This is a collaborative post.
Whilst matched betting can be an effective and legitimate way to make money through sports betting, a lot of people – particularly beginners – will make costly mistakes. Here are just a few common matched betting mistakes to avoid if you want to make a profit.
Not using free bets
You can make money through matched betting without using free bets, but it’s a lot harder and more of a straight gamble. Sites like Free Bets can help you to locate bookmakers that offer free bets.
You should take advantage of as many of these as you can. Even once you’ve exhausted every bookmaker’s initial free bet, you may still be able to take advantage of existing customer offers (often referred to as ‘reloads’). All in all, try to always use free bets so that it’s not your money you’re gambling away.
Ignoring the terms and conditions
A lot of people make the mistake of not reading the terms and conditions on betting sites. Bookies can often hide information in the small print regarding free bets.
In many cases, you may need to tick the box that allows you to opt in to promotions in order to collect your winnings. Other sites meanwhile may only allow you to place free bets on certain games and events. Make sure you’ve looked into this before placing a bet.
Letting free bets expire
Almost all free bets have an expiry date. This is usually seven days after signing up, but it can vary. Fail to use your free bet before this expiry date and you could lose it so make sure to use it as soon as possible.
Not using a matched betting calculator
When it comes to calculating the right lay stake, it’s worth using a matched betting calculator such as this one at The Sure Bettor – you may be able to rely on intuition as an experienced better, but as a beginner you’re likely to need this tool when working out your lay stake and your liability.
Make sure to familiarise yourself with all the terms first so that you know exactly what you’re doing.
Giving up too early
Matched betting may not gain you instant profits and you could lose some money at first. This shouldn’t put you off – in the long run your bound to make money, so long as you don’t resort to pure gambling and use free bets effectively.
It’s worth creating a routine so that you can dedicate the time you need to matched betting each week. Of course, if you’re not finding it fun, you don’t have to stick with it – matched betting may be a way to make money but it should be see as exciting alternative to other forms of making money.
If you want to get started with matched betting head to my matched betting posts here.