I’ve known Scott Richter for almost 25 years. Back in the late ’90s and early 2000s, he was one of the biggest names in online marketing. He ran affiliate.com, dominated the email marketing space, and was deep in the world of ringtones, affiliate offers, and email submits.
Fast forward to today, and Scott has completely reinvented himself. He’s now known as The Big Jackpot, one of the most popular gambling influencers in the world with over 1.5 million followers across YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Twitch. He gets over 20 million views a month and puts out a video every single day.
I sat down with Scott at his penthouse suite at the Cosmo in Las Vegas during Super Bowl weekend to talk about his journey, his audience, and what it takes to stay relevant on the internet for three decades.
The million dollar moment
Last December, Scott hit a $1 million jackpot on a slot machine and caught it all on camera. He described it as almost like winning the Super Bowl.
That single moment was the culmination of nearly 10 years of recording himself playing slot machines. What started as a hobby with a few thousand viewers has turned into a full blown media operation.
Reinventing yourself every two years
One thing Scott has always believed is that you have to reinvent yourself almost every two years on the internet. What works today won’t work tomorrow, especially in the affiliate and marketing space. The same applies to content creation.
The way he pushes products, creates content, and engages with his audience is constantly evolving. Staying relevant means coming up with ideas that are bigger and better than what you did before.
From behind the scenes to in front of the camera
Scott was always an operations guy. He never had any interest in being the face of anything.
The first few years of making content were rough. He was shy, nervous, and didn’t understand why people wanted pictures with him.
But over time, he grew into the role. Now he does live events with hundreds of fans in attendance and has become comfortable being a public figure, even if it still feels strange to get recognized at airports in Germany or at breakfast in Mexico.
Why people can’t stop watching
Scott’s content has incredible engagement.
On TikTok and Instagram, about half of his viewers watch all the way to the end, and half of those replay the video.
There are a few reasons for that. First, people want to see how much he won or lost, so they stick around until the end.
Second, the action on slot machines moves fast, so viewers rewatch to catch details they missed. Third, a lot of people watch to learn how the games work, even though Scott is the first to admit there are no real tips or tricks.
His average watch time on long form videos is almost 19 minutes. Compare that to a typical TV sitcom that might get 18 minutes of watch time across an entire season of episodes.
Scott is putting out that kind of engagement every single day.
The high roller audience
Scott has a unique audience because he bets at a high level. He attracts two groups of viewers. Low rollers who want to live vicariously through his big bets, and high rollers who actually gamble at his level and want to see what the machines can really pay out. His core demographic is 35 to 55 years old, about 60 to 70 percent male, and 70 percent based in the US. The rest are mostly from Australia, the UK, and Canada.
This audience is valuable to brands because these are people with disposable income. They travel, they spend on luxury items, and they’re open to impulse purchases.
Scott sees potential for credit card companies, travel brands, cruise lines, and luxury brands to reach a highly engaged, high spending audience.
The business of collaborations
Scott has collaborated with some big names, including Howie Mandel, Ice-T, and several popular Las Vegas performers like Magic Murray, Tape Face, and Piff the Dragon.
The collaborations are a two way street. Scott’s audience discovers the performers and their shows, and the performers bring their fans to Scott’s channel.
Casinos and hotels love working with him too. He’s put certain casinos in Colorado on the map just through his content. He also runs cruise deals for gamblers where he can get them on a cruise for under $200 in port fees and taxes.
Running into Tim Cook
During our conversation, Scott mentioned that he ran into Apple CEO Tim Cook at a restaurant the day before. What surprised him most was that Cook had no security detail with him. A guy worth almost $2 billion running a $2 trillion company, just out there on his own.
Scott related to that in his own way. Despite being recognized everywhere he goes, he still moves around freely and enjoys the community around him.
30 years and still going
Scott is 52 years old and has been in the game for over 30 years. From the early days of email marketing to today’s world of short form video and live streaming, he has managed to stay relevant through constant reinvention.
He credits his success to genuinely engaging with his audience. He replies to comments, responds to messages, and treats every viewer as someone who matters.
If you’re in the world of online marketing, content creation, or gambling, Scott Richter is someone worth paying attention to. He’s proof that longevity on the internet comes down to one thing: being willing to evolve.
Dennis Yu
Dennis Yu is the CEO of Local Service Spotlight, a platform that amplifies the reputations of contractors and local service businesses using the Content Factory process. He is a former search engine engineer who has spent a billion dollars on Google and Facebook ads for Nike, Quiznos, Ashley Furniture, Red Bull, State Farm, and other brands.
Dennis has achieved 25% of his goal of creating a million digital marketing jobs by partnering with universities, professional organizations, and agencies. Through Local Service Spotlight, he teaches the Dollar a Day strategy and Content Factory training to help local service businesses enhance their existing local reputation and make the phone ring.
Dennis coaches young adult agency owners serving plumbers, AC technicians, landscapers, roofers, electricians, and believes there should be a standard in measuring local marketing efforts, much like doctors and plumbers must be certified.