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StumbleAdvocacy group says it’s OK for casinos to market to gambling addicts
Head of Nevada Council on Problem Gambling says efforts should focus on non-gaming amenities
Wednesday, July 21, 2010 | 2:05 a.m.
It’s all right for casinos to market to customers with addictive gambling behavior as long as they focus on the property’s amenities and don’t push playing slot machines and table games, according to the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling.
Carol O’Hare, the council’s executive director, told casino marketers attending the two-day Casino Marketing Conference at Paris Las Vegas that companies need to be considerate of problem gamblers, but it doesn’t mean those people can’t be good customers.
In a session on marketing to problem gamblers, O’Hare said casinos should consider marketing programs directed at casino guests who don’t gamble, and not just those who suffer from pathological gambling disorders but those who simply choose not to play.
O’Hare, a self-described recovering gambling addict, said because casinos have become entertainment centers with more than just slot machines and casino games, there are many opportunities to attract non-gaming customers.
“I am a consumer with discretionary income, an active member of the community, a person who enjoys having fun with friends and family and a non-gambler by choice,” O’Hare said at the coference presented by Raving Consulting Co. and BNP Media Gaming Group. “But I am potentially your customer, too.”
O’Hare said studies show that 75 percent of casino customers eat at casino restaurants, 60 percent see shows, 48 percent visit a bar or club, 41 percent go shopping and 35 percent use on-site recreational facilities such as movie theaters and bowling alleys.
O’Hare encouraged casino marketers to learn the culture of the non-gambler and consider ideas and programs to cater to them. She said marketers should realize that commonplace marketing tactics directed at every customer shouldn’t go to the estimated 1 to 2 percent of the general population that suffers from pathological gambling disorders.
O’Hare said that casinos that distribute loyalty cards and gambling coupons to every guest who checks into a hotel are doing a disservice to the problem gambler.
“It’s like giving a bottle of wine and a corkscrew to the recovering alcoholic that checks into the hotel,” she said. “Give me an opportunity to say no.”
She recommended instead asking guests whether they want the gaming-related giveaways. She suggested that casinos could develop an identifier — maybe a colored bracelet — that identifies an individual as a non-gambler so that the customer is not continually bombarded with gambling giveaways.
“Sometimes it’s as easy training employees how to greet guests,” O’Hare said. “Most of the time, they’ll say something like, ‘Good luck.’ How about ‘Have a nice day?’ Some properties have incorporated their own names into an appropriate greeting, like ‘Have a grand day,’” she said, referencing the MGM Grand’s signature slogan.
She also urged casinos to consider marketing programs that specifically target non-players, such as an invitation-only poolside buffet for non-gamblers. She also suggested that casino loyalty cards don’t have to be tied to gaming promotions and that companies could benefit by offering loyalty cards that focus on other amenity purchases and not casino play.
O’Hare also cautioned casinos to be wary about sending mixed signals with their marketing messages.
Most casinos companies prominently display the national problem gambling hotline toll-free number on their walls. But some of those same casinos, she said, also offer gambling promotions that encourage patrons to cash their Social Security checks at the cashier’s cage.
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It's like taking an alcoholic to a bar. People with gambling problems should stay clear of casinos period. This marketing campaign is nothing more than a last ditch effort to get a few bucks from someone that will hopefully fall of the wagon. Does anyone know of a casino that wouldn't sell its soul to the devil for a buck?
As a gambling addict, all I can say is show me the way to the craps tables!!!
Please, come to our BAR, we've got LIQUOR!!!
BUT...if you're an alcoholic, we'll let you play DARTS!!! Darts are FUN! You LOVE darts; C'MON MAN!!! You can play for FREE while your buddies DRINK! Whaddya say? Hmmm? Darts...
THINK about it!!!
Absurd to the point of profundity !
Anything that entices a problem gambler to so much as approach a casino is to tempt him/her to gamble.
Problem gamblers can find restaurants, bars, shows, etc. elsewhere !
Maybe O'Hare needs to spend a little time looking into the studies of domestic abuse, child neglect, and suicide rates of "problem gamblers", that just want to dine at the casino.
On another note; as we look to diversify the economy, ever wonder what parents who have not been indoctrinated by the vegas way of life think about our family environment that in vegas means if you want to go as a family on an outing of bowling, movies, ice skating that you have to expose your children to a casino?
Peaches :
Your comments regarding "problem gamblers" might have some merit, however I am willing to "bet" that other "problem people" who figure into the studies of domestic abuse,child neglect,and high suicide rates far outweigh the percentages of "problem gamblers" you catogorized. Also, if you want your children to be raised in a wholesome environment, don't live in Las Vegas for cryin out loud!!!
Peaches,
You can not blame Las Vegas on the fact that most of the Bowling, Ice Skating and Movie theaters are at casinos. You can blame parents. Vegas did have Ice Rinks, Bowling alleys and Movies theaters all over the place, Parents took the kids to the ones in the casinos. The "local" ones mostly closed due to lack of business.
People have to learn that Vegas and Casinos are not the problems in most cases. People are the problem.
