This is a guest contribution by Moshe Demri, Director of Professional Services, Optimove. If you would like to submit a contribution please contact Bill Beatty for submission details. Thank you.

At its heart, real-money gaming is an emotional experience. In that suspenseful moment right before finding out whether you’ve won or lost, your pulse quickens, your palms sweat, your mind focuses. The thrill of winning releases endorphins and creates a feeling of near euphoria, while the agony of a loss causes frustration and disgruntlement.

For gaming operators and developers, it is important to understand the emotional responses of players and use them to their advantage. By striking the right balance of positive and negative emotions, it is possible for gaming operators to keep their users playing longer, engaging more deeply, and monetizing more effectively.

As a child growing up in a small town near the Sea of Galilee in Israel, every week I’d travel with my mother to the local supermarket. After finishing our shopping, she’d give me five shekels and I’d immediately run to the local lottery to buy scratch cards for a shekel each and, with a thrill, scratch to see if I’d won a prize.