

Clear homepage with an overview of all options and services

Forms are easy to fillCalls to action, promotions and popular functions are visible and clear

Accessible Help section and contact details Efficient search functionality

Consistent and legible content

Easily available live chat

We often provide advice to our clients on optimising the UX of their websites and how to tie this with their business objectives. We have developed a solid knowledge of UX best practices and what elements are required for a website to achieve them. It needs to offer efficient functionalities to help the user get to the intended destination, whether it is to find information, play a game, deposit funds or simply get in touch with the business.

What makes a good desktop casino lobby UX

UX Best Practices.


Common Trends.


Common Trends.

Accessible Help section and contact details

Consistent and legible content

Easily available live chat

Demo playsClear CTAs, promotions and popular functions

Homepage guides users to the desired actions

Errors are easily prevented and resolved

Game information hidden within the game or isn’t always available

Not all operators offer to favourite games

PLAY NOW

LIVE CHAT

Forms are easy to fill

limited browsing or search filters

Lack of search functionality

Lack of browsing parameters, such as most recent, favourites, new and category

Here are the strongest and weakest UX features that we’ve come across in our evaluation of online casino lobbies.

The less time the user spends looking for information or the relevant option, the more time they will spend in the game, and the higher the customer value.


How They Scored.


How They Scored.

96

95

95

93

93 83

89

87

90

89


Reviews.


888 Casino.

The casino landing page includes a number of great functionalities:

One of the most striking things about 888’s casino lobby is a distinct split between pages before and after the login. The interface and UX are very different.

Clear CTAs and layout

A list of available games and their information, including rules

The page directs users to their desired tasks (login, sign up, play, help etc)

Total Score

Performance

1.26seconds

83


When the user is logged in, a new tab opens in what appears to be an old Flash client with a completely different interface. This may be a legacy platform and the dual approach is a workaround, while 888 will no doubt convert the dated pop up interface into HTML5. It can be confusing but it also lacks the design and some of the functionalities of the previous landing page.

The 888 casino lobby has a good number of functionalities that score high, such as Help, Content, Forms and dealing with errors. They all meet our UX standards and work well for users at any level. However, 888 online casino could have a much more effective UX if the main casino lobby remained the same upon logging in and offered all the functionalities as in the first UI. Enabling Live Chat and search with a number of parameters for users to browse could also enhance the overall experience.

Strengths

Weaknesses

Clear overview of available games

Dual user interface before and after login

Easy access to the account and the cashier

UI isn’t persistent and functionalities differ in both

Favourites available once logged in

No demo plays

Good use of ‘white space’ and layout

Game pages aren’t easily accessible once logged in

Excellent functionality and prompts for handling error messages

Navigation suffers in the logged in UI - users only able to browse games by type or favouritesBrowser functions aren’t supported in the Flash client

Help is easily accessible and provides sufficient information

Content is easily accessible and users of any level are well supported

No search functionalityNo live chat


Betfair.Betfair casino lobby has a clear layout and the user can easily navigate through the available games or to desired calls to action. Users are able to play games, find rules or help if required, as well as getting feedback in case of errors and interacting with all the options intuitively.

It could benefit from adding search filters and different browsing options, so users would be able to find games by their preferences. We also found game rules to be quite hard to read due to their length and layout. More bite-sized paragraphs with visual prompts would make rules easily scannable and better to understand.

Total Score

Performance

2.69seconds

95


Strengths

Weaknesses

Clear menu and well labelled links

The menu doesn’t highlight or show breadcrumbs so users may struggle to identify their location on the site

Sufficient and accessible content with game information and rules

Supported browser functions, such as ‘Back and ‘Forward’

No sitemap or list of all the game available

Good layout and simple directions to finding games, login, deposit and other calls to action

No filters in search nor the main menu

Adequate search functionality displaying images and supporting various spelling

Game rules tend to be long and text could be broken down into bite-sized paragraphs to aid understanding

