Focus on player development
Database marketing has proven that it can generate millions in revenue for a casino. Applying segmentation and data-backed decisions should not stop with the mail. Using this philosophy within the player development strategy will generate additional revenue. Below are three key ways to incorporate database marketing into the player development program.
Align your player development program and segmentation with the natural segmentation of your database.
This involves looking at your database to identify which segments carry the most weight. You want to understand the bell curve for spend and frequency for your entire database, along with the bell curve of your player development program. By doing this you will ensure that you are not missing out on players who should be included in your player development program and that your entry level into the program is set with the correct criteria.
Your player development program would begin with players on the right side of the bell curve. You want to look at where a junior host program could begin and where your host and VIP programs begin. Comparing count to revenue is a good way to begin to look at this. At what point in your database does the percentage of total count go down significantly and the percentage of theo win stay about the same? You will start to see where two percent of your database is making 10-15 percent of the theoretical win.
Use hyper-segmentation and apply database marketing strategy to the players in your player development program.
Once you understand the layout of your database and what the criteria should be for players to be included in the player development program, you will want to move onto this step. This is where you begin to strategize the best way to communicate with your players based on their behavior. This creates a one-to-one feel for the guests systematically to not exclude players who may not be called upon due to the lack of a relationship with their host. In addition to looking at ADT, AMT, visits, etc., add additional behaviors to the segmentation like new member, incliner and decliner. This needs to happen in a way that can be delivered to hosts regularly and be measurable. Speaking to players immediately after a change in behavior has a direct impact on revenue. The ability to contact a player and immediately let them know you recognized that they made additional trips in that month or played more than they typically do, recognize them and offer them a reward, long before anything would show up in the mail, does make an impact in revenue. Players appreciate the recognition and it shows.
Include player development measurement tools into the player development training to keep the momentum going.
Having measurement tools that show the progress of their book of business at the player level gives the hosts access to information to manage their clients like a business owner manages their books. To be able to see when players have changed their behavior and be able to respond quickly to those changes is critical to the success of the host team. Instead of hosts only relying on players they know well and rely on to come to an event, they are now growing and managing their business like a sales team.
The second piece to this is that hosts need to be able to continuously see how they are doing against their goals, and management needs to be able to track the progress of the team. Seeing the positive impact to the company revenue, and more importantly for them, their revenue, is motivational. This will not only create momentum within the department, but also with senior management as they see the positive changes.
Adding each of these steps as a part of your player development program will allow you to see the additional revenue hidden within the existing database and capitalize on growing what you already have. I have found it shocking how much money is sitting in a casino’s database. This is a good step at getting some of that money.