I think Harrah's is leading the way in this type of marketing. Ask Terrance Watanabe. Of course he just went to Caesar's and Rio for the excellent restaurants, entertainment, and pool scene. Where's the laugh track?
http://jimmyhoofa-lv.blogspot.com/
They could also send marketing materials about local bars to alcoholics and tout the dart boards and pools tables.
"maybe a colored bracelet -- that identifies an individual as a non-gambler so that the customer is not continually bombarded with gambling giveaways."
Continually bombarded with gambling giveaways?
Who is bombarding anybody with gambling giveaways? Just give me the colored bracelet and a big sack and It'll be like walking around a gambling convention. Enjoy the freebies. Riiiiight.
"Advocacy group says it's OK for casinos to market to gambling addicts"!!!
That headline should fit tidily inside the dust cover of our Stephen King novel, "Lost Vegas", right along with those cleverly extracted excerpts and breathlessly rendered reviews. It's a DOOZY!!!
What character are YOU playing???
All things considered, exactly how is it the casinos' responsibility some people can't handle their own impulses and habits? All this advocacy group has is an opinion. That government wants to hear some people whine about the consequences of their own bad decisions doesn't necessarily give it legitimacy.
"All money is a matter of belief." -- Adam Smith
The Nevada Council on Problem Gambling just lost all credibility.
This drivel about marketing to non-gamblers who have a gambling problem sounds like more of the same from the nanny stater's mentality. We have to take care of them because they are so dependent and can't take care of themselves. Humbug!
O'Hare says she chooses not to gamble. Good for her, but I don't think that she should impose her restrictions on everyone. If all compulsive gamblers in Las Vegas moved somewhere else, guess what, they'd still gamble. They would find something on which to place a bet.
Most people who have moved to Las Vegas because they enjoy gambling, already have had a gambling habit, addicitve or not, from wherever they were from. Las Vegas and the casinos are not the problem, people with a gambling jones are the problem and it is their porblem to deal with.
If Ms O'Hare is troubled by the way casinos are run because it might threaten her "gambling sobriety" then I suppose Ms O'Hare should stay out of casinos. As they say in AA, if you don't want to slip, don't go to slippery places. You can't have your cake and eat it, too.
I will say, regarding Harrah's, that about a six months ago I was really going way too often and I decided to contact Harrah's regarding their mailings. I was recieving between five to ten a week. I requested that all mailings stop and within a couple of weeks I stopped receiving them. I have yet to receive anymore of their mailings.
O'Hare does not have a realistic view on this issue. Color-coded wrist bracelets for non-gamblers has to be the biggest joke I have ever heard. The distribution of gambling offers ("fun books" and coupons) is one of the oldest marketing efforts in Vegas. If you have a gambling problem you should not check into a Vegas hotel or visit the city. If you are a local with a gambling problem you should not go to a casino for meals, movies or shopping. Simple as that. Switching the burden to casinos to stop the problem is unrealistic. 98% of the visitors don't have a problem and like getting the "funbooks" and "matchplay" coupons.
I lose at least $4000 day at the penny slots, and NO I'm not an addict.
Big payout very soon.
Anyone who waste's their time playing penny slots is a fool!! I play the high denomination machines when my gambling sickness kicks into jones mode and can easily clear four thousand within minutes,. The only problem is that the machines are so friggin tight these days, that I stick to dice. At least those odds have not been effed with yet (that I know of at least) by the greedy corporate thieves..
It just shows what high morals corporation have. Thank goodness they cannot influence elections. ....... oh wait, nevermind
Yes, let the casino's do a study on women that name themselves " peaches ".
Utterly absurd to think an honorable businessman would want to attract people who had such problems. Drawing fine distinctions about entertainment rather than gambling is not going to cut it. You do not invite an alcoholic near a bar, you do not invite young children near an abandoned refrigerator, you not lead a horse near a gopher hole or cliff edge.
Signage, layout and sounds of gambling are a lure even if one goes to the casino's swimming pool or jazz lounge. It is not proper to market to someone with a known problem. Not ever. If a casino owner can't make money from those who gamble for entertainment he should get out of the business rather than try to lure those who are desperate.
Just like the "free paycheck bonanza". Turning in the hard-earned paychecks on Fridays leaves at least 1 out of 20 or so without money and with bills to pay. The casinos know about it, and hence, they support the free paycheck proceeds.
in other words: Let's make money for all it's worth, even from addicted gamblers that "we invite for good dining opportunities" at our facilities. Hey, sorry, gimme a break, but this subject is completely off!!!
From Switzerland
why not market to your best customers? What is wrong with that? The best way to cure them is to constantly take all their money until the morons start to figure out that it is their OWN problem and maybe address it. Same with tobacco, should they not market towards the idiots that think it is great to suck in poison and cannot wait to get in that chemo chair? Why do we consider everyone a victim? Aren't they over 21? It would be great to live in the USA, where people have freedom and part of freedom is, TAKING RESPONSIBILITY for your OWN actions (no matter how stupid those actions are).