date 1 June 2022 update Upd: 21 March 2024 reading time 5 min views 625 views

The jackpot can both increase the poker player retention and attract new gamers to your online poker project. You just need to use this feature correctly. Let’s learn how to do it.

Why is it Helpful

It is a big prize a player wins under definite conditions. The player should have a certain hand in a certain case and both of their hole cards should be used to create the hand.

The recent research result goes that winning a jackpot increases the frequency of plays in the two-hour period up to 33%. It concerns not only the winner. Players who just saw the jackpot event also play more and their average betting amount increases.

The result of the Australian scientists’ experiment goes that the opportunity of winning a $500 jackpot prize increases the average bet size up to 26%.

jackpot average bet size

In the same experiment, there also was a group who played with the chance of winning 500 instant scratch tickets with a $25,000 top prize. This kind of prize was not so effective. Nevertheless, it increased the average bet size up to 6%.

Jackpots are sudden and they always become a pleasant surprise for the player. They vary the game and bring much excitement and emotions. Therefore jackpots are mainly the instrument for retention. More than that, they attract new players so jackpots are also the instrument of acquisition.

Keep in mind that the chance of a jackpot doesn’t depend on a player and it’s a matter of luck. It can influence the legal status of a project. For example, in some countries, online poker is supposed to be a game of skill. However, if you offer a jackpot in your poker room it can be considered a pure gambling project then.

The jackpot is a very variable instrument. Let’s check the most popular types.

Bad Beat Jackpot

It is awarded when a player with strong cards nevertheless loses the game. For example, if Jack Quads were beaten by a Straight Flush. The unlucky player defeated by a bad beat will receive a jackpot.

There are certain requirements. For example, the player with a “bad beat” hand should reach the showdown, i.e. must not fold.

Typically the payout is divided as follows:

bad beat jackpot configuration

Monte Carlo Jackpot

It is awarded when a player wins with a definite hand under definite conditions.  Casinos usually choose very rare and strong hands. For example, Straight Flush. The player should show the cards to win the jackpot.

Smart Jackpot

It works similarly to Bad Beat but can only be played during certain hours. This distinctive jackpot is leveraged to attract players to a poker room at specific hours of the day, usually not popular.

Find the Balance

There is a complexity in using this feature. The payout is usually not fixed. It accumulates from a part of rake. After winning the jackpot the prize size resets and starts accumulating over again. At this moment, it looks pathetic and doesn’t attract players.

You can configure the minimum jackpot size that can be offered to players but it takes time to accumulate the amount.

poker software jackpot

You can configure auto increasing to a certain amount but you should be careful. Knowing the statistics of rake at the table and the possibility of the winning combinations you can figure out the safe amount that won’t cause big loss.

But you should keep in mind that this kind of calculation is approximate. Also, previous values of the RNG do not affect the future values. It’s unlikely but there is always a non-zero possibility of hitting the jackpot many times in a row. It doesn’t mean that your calculation is wrong. Check the statistics later when a larger number of hands is played. It should be close to the calculated result.

Anyway, after launching the jackpot feature you should watch players’ behaviour, analyse statistics and correct settings finding the perfect balance. 

The EvenBet software allows you to use all these three types of the jackpot. You can create tables either with a jackpot enabled or disabled. Every type of jackpot is configured separately and they have unique options. Contact our managers to learn the details.

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    Konstantin Shelikhov

    Article by Konstantin

    Konstantin Shelikhov

    Content Manager at EvenBet Gaming