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Press Releases & Articles
January 2008
The Gaming Village Must Deliver An Exceptional Guest Experience
by Martin R. Baird
(Print,
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As I write this column, I'm flying home from business meetings in
Greece. For the record, I believe Greece is a wonderful country with
outstanding casinos and some of the most warm, friendly and
welcoming people you will ever meet. The people of Greece take
hospitality to an entirely new level. I had many advocate-creating
moments.
But I’m struggling with something. What happens to these cheerful
people when they go to work? I hate to say it, but service in Greece
is not good. As I visited a variety of businesses, I was almost
always disappointed by the service. Employees at these
establishments were often cold. At best, they were just going
through the motions. There were exceptions, of course. So why can’t
those positive experiences be the norm?
Please understand that my comments are in no way a condemnation of
Greece. If I was returning from Wisconsin or Indiana and had
encountered the same situation there, I would ask the same question.
But, alas, I am focusing my attention on Greece.
As I walked around Athens at night from 10 o’clock until early in
the morning, the people who were out and about were friendly,
laughing and having fun. They were with friends and enjoying the
moment. But at work, they didn’t smile or try to help customers have
a positive experience. Here’s a specific example. After dinner one
evening, my hosts decided we should have something sweet. We walked
a few steps down the street to an outdoor ice cream parlor. Our
server was horrible. She was slow even by local standards. I mean
amazingly slow. The table wasn't bussed when we arrived and it took
a long time to get that simple job done. Timely service is important
for any business. It’s critical if you want customers to patronize
you again. In addition to being slow, this young woman was
miserable. She never smiled or tried to make our visit fun. The
brand of ice cream we had is known worldwide, so why not just buy it
at a grocery store and take it home for enjoyment?
I can hear one of my Greek friends saying that this server was just
having a bad day. Perhaps that was the case. Or maybe she doesn’t
like her job. I don’t want to be rude but, as a customer, I simply
do not care. Her problems are not my concern. When I choose to spend
money, I want to have a positive experience. It’s not about the
server. It’s about me and my family or friends and what we get for
the money we pay. In other words, the price of the ice cream also
includes a premium for the experience.
The next day, I had lunch with a friend and we talked about the fact
that the restaurant charged three Euros for a beverage that probably
cost one Euro. I explained that the customer pays one Euro for the
drink and the rest of the money is for the experience, the service
and the use of a glass. Customers always pay a premium for the
experience and that is why it should be a wonderful one.
What does all this have to do with casinos? Face it, folks, I am
just like your guests. Your guests have the same expectations I do.
The last thing in the world you want is for them to whine to others
about the lousy gaming experience they had at your property. Greek
retailers need to pay more attention to their customers and you need
to focus more on your guests.
I used the word “village” in the headline for this column because
that is what the Greeks call a small community of a few thousand
people. The reality today is that we have a gaming village. We have
a few thousand casinos that dot the landscape of the globe. It
really is a small community and casinos cannot afford to get it
wrong. Now is the time for the gaming village to take action about
the way its people deliver the product, which is service.
As I visit casinos around the world, I can’t help but wonder if the
people who work there are that miserable when they go home or out
with friends. Are they just sour by nature? Or does the flogging
start when they arrive for work? If some of your employees are
miserable, please do the humane thing and remove them. The world has
a place for them. It's just not working in a people business like
gaming. If the problem is the floggings, why are you doing that? I
think most people are good, kind, friendly and hospitable. How are
you managing to mess that up? I say “manage” because I think poor
service has a lot to do with the way people are handled by their
supervisors. Are you inspiring your employees to create an amazing
experience for each and every guest or are you telling them about
the 99 ways they can be fired?
I like the concept of a village. One of the advantages of a village
is that people work together and help each other out. I know that at
some level casinos compete with each other. Each casino wants guests
to spend entertainment dollars only at their property. But set your
competitive nature aside for a moment and think about this – if all
casinos gave their guests a better experience, wouldn’t the entire
market expand?
Gaming is wildly successful and that’s probably why no one steps
back and asks what would make the whole industry better. Business
executives often talk about their stakeholders. By that, they mean
their employees, customers and investors/owners. Well, doesn’t the
entire gaming village have a stake in the future?
It all starts with your guests and the experience they have at your
property. What do they see when they arrive? How are they treated by
your employees? Do they have fun? Do they get their money’s worth
for the premium they pay? Turn them into advocates for your property
instead of whiners.
Martin R. Baird is chief executive officer of Robinson &
Associates, Inc., a customer service consulting firm that helps
casinos worldwide determine their Advocate Index, a number that
indicates the extent to which properties have guests who are willing
to be advocates, and then implements its Advocate Development System
to create more guest advocates and generate future growth and
profitability. Robinson & Associates may be reached at mbaird@casinocustomerservice.com
or 480-991-6420. The company Web sites are
www.advocatedevelopmentsystem.com and www.casinocustomerservice.com.
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