MY EVOLVING THOUGHTS ON TABLE GAMES
By Dennis Conrad
I have been what you can call a “table games guy” most of my adult life. I was a dealer and tables games floorperson very early in my gaming career and my first marketing job involved promoting table games. I have been an avid blackjack and craps player for over 30 years. My marketing consulting work for casino clients often takes me into table game organizations. My company produces an annual table games conference.
So yes, I have developed some pretty strong thoughts on the casino table games experience, and they can best be summed up by the following two thoughts:
1) The casino table games experience continues to be more like the interactions with tellers at a bank, than a value-adding, entertainment experience that helps casinos build strong customer relationships and create real customer loyalty.
2) There is a huge tsunami of business opportunity coming with table games in the next two decades (and I believe it has even already begun).
The last two decades can best be described as The Evolution of Slot Machines in the gaming industry and hardly anyone in the casino business can argue that it has been a bad thing. Millions of new gamers have been introduced to casinos through the simple and powerfully fun experience of the slot machine. Some casinos now routinely make 90-100% of their gaming revenue from machines.
Yet over those same two decades (except in some notable table game markets like Europe and Macau), table game revenues have seriously eroded and table game floor space in casinos has dramatically shrunk (and in some cases disappeared altogether). That’s the bad news.
The good news (and the main reason for my optimism) is that it appears right now that casino customers aged 21-35 (the future of our casino business!) appear to prefer table games. Just look at the boom in poker with young people. Notice the success of notable table game environments (Hard Rock Las Vegas, the Palms, numerous successful and branded “party pits” across the country, etc.) with Gen X and Gen Y customers.
It appears the coming generation of gamers, that we always assumed would be drawn to video games, might actually prefer table gaming!
If I am right about this emerging table game dynamic, then I believe some things need to happen to maximize this opportunity. So let me share some of my Emerging Thoughts on Table Games:
• Table game operators need to significantly increase the trials of new table games from table game inventors. They need to promote them well, get their table game staff motivated to sell these new games, and GET EVERY VIP TABLE GAMES PLAYER TO TRY THEM AND SHARE FEEDBACK.
• The table game environment needs to change from an adversarial one to one that roots for player wins, from a “series of transactions” model to a “relationship building” model, from caring about how much money is in the drop box and how much the “house” is winning or losing, to caring more about how satisfied the table game customers are.
• Table game operators need to shift focus from taking the money faster (higher hold percentage) to giving more quality “time on device” (overall game profitability and guest satisfaction and intent to return rates).
• The role of the table games dealer needs to significantly broaden beyond “generating game decisions” to being a performer, a cheerleader, a business developer, a host, a coach and a problem solver.
• The table game organizational hierarchy needs to change to eliminate the dis-incentive for current “dealer craftsmen” to move into management.
• The current table games experience needs to leverage its significant advantage as “live theater” versus “electronic gaming entertainment” (slot machines). Thank you, TJ Tejeda, for sharing that powerful notion.
• Table game technology needs to be better leveraged, not to catch crooks, but to make the table game customer experience more enjoyable.
• Every table game needs to become a welcoming learning environment where every player can learn every game from every dealer every time they ask.
• Table game departments need to overcome their paranoia about sharing honest mathematical information (good bets vs. bad bets, good strategy vs. bad strategy, etc.) with table game players. An informed customer is a confident customer who will spend more money.
• Table game environments must become more comfortable (less smoky, less crowded seating, more comfortable chairs, seats at craps tables, etc.).
• Closed table game areas (midweek, graveyard, etc.) have great potential to be utilized as retail, promotional and instructional areas to drive revenue.
• Innovative table game managers finally have a chance to fight back and reclaim some acreage from the slot managers.
Date Posted: 12-Mar-2011
Dennis Conrad is the President and Chief Strategist of Raving Consulting Company, a full service marketing company specializing in assisting gaming organizations. He can be reached at 775-329-7864 or e-mail dennis@ravingconsulting.com. Visit Raving’s web site at www.ravingconsulting.com.
