For our members, this guy needs no introduction. He’s Jack, the man representing Slotland and Win A Day here on LCB and the recent winner of the GAFFG award for 2016 ‘Trusted Affiliate Manger’. The casinos reached several major milestones in 2016 including Slotland’s 18th year online, a slew of video poker game releases and over $200,000 in cashback given back to LCB’ers. We managed to steal a few moments from Jack and there was plenty to talk about.
1. Thanks for chatting with us and by the way, happy new year. Congrats on your GAFFG award. This was the first for you, right?
Thanks a bunch and belated Happy New Year to all LCB members as well as the hard working team behind it. Yep, there is always a first time for everything. Although I wouldn't exactly consider myself a newbie in the industry, I was still quite shocked to learn I won GAFFG award when never really caring about turning my name into a brand. It sure feels great appearing on the list with such superstars like LCB itself, and other famous people of the industry. So let me return the favor and congratulate LCB and everyone behind it for winning the GAFFG award as well.
2. How did you end up in the casino business?
Law of probability can sure take you to unexpected paths. Back in the day while still working on my degree I got myself two part-time jobs. One kinda boring day-job at a major corporate bank and another super exciting one throughout the night working as a customer service rep for a site called Slotland. Back then Slotland was out for only a few years, being one of the first twenty online casinos out there. The overall workload soon turned out to be unbearable, so when the time came to make a choice, being young at heart, I paid the corporate world a big farewell and never looked back. When the opportunity came, I switched seats and tried my role in accounts, which I frankly didn't fall for. So then I eventually moved over to marketing and affiliate management which I've enjoyed being part of ever since. Especially since it means being surrounded by an amazing group of people, and working for a company that doesn't treat its employees just like 'assets'. In retrospect, I still can't cherish the early years enough for teaching me a great deal of empathy in terms of helping me see players not as 'customers' but real people with real and individual emotions and needs. Maybe that's why even after those long years, I still have many friends among our past and existent players with whom we exchange emails, ecards, pm's etc.
3. Last year was a big one for the brands in terms of hitting some significant targets. Give us a 2016 wrap up.
Last year sure was a major milestone for our brands. Who would ever say an online casino can become 18 years old, even beating such a behemoth as Google by a week or two? Well, Slotland did, doing it in style by giving away hundreds of thousands in bonuses, and introducing a brand new game during the month-long birthday bash. Throughout the year Slotland was graced by a number of video poker games, welcomed yet another $200K+ JP winner, paying out way over $12M in Jackpots to date. And of course, it wouldn't be the true home of slots without introducing a number of cool new slot machines. Winaday had a stellar year as well, turning 8 last year. As well as getting an overhaul of its mobile game play, and turning a Melissa C. and her cat Fuzzy into JP winners, the site also introduced a number of exciting slot and casino games including Ice Crystals, a game based on a concept I was honored to put together. Overall both brands now feature around 120 games with at least a dozen already in production, so I'm sure players have much to look forward to.
4. It was also a year of building a strong video poker portfolio. Why the focus on this game?
Yes, 2016 was definitely a year of video poker at Slotland. While the majority of Slotland players naturally prefer playing slot machines, we felt it was about time for Slotland to increase the variety of games by introducing some poker games. So apart from adding a number of cool slot games like Ninja Power, Neon Reels, or Phantom of the Opera last year, we decided to throw in
some of the most popular poker games. And while at it, we opted in for no less than 6 different video poker variants.
5. Let’s talk cashback. Our exclusive offer with you has been a huge success with over $200K given back to players. How awesome is that?
Very awesome indeed! It started small but sure grew big over the years. When giving away the first $50 cashback over 4 years ago, personally I never imagined it would become this popular. With over four thousand entries, close to half million views and currently almost $210K being given away to date, we not only managed to create one of the most popular forum threads at LCB, but also wrote a piece of history together. Many thanks to everyone who took part so far, and we hope that will inspire those who have not given it a chance yet. Plus I couldn't possibly talk cashback without saying how much I praise LCB's own forum admin Blueday who was extremely helpful throughout the years and without whose friendly nudges I'd probably appear considerably more forgetful than I may appear now. And for those interested in some extra cashback fun, watch for March 16th. Can't share any details now, but it's gonna be big!
6. What new offers, promos, games etc. can players expect to see this year?
I would really hate spoiling the secret by saying too much, but at least I can shed a light on some of our plans, such as beefing up the number of Slotland games significantly throughout the year, launching BTC deposit option in just a few weeks, rolling out with a completely new mobile site for Winaday, introducing new kind of bonuses and promotions, and obviously giving many, many more LCB cashbacks. Plus who knows? Maybe even my dream to introduce tourneys with much awaited free rolls might come true this year.
7. Do you gamble? What’s your game of choice?
I suppose it may seem a dream job for many to get paid to play slots during working hours, rather than getting sacked for being caught doing so. However, although it's my daily routine to make a few spins here or there, I wouldn't really call myself a gambler since I prefer to maintain a somewhat detached approach toward casino games in general. Of course I'm the first one to check out new features, and to evaluate the entertainment factor of each game from a player perspective, but in my leisure time I simply prefer to pick something else to entertain myself, be it playing badminton, climb up some rock, ride a single trek, ski, or just read, go to a concert and play with my three sons. The games I do enjoy playing the most are either simple fast-paced slots, take Ice Crystals for example, wink-wink, or on the contrary, the beautifully designed gems with rich, adventure-like bonus games, e.g. Alice in Wonderland. In my real life, I occasionally play poker because of the social aspect of this game, and also because of the possibility to bluff, which won't really get you far when playing slots. Apart from the world of gambling the closest transgression might be trading stocks and etf's I suppose, since often it's also a struggle to keep afloat but those times when you beat an index in the long term sure feels just like hitting big!
8. Our very own MelissaN spent some time with you at the SIGMA conference in Malta so, we know you’re a chocolate fanatic. A slice of chocolate cake washed down with a cup of hot chocolate? Oh Jack. Yep, she let the cat out of the bag but who could blame you? What’s your ultimate chocolatey dream?
Yes, it was a pleasure to meet LCB's very own MellisaN during the Sigma conference last year, and to spend some time with her both during and outside the expo hall. Hmmm, I see my sins didn't come unnoticed ;) Alright, I do confess that the passion for chocolate is sure one of them. Actually, one of the choco-dreams already came true for me when I witnessed hands-down the whole process of the chocolate being born, with the cocoa seeds slowly turning from the gift of nature to a scrumptious delight. But I guess my ultimate chocolatey dream would be to travel back in time a few thousand years and enjoy a cup of hot and spicy 'xocolatl' in the way the ancient Aztecs drank it. Perhaps along with a mighty ruthless ruler atop of a steep pyramid, surrounded by the luscious jungle, and the hordes of blood-thirsty warriors. The good thing about chocolate is that it can let everyone live a little dream every day without time travel, without getting anyone hurt. And in case someone was wondering, I like to share. I really do ;)