I don’t think this thread has turned into attacks – everyone is entitled to their opinions.
I am glad pokershepherd posted here. He is more than welcome. And it is an interesting topic many care about. And I think we can wade through it without hurting each others feelings.
I see it like this (and admittedly this experience comes from advertising Casinos – I never tried incentivising poker players):
If I base my promos on freebies and free cash I am going to get “free loaders”. These are very non-loyal players that only follow the $. Whether you do rake back and have your competition underbid you, or whether you give away Ipods and have others give away computers to compete, you are catering to a crowd that is only with you as long as you have the bigger reward.
This is exactly the environment Casinos have created with their bonuses – and then they complain about bonus hunters and bonus abuse. No one is born wanting bonuses. People are taught to want them. And I think that is what Jack Ten was pointing out. By offering these things we are creating a certain breed of player – one that is always out to hunt down the bigger reward.
Yes Peralis, attentive gifts are always nice. They make you feel good, especially when you feel they are personal. But do you really rearrange your site so that you can get an ipod someone is offering whom you do not already promote? No. You just like the appreciation someone is showing you. It’s PERSONAL! That is the true value, not the ipod. I for one respond just as well to some inexpensive flowers.
If you cater to players who will only respond to incentives, you need a lot of them, the more you have, the more likely you are to survive with this model.
What was very nice about pokershepherd’s approach is the personal attention – I also find this to create nice loyalty.
What rake back is trying to achieve is to lock in players that spend a bunch of money. By definition, freebie hunters do not. It is an oximoron.
If one wants to lock in large players – watch what the casinos do for retention. They send unexpected and unsolicited presents, champagne, flowers, whatever is appropriate. It is personal attention that motivates players to be loyal.
Just my take on it.