Rules can be accessed inside the game window

Users can’t select favourite games or browse by most recent


Betvictor.Betvictor casino has a clear layout of the homepage, showing users the variety of games and account management options. Help and live chat are easily accessible and users can find the right information very quickly. The site offers demo plays, favourites, browsing by most popular, newest, A-Z and rating. The casino lobby offers adequate search functionality, displaying clear results on the homepage. What could be improved is the overall design, as well as offering more searching methods for games, such as most recent and favourites, as well as taking into account any misspellings. Separate landing pages with game information could help discover them in search engines, as well as offering helpful content to the users without the need to open the game. A sitemap could also help to give an overview of all the games available

18

Total Score

Performance

2.04seconds

87


Strengths

Weaknesses

Offers demo plays

Users are able to easily obtain information and provide feedback

Slightly dated design

No breadcrumbs

Search is consistent and easy to use, displaying results below

Content and text is relevant to all users

Good homepage layout with clear navigation

Help and live chat options readily available

Can’t find a specific game in a search engine

No examples in forms

The homepage meets user objectives in directing to the most common tasks, such as login/register, promotions, play games or other calls to action

Lack of game information

Users can browse games by type, favourites, A-Z, most played and rating

Forms are clear and help users complete them with minimum errors

No site map

Text is hard to scan through as there is a lot of it

Great use of ‘white space’ and uncluttered design

No favourites

Browser standard functions, such as ‘Back’ and ‘Forward’ aren’t supported


Betway.Betway’s casino landing page has a clear layout and easily directs users to games, account, live chat or deposit. Account management options also contribute to a great UX for a casino website. Live chat is easily accessible and users can get instant help. However, the actual Help section can only be reached from a game window and this isn’t very obvious to a novice.

Better search and browsing options could improve the variety of games users can find. The sitemap could also help to give an overview of all the available games. While dealing with completing forms and error messages is good, there could be some additional clues and examples added to help users further.

Total Score

Performance

1.96seconds

90


Strengths

Weaknesses

Website layout is clear and allows users to reach their desired tasks


No site map or list of available games

Search is consistent and easy to use, displaying results below


Users can mark games as favourites

Live chat options readily available everywhere

Forms lack examples and justification for required fields to aid successful completion

Clear display of promotions and calls to action

Game landing pages aren’t accessible from a search engine

Clear and easy navigation across the site


Help can only be found in a game window

Practice play available

Users can’t browse or search games by name or most recent


Bet365.Bet365’s casino lobby offers good functionality across the landing page with an overview of the games and key user functions directly available from the account. It could offer to filter games by more than one parameter and fix some issues around browser-based actions, such as going back or forward. It scored very high around forms, error, feedback and help, offering users plenty of information, notes, assistance and easily accessible contact details if required.

The site speed is under 2 seconds which is an excellent score for a page with lots of different features. However, Bet365 casino search functionality is missing from the website. Offering users to search for games would greatly improve their experience and make any interactions more efficient.

Total Score

Performance

1.44seconds

89


Strengths

Weaknesses


Users are able to easily obtain information and provide feedback very easily

Browser standard functions, such as ‘Back’ and ‘Forward’ aren’t supported

Search is consistent and easy to use

Content and text is relevant to all usersGood Help section with informative and useful content for all types of users


Live chat options readily available everywhere

No breadcrumbs and no highlighted menu to identify user location on the website


Homepage design slightly dated

Clear list of available games at the bottom of the page


No search functionality

The layout is clear and allows users to reach their desired tasks

Users can’t access game information directly from the homepage

Registration form could be broken down into sections to display progress and its lengthNo favouritesNo demo playGame landing pages aren’t accessible from a search engineUsers can only browse games by typeGame rules too long and hard to scan


Coral.Coral’s casino lobby offers great functionality across the website, giving an overview of the games and other user functions directly available from the account. It allows users to filter games by more than one parameter which is very useful for regular customers. It offers good UX in forms, error messages, feedback and help, providing plenty of information, notes, help and easily accessible contact details if required.

The site’s performance is just over 2 seconds which is a relatively good score for a page with so many different features. Minor fixes could improve the UX, such as displaying free demos in a clearer way, decluttering the homepage and breaking down sections in Rules to be able to find the right information faster.

