Consumer behavior of promotions: Do free bets and bonuses encourage riskier behavior in sports gamblers?

The number of people who sports bet and gamble has steadily increased over the past few decades, but with the rise of promotions and other types of “free bets,” that number has spiked (delasport.com). The launch of marketing campaigns and promotions focused on sports betting could have contributed to this spike. Today, it has become common for people to use numerous sportsbooks and websites to place bets and wager money. I propose that these advertisements and the game-like style of sportsbook apps have led to a potential shift in consumers’ attitudes and behaviors towards sports gambling. This study focuses on identifying students’ perceptions of sports betting and whether or not utilizing these “free bet” promotions leads to a behavior shift in gamblers' minds to perceive risk less and engage in riskier betting behavior. The data was collected by conducting an extensive literature search on sports betting and the consumer behavior behind it, and by conducting an online survey using Qualtrics. The data from the survey found that 61.5% of respondents said they would use their promotions and free-bets on higher risk bets.