By Diana Guerrero, journalist at G&M News.
Your company has been publishing its Casino Player Trends Report for several years. Looking back, what are the most significant changes you have observed in casino players’ behavior since the first edition of the study?
Digital-power experiences and AI have seen the greatest share of voice in our reports; when we first started, AI wasn’t even a topic of conversation. When we talked about digital experience in casino gaming, we primarily focused on website experiences. Now, we’re addressing the entire digital ecosystem, including player portals, apps and digitally powered on-site experiences. I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention the rise of non-gaming experiences in our research and conversation with players and operators, which is an indication of how much the gaming experience has evolved to be considered an entertainment experience.
This year’s report deepens into the concept of the “Casino Experience Gap.” Without revealing all the findings, what is one key insight that surprised your team and that executives should be particularly excited to discover?
Operators may not be excited to discover that only 2% of executives say their app experience is fully integrated with on-property guest experience, but 42% of players say a strong digital experience is a must to keep their loyalty. However, what they might be interested in finding is how they measure their casino(s) evaluation on this scale and just how much work there may still be to do to meet and possibly exceed the expectations of their players. I think what’s most useful for operators to take away from this entire report, but this data point in particular, is how to apply it to their player base and their market, validating these findings with their own research to better understand how to take meaningful action.
How is the revenue mix evolving between gaming and non-gaming activities, and what does that tell us about the future of casino resorts?
3-in-10 (30%) of players visited a casino specifically for non-gaming activities. This can either be viewed as a miss to capture and convert these visitors to players or an opportunity to drive more traffic and call in in more players with non-gaming offerings. I think casinos, no matter how small their operation is, have to continue working with the mindset of an entertainment brand destination, because they are competing for their audiences’ share of wallet in that same manner whether they like it or not. Oftentimes, that means you have to win on more of an emotional level than purely on a tactical offer and promotional level.
Younger generations are reshaping the gaming and entertainment landscape. Based on your research, what strategies are proving most effective for attracting and retaining Millennials and Gen Z audiences?
While this current report didn’t focus as heavily on the younger generation player as we have in the past, I think there are two very important insights about these players to consider: 1) they are digital natives and there’s no getting around that. Their digital experience expectations are going to be higher than the traditional player and considered table stakes to even planning stepping foot on your property, and 2) their world has been gamified and algorithmized to perfection, so personalization is critical to any hope at loyalty for this audience.
Las Vegas has transformed itself into a global sports and entertainment hub, attracting events such as Formula 1, NFL games, and major international competitions. How do these developments impact tourism, casino visitation, and overall revenues?
We know Vegas has been met with challenges over the last year in terms of visitation. While this may be personal speculation, it could be a further reinforcement of the value of non-gaming experiences and entertainment in general becoming a greater investment in the home and local communities of these players. What this means is the Vegas experience isn’t as covetable and special as it once was, which could bode well for local casinos. High-visitation gaming destinations like Vegas or Atlantic City are seeing that they have to offer value beyond just the gaming experience. This is why we’re seeing partnerships with some of the other behemoths in entertainment, professional sports leagues, streaming services, entertainment brands, as the next future wave of casino operations.
Looking ahead to the FIFA World Cup, do you expect the event to generate a meaningful economic impact for casino destinations in the United States? What opportunities should operators be preparing for?
Like with any culturally relevant experience, casinos should prepare non-gaming and gaming offers and experiences specific to the World Cup to stay relevant, potentially draw in a new player. Do we see the World Cup as a significant revenue driver for local casinos? Probably not. I would see it as a great opportunity to test your offering with a slightly different and/or overlapping demographic than you can typically attract. Operators can use the tournament as a low-risk marketing investment to see what kind of offers, messages, promos and events make traction and apply those learnings on an ongoing basis.
Why was important for industry stakeholders to attend yesterday’s webinar, and what practical takeaways can they expect to gain from the report?
We view the success of our report webinars as offering operators a chance to connect across their industry without having to leave their desk. We know that as a 24/7 operation, those are opportunities for connection and learn from successes and failures of their peers. While the webinar was the first opportunity to get their hands on the latest and greatest data in the industry, what we often hear is valuable in making a case for investments their marketing teams have been asking for. We focus on delivering the “so what” factor of the data, both from LT.agency’s perspective as a marketing leader in the casino industry with experience across a range of gaming clients, as well as the implications of this data on marketers and operators sitting in similar seats and having similar conference room conversations across the country.
