For years, I have discussed the importance of servicing the customer. At gaming organizations they are called players, at car dealerships they are drivers, at airlines they are passengers. No matter what you call them, they all pay for a product or service and have expectations about the value they receive for their money.
And they have become very demanding about making sure those expectations are met. When they are not, the results can be very much more than just one unhappy customer. Look at what happened with Jet Blue over President's Day weekend. Hundreds of passengers were left stranded. The press had a field day as millions of passengers posted to blogs, emailed, text messaged, and phoned their friends clamoring for Jet Blue's corporate death. The airline is still recovering from the fiasco.
What is to be learned from this type of consumer reaction? The passengers, drivers, players - whatever you call them - not only are still King, but they are wired in and able to spread their feelings about an organization far and wide with just a few keystrokes. If perception is reality, your players now have a way of spreading their "reality" quickly and effectively in a way that can affect your future, your bottom line, your entire corporate well being.
Situations like Jet Blue's may get the most coverage, but they don't get the only coverage. More important, the ease with which your customers can use their circle of friends and the Internet to affect the perception of your organization means even the smallest issue can become a major problem.
Recently I stayed at Mystic Lake near Minneapolis and Circus Circus, Reno. The check-in process at Mystic Lake was mechanical. They were pleasant enough, but they seemed detached, as if they had other things on their mind. I had a confirmed reservation for a non-smoking room, but was informed by the clerk looking at the computer record that they had no record of promising me, nor were they obligated to provide, a non-smoking room.
Now, to me, that was a very interesting response. First I do not smoke, and requesting a non-smoking room is standard with all my reservations. Secondly, I learned that there is NO SMOKING on the property. All the rooms, therefore, are non-smoking. So why tell me I was not promised a non-smoking room. Why create that negative feeling? What creates that sort of attitude in Mystic Lake's employees? It was truly baffling and more than a little annoying.
Circus Circus, on the other hand, was a wonderful surprise. The check-in was handled by Kevin with the multitasking flair of a combination master chef-field officer-maitre d'. While calling the housekeeping department to make sure the room was ready, typing in my credit card information and confirming the location and type of room that I had requested, Kevin provided me with local information, offered a discount coupon booklet and called over the bellman to take my luggage. He then asked if I needed diner reservations, local tours, or anything else.
No matter what else happened at Circus Circus, this first contact was so superb, there was no way I could have left feeling I had had a bad experience. I was that happy.
That is the flip side of making sure the details are right and expectations are met. Whatever benefits there are to not making players unhappy, making them happy has more, particularly insofar as happy players stay longer, spend more and come back. Therefore, the long-term value of every player, and not just the whales, must be considered. With the cost of acquiring new players continuing to rise, the repeat business of even the smallest bettor can be significant over time.
In this sense, player satisfaction becomes a strategic objective. This requires a commitment to exceeding player expectations and delivering an experience that makes players want to go to your resort or casino above all others, regardless of competitors' enticements. I call it Player Insistence®.
To create Player InsistenceSM, management must understand that the player experience starts with the parking valet or the check-in counter. You must look at it through the players' eyes and not management's. In Las Vegas, valet parking is free. In casinos in other places, there is a charge. Why? Don't you want to make it as easy as possible for players to get to the casino?
If you must charge for valet parking, why not allow the players to use their loyalty cards as a discount ID? If the base rate is $15 per day, charge $10 for the lowest level players, $5 for mid-range players, and make it free for the top players. Then you have one more benefit of player ranking and privilege.
Does privilege always have benefits outside of the casino? It should, but in practice it often does not, and this is another area to pay close attention to.
Recently I decided that I should buy a car to use while I am on the East Coast. Because I am working with Foxwoods, there is an economic advantage to having a car at the Hartford Airport. So I called my senior contact at Toyota, another one of my clients. As the Group VP, he called his regional manager. In the meantime, I called Hartford Toyota and explained that I would fly to Hartford and either lease or purchase a car. The Internet sales manager told me that Toyota had a deal on a Highlander lease at .002% financing. Done! I gave him my arrival information, called the Toyota Group VP and expected everything to go smoothly to close the deal.
Upon arrival at the airport, no one was there to meet me. I called the dealership and waited for over an hour for a pickup. At the dealership, I was turned over to a salesman. He tried to up sell me to another car. I informed him of the call from the Group VP, the fact that I was a vendor, vendors got special deals from Toyota, and I had already come to a deal with the Internet sales manager. Without listening, he turned me over to his finance guy. The finance guy gave me a short look and proceeded to ask me for a huge down payment and a higher lease rate.
It went downhill from there. Rather than bore you with all the details, suffice it to say that the deal fell through, the Toyota Group VP was upset, and to this day no one from the dealership has called to apologize. In addition, I have told everyone I could about the experience. I have written about it. I have used it in my presentations, and I have discouraged others from doing business with Hartford Toyota.
Now let's examine that in the context of an unhappy player. I have told thousands of people about this via various email lists I participate in, another few thousand by live presentations, and still more through this newsletter. If I had time, I would post to blogs, write Toyota HQ, and use this example on every one of my "what not to do" customer service articles and presentations. On the other hand, I am telling just as many about my Circus Circus experience.
Players tell others about their experiences. Think about Jet Blue, Mystic Lake and Hartford Toyota. Then think about Circus Circus. Which would you rather emulate?
Your organization should have one overarching goal: Bring the player back. Make exceeding player expectations and creating Player Insistence® a strategic objective and you are well on your way to achieving that goal. And here are Four Sure Bets that will help you succeed:
Sure Bet #1: Players always think they are right. Don't try to change their minds. Try to make them happy. Settle complaints quickly and positively. Give your staff authorization to settle complaints. Making players wait for a "manager" or other "authorization" before remedying a problem only makes it worse.
Sure Bet #2: Understand that most rules should be flexible. Do not ever say "No, that's against the rules" to a player who is making a reasonable request. There is only one rule that never should be broken: Keep your players happy and satisfied. Respond to players as individuals and their needs as the most important in the world. Consider the rules to be guidelines, not laws, and bend them as needed to keep your players happy.
Sure Bet #3: Talk to Your Players. The only way to make sure your players are satisfied is to ask them. Ask what makes them happy…besides winning. Probe to learn what they like and dislike. Do not accept general answers like "we love your location and artwork." Take them through a survey: "How was your check-in experience?" "What could make your experience at the table (or slots, video poker, etc.) more comfortable and enjoyable?" "Were the toiletries in the room adequate for your needs?"
Sure Bet #4: Stay in touch with your players. Player Insistence® is about creating relationships with your players, and that means staying in touch when they are not playing. Use mail, email, even phone calls and personal notes when indicated, for making "touches that matter." Especially when you have had a one-to-one contact with a player, be it to handle a complaint or receive a compliment, a follow-up letter, phone call or email can go a long way toward cementing your relationship with that player.
