Marketing: Show me the money!
by Dennis Conrad
May 14, 2008
There is a fundamental conflict in the casino industry: Our
customers are trying to get our money, while we try to get theirs. I know of no
other industry with such a tension between it and its paying consumers.
On top of all this, in this battle for each other’s money,
it is not even a fair fight — the casino, in its various levels of mathematical
edges, will make various levels of gambling profit from roughly four of every
five casino customers daily. Only one out of five will leave a casino visit as
a winner.
And with this overwhelming house advantage and absolute
mathematical certainty, I find it incredible that casinos continue to sweat the
money.
So, if you claim ignorance about what sweating the money is,
or believe that your casino doesn’t do it, let me state this unequivocally:
Sweating the money involves your casino executives and employees worrying that
your casino customers will win, worrying while they are winning, worrying that
they will win too much, and worrying that someone else (i.e., a senior exec)
will worry that they got away with winnings.
Defining the sweat
My estimate is that 80 percent of casinos sweat the money to
some neurotic and counterproductive degree. And while I will grant you that
sweating the money occurs most often in the table games environment (where we go mano a mano with them), I assure you that it
exists in every gambling aspect of your casino. It occurs when:
—A phone call goes to the shift manager when a table game
customer buys in for $1,000 or gets ahead of the game $1,000 or more.
—Three casino executives hover around a craps table, with
frowning looks, waiting and hoping for their players’ lucky run to stop.
—We make our slot customers wait for jackpot payouts or make
them jump through paperwork hoops to get paid.
—We have bill validators that won’t take $100 bills
(sweating possible counterfeits).
—Dealers will swipe a player’s buy-in currency at a game
with a highlighter pen, looking to snag a counterfeit bill rather than welcome
a new customer.
—Casinos put arbitrary requirements for gathering player identifications
for various cashout amounts that are more stringent than federal, state or
tribal regulations.
—Your casino employees just act like it’s their own money
when they pay a winning gambler.
—Other policies, practices, attitudes and habits too
numerous to mention.
Now, I understand that there is a natural human element
involved when the house competes in wagering games against the players. Dealers
do not want to be “losing” dealers (especially against nontipping stiffs). Slot
managers don’t want to see their daily win or slot hold percentage impacted by
too many jackpots. Cage cashiers don’t want to see their cash bankrolls
evaporate into a pile of chips or cashout tickets. I get all that.
But, correct me if I’m wrong here, our casinos sell
hope, possibility and a chance to
win. So, when the lucky few are winning, or when they do win,
why are we not celebrating these wins with a smile on our faces, paying them
quickly, acting like (temporary) gracious losers and inviting them to play on
and win more?
Being a gracious loser
I know it’s hard. But from a marketing perspective, the
strongest position your casino can have is to be seen as a place where your
players can win
and are made to feel good about it when they do. So, try some of these
antiperspirants:
—Eliminate every unnecessary policy, regulation or procedure
that makes it appear you don’t want to pay your winning customers, or are
paying them grudgingly.
—Eliminate all those counterfeit-checking highlighter pens
at the table games. You may find a few counterfeits a year, but your hands per
hour ratio is suffering and the message you send to your arriving customers is
atrocious.
—Pay every casino winner quickly, enthusiastically and with
a smile.
—When a dealer or table is “dumping the rack” (losing big
sums to the players), cheer along with the players — and mean it. They do this
at the craps tables at Paris Las Vegas (Harrah’s gets this anti-sweating
concept and is starting to explore it).
—Quit clocking the drop at your tables (keeping track of how
much money goes into the drop box). You’ll know how much the game wins or loses
at the end of the shift (or counting period), and there’s a multimillion dollar
surveillance system watching everything anyway.
—Train your casino workers in casino mathematics, so they
understand the inevitability of the house winning and that players’ good
fortune is to be expected (and congratulated) within the realm of statistical
possibility.
And above all, to those of you who see the inherent wisdom
of not sweating the money, remember that we should treat all players’ winnings
as temporary loans. And if we are real nice to these winners, they will pay us
back, with interest.
Dennis Conrad
Dennis Conrad is the president and chief Relationship Officer of Raving Consulting Company, a full service marketing company specializing in assisting gaming organizations. He can be reached at (775) 329-7864. Visit Raving’s Web site at www.ravingconsulting.com.
Did you enjoy this article? Click here to subscribe to the magazine.