Total Score

Performance

2.15seconds

95


Strengths

Weaknesses


A list of available games at the bottom of the page

Users can only search games by name

Browser standard functions, such as ‘Back’ and ‘Forward’ are supported

Users are able to easily obtain information and provide feedbackForms are clear and help users complete them with minimum errorsContent and text is relevant to all usersGood Help section with informative and useful content for all types of users

Free play available (though text/button is sometimes lost in the image of the same colour)

Users can clearly find their location on the website through highlighted menu

Their registration form could be broken down into sections to display progress and its length


The homepage background image makes it look cluttered


Search is consistent and easy to use

Game landing pages aren’t accessible from a search engine


Users can’t access game information directly from the homepage

Game rules are too long and hard to scanUsers can only browse games by type


Gala Casino.Gala Casino’s homepage has recently been updated and the overall feature selection provides an excellent experience in terms of finding various tasks that a user of any level might be looking for. It offers demo plays and various ways of viewing games, including favourites and most popular or new. This provides an excellent UX in addressing different user preferences. The casino lobby could improve its forms by adding more examples and clear messages to aid users. The registration form could also be broken down to display its progress and length. For improved UX, Help could also open in a pop-up window so the user would be able to swiftly get back to the previous tasks once the relevant information is obtained.

Total Score

Performance

1.16seconds

93


Strengths

Weaknesses

Modern and intuitive UI

There are no breadcrumbs but the website works more like an app and could be easily viewed on a tablet device

Information about games can be found by clicking ‘I’ within a game and it opens as a pop-up, so users can easily get back to their previous task

A list of available games are listed at the bottom of the pageUsers can clearly find their location on the website through highlighted menuSearch is consistent and easy to useUsers are able to easily obtain information and provide feedback


Good Help section with informative and useful content for all types of users

Users can mark games as favourites and browse them by different parameters



Registration form could be broken down into sections to display progress and its length and offer more examples to aid completion more effectively

Demo plays available



Help could be modernised and open in a pop-up window


Ladbrokes.Ladbrokes casino homepage has a great selection of features, including demo play, browsing games by type and favourites (after login), as well as offering an easy search functionality. Removal of next couple of lines.

Ladbrokes casino lobby has a clear menu, guiding the user to easily find where different tasks and games are located. However, after clicking on Live Casino, the user is taken to a separate page which doesn’t fit under the Casino navigational scheme. The menu items are different and pertinent to the new location. So if the user wanted to select non-live slot games, they would need to go back to the original Casino page which isn’t a very straightforward process.

Total Score

Performance

2.42seconds

89


Strengths

Weaknesses

Users can view games by most recent and game types

Users are able to obtain and provide feedback

Search is consistent and easy to use but it could handle misspellings better


Demo plays available



Homepage looks busy and may be hard to browse


Registration form is broken down into sections to display progress and its length and offers prompts to aid completion more effectively

The homepage allows users to reach their desired tasks

Users need to be logged in to find information about games

There are no breadcrumbs and the location isn’t highlighted in the menu


No favourites

No sitemap nor list of available games

Content offers small screen shots and small font size, which could be large

Live chat available but only through My Account and not in Contact Us

Navigation is generally good, but once the user clicks on Live Casino, they are taken to a completely different section which isn’t pertinent to Ladbrokes Casino menu


Paddy Power.Total Score

Performance

2.26seconds

Paddy Power casino lobby offers a good layout, selection of features and availability of the most used tasks. There is clear information about games and help available should users require it.

However, some tweaks in navigation and search could improve the overall UX, addressing various customer preferences and needs. Live Chat should also be accessible from the homepage. This would enable the user to contact someone sooner and continue playing games without leaving the page.

