EDITORIAL: Keep the change
by Charles Anderer
February 13, 2013
The older I get, the
more I think I understand and the less I know that I know.
I mean, I’ll be
honest, the complexity of many things just overwhelms me sometimes, and I
respect the plight of anyone who has to make an intelligent decision about
something substantial, and, slot managers, that includes
you.
Look at the casino;
it’s a place where people take risks, so you’d think on the face of it they’d
be open to change. But the casino is also an escape from change, a place of
refuge from the outside world and its whole grab bag of change, which is very
often unwanted. Do you have players who want nothing, and I mean nothing, to
change? Probably more than a few. They want to play the same game, located at
the same place, to be greeted by the same person, be served by the same
waitress, and eat the same food they like at the same price they’re used to
paying. Are they being stubborn, or just human?
Lots of operators
complain about the price of new games, and they’ll say the games they have that
are five years or older do just as well or better than the new games. Part of
that could be simple, pardon the pun, gamesmanship, but part of it is
undoubtedly true. Most operators are dealing with a customer base with an
average age of around 55, a time of life when attitudes can harden and reality
itself certainly does. People might be
open to something new, but they want it to be at least somewhat familiar.
That’s the power of themed games that can either bring back fond memories or at
least carry something already known along with the new. If players can actually
understand the game itself, what they’re betting and how much they’re winning
and losing, that’s a plus, too.
Some things about the
past really were better. Being young was fun. Escaping was easy and fun. Not
watching the clock was fun. That’s where the casino comes in, and change isn’t
always the enemy. A lot of the technologies that have been introduced to the
slot floor, while they may have reduced human interaction, have actually
increased the fun, from TITO (hopper fills; does anyone actually miss them?) to
kiosks to mobile hosting. That elusive thing that people strive for, the
win/win, actually happens sometimes. And the personal technologies that can at
times seem intrusive are also proving to be very adept at hooking people of all
ages up to the opportunity to have fun.
But slot managers and
casino marketers face an extra burden. They have to strive to make losers
happy. Your regular players are happiest when winning, but the far more common
form of satisfaction is being able to enjoy a property when and how they like
to enjoy it for as long as they want to before they lose. The genius of the
casino industry is that it has made an enterprise out of that feeling. It’s
often said that the business is becoming more marketing-centric because the
supply and demand equation makes marketing the most important competitive
frontier, and that’s true. Many of you are chasing the same customers with the
same games and technologies in the same market, which is filled with players
who will shop you to death. But the real field of play is between you and your
customer. Getting good at the Right Offer to the Right Player at the Right Time
sweepstakes just might get you on the right side of the keep-the-change
customer, who will often choose consistency and reliability over the prospect
of an object that may or may not be brighter and shinier.
Charles Anderer
is executive editor of BNP Media Gaming Group and also oversees content development, sales and marketing for the company’s trade shows and conferences, which include Bingo World, Southern Gaming Summit, Gaming Technology Summit, New York Gaming Summit and Casino Marketing. He can be contacted at andererc@bnpmedia.com.
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