93


Strengths

Weaknesses

Users can view games by a few parameters, including type, most popular, new and team picks




Registration form is broken down into sections to display progress and its length and offers prompts to aid completion more effectivelyGood Help section with informative and useful content for all types of usersUsers can easily recover from errors

Good level of support for new users

A list of available games is located at the bottom of the page


Breadcrumbs aren’t very defined and the highlighted menu disappears once the users hovers over it with a mouse

Practice plays available




Live chat is hidden inside Help and isn’t easily accessible from the homepage

Content is long and could be shortened or broken down into easily legible paragraphs

Live chat available but only through My Account and not in Contact Us

No favourites


UniBet.Unibet casino offers an excellent UX with a variety of tasks available to the user, including demo plays, favourites, deposit, easy login and help functions. Its design is uncluttered and navigational scheme allows the user to browse games according to their preferences.

The only thing that novices might find difficult is accessing game information which can be reached only from opening a game. Adding an extra page or making this function available from the homepage would improve the UX and allow the user to find it more effectively. Unibet casino lobby offers the most diverse and user-friendly functionality, staying ahead of other operators in this review.

Total Score

Performance

2.83seconds

96


Strengths

Weaknesses

Users can browse games by favourites, different view options and game types


Practice plays available



Registration form is broken down into sections to display progress and its length and offers prompts to aid completion more effectively


Users can easily recover from errors

Users can easily identify their location on the site thanks to a highlighted menu element

Users can view games by a few parameters



Game rules could be slightly more obvious and accessible to new users

Good level of support for new users

A list of available games is located at the bottom of the page


Live chat is hidden inside Help and isn’t easily accessible from the homepage

Live chat available but only through My Account and not in Contact UsContent is long and could be shortened or broken down into easily legible paragraphs


Improving Your UX.


Many of the reviewed casino lobbies have demonstrated strong features and good understanding of the UX to ensure their customers use their services efficiently. However, we have spotted some elements that can be improved to provide a comprehensive and enjoyable gambling experiences.

Focusing on customers and testing different options is key in determining the most relevant and effective UX for online casino. Various types of screen resolutions and browsers need to be supported to ensure an equally easy and enjoyable experience for the players.

Moreover, operators need to make sure they consider every step users might take to find a game, access help, search and any reasons why they might want to abandon the app.

The quicker users get to their goal, the more frequently they are likely to return to the same casino.

Covering the basic user requirements, as well as adding innovative features to the lobby will make online casino stand out from the competition and ensure customer retention. Testing various options will help to achieve this, as well as following the latest UX trends and developments.

Contact the Degree 53 team to for a more detailed review of your casino lobby, UX advice and consultancy.

The most successful gambling websites have the easiest and clearest UX.

People like to follow a simple process to get to the desired destination. This means that the journey needs to be as effortless as possible, from registration to playing a game and depositing funds.

If the UX is confusing or involves too many steps, consumers are more likely to abandon the product and never return.

They are also more likely to seek alternatives from competitors and go elsewhere.

Therefore, operators need to offer a specialist interface and UX for the players to guide them to their desired tasks as efficiently as possible.

Improving Your UX.Degree 53 Casino Lobby Review 35

Methodology.


888 Coral

Betfair Gala Casino

Betvictor Ladbrokes

Paddy Power

Unibet

Betway

Bet365

The reviewed online casino lobbies are (in alphabetical order):

Methodology.

It is important to note that all casino lobbies were evaluated objectively. The results from this review highlight the tendencies in the desktop UX across different online casino lobbies and can be used as learnings to improve customer journey and website functionality.


The selected online casino operators have been subject to a standard usability review undertaken by the Degree 53 experts. It was based on the following categories:

Features and functionality: Review of how the desktop site meets common user goals and objectives (play a game, deposit, login), supports users of all levels of expertise (beginner, regular player), offers shortcuts to commonly used tasks (deposit, register, live chat) and offers clear calls to action.

Homepage: Review of the casino lobby homepage, its effectiveness in directing users to desired tasks and use of ‘white space’.

Navigation: Review of the site navigational scheme, including menus, site map, flexibility in browsing options, highlighting links and supporting browser functions, such as ‘Back’ and ‘Forward’.

Search: Review of the search functionality, including various parameters or search options and display of results

Control and feedback: Review of prompts and feedback given following a successful or unsuccessful action, how tasks can be modified or cancelled and whether users can provide feedback or contact the operator.

Forms: Review of forms offered on the website (mainly registration), requested information, appropriate input fields and instructions for successful completion.

Error messages: Review of error messages displayed upon an unsuccessful task, how easy they are to understand, how any errors are prevented and how easy users can recover from them.

Content and text: Review of available content across the website, including relevance, consistency, language and legibility of text.

Help: Review of help resources available to users, taking into accounts its consistency, accessibility and an option to seek further help if required.

Site performance using Pingdom Website Speed Test: Website speed test using https://tools.pingdom.com/ which looks at page components (HTML, CSS, images, text etc) and how they facilitate site performance

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3. https://www.usability.gov/how-to-and-tools/methods/heuristic-evaluation.html

The Evaluation.Degree 53 Casino Lobby Review 38

Rating System.Before defining the ratings and criteria, we have agreed on the following elements that make a great UX according to best practices:

Website is clear and uncluttered, consistently supporting different browser formats and functions (Back, Forward)

Website loading speed is under 2 seconds

Website forms offer sufficient amount of clues and prompts for successful completion and in case of an error, the user can easily recover

Website clearly displays various key functionalities relevant to users of all levels, such as login, play a game (demo or actual), search, help, feedback/contact details, various calls to action and promotions

Website offers easy access to help or other related content for users of different levels

Website allows the user to browse and search its content by different parameters (type, name, popular, most recent)


Our rating system was integrated in the usability review, scoring each section according to the following scale:

The total score is a sum of each section ratings on a scale of 0-100:

The total score is a sum of each section ratings on a scale of 0-100:

Very Poor – lacks key functionality or main components are flawedPoor – functionality exists but needs significant workModerate – site includes some of the key functionalities but requires additional details to provide better UXGood – site has main functionalities with minor flawsExcellent – site includes all of the key functionalities and no flawsN/A – not applicable to the site

0-55 – lacks key functionality or main components are flawed56-65 – functionality exists but needs significant work66-75 – site includes some of the key functionalities but requires additional details to provide better UX76-85 – site has main functionalities with minor flaws86-100 – site includes all of the key functionalities and no flaws

< 2 seconds – Excellent2-2.5 seconds – functionality exists but needs significant work2.5 - 3 seconds – site includes some of the key functionalities but requires additional details to provide better UX3.5 seconds – site has main functionalities with minor flaws> 4 – Very poor – site includes all of the key functionalities and no flaws


About Degree 53.


The Review Team.

Each website has been reviewed and scored by the experts at Degree 53: Andrew Daniels, Managing Director, Robert Walter, Technical Director, Chris Benstead, Digital Strategist and Jade Sahota, Head of Design. They all applied their knowledge and experience in working in the gambling industry, focusing on technical, design, UX and digital execution.

Degree 53 is a digital agency, specialising in development in the gambling industry. The company holds a Remote Gambling Software licence accredited by the UK Gambling Commission. The Manchester-based agency provides support in development, UX design, prototyping and consultancy.

Degree 53 started out as an in-house mobile development team for one of the biggest gambling operators in the UK. This experience armed the company with great knowledge and understanding of the gambling industry, as well as preparing to service it independently.

Since then, the agency has built a portfolio of gambling operators and affiliates. It’s developed software, websites and mobile apps for online betting companies and casino providers worldwide, as well as offering strategy, UX design and a host of other services.

The Remote Gambling Software licence, accredited and regulated by the UK Gambling Commission gives Degree 53 the authority to manufacture, supply, install and adapt gambling software for the UK licensed operators. Its processes are fully compliant with the stringent testing, information security and technical standards this licence requires.

Degree 53 has worked on some ground-breaking and market-leading products, including the Sportsbook and Lotto mobile apps for Betfred, new website for HollywoodCasino.com, mobile apps for ProScores and a responsive website for Bookies.com to name a few.

Andrew DanielsManaging Director

Robert WalterTechnical Director

Chris BensteadDigital Strategist

Jade SahotaHead of Design


Contact Us.Phone: +44 (0)161 359 4000Email: [email protected]: www.degree53gaming.com


casino lobby review. - degree 53 gaming€¦ · casino lobby. it sets out to offer guidance for...

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