5 core strategies every marketing plan must address

By George Haldeman

When developing a marketing plan for a casino resort, the marketer must address 5 core strategies. Revenue generation, expense control, brand resonance, planning and analytics as well as service / staff development must all be full thought out and planned for.

BI: Ease of use and speed vs. complexity

By George Haldeman

When casinos try and be all things to all people, they usually fail. Generally speaking it is because they get away from competing on their strengths. There is an analogy to business intelligence as well. When we built the first iteration of our business intelligence tool, we built it to answer our questions.

Rule 1: Be proactive

By George Haldeman

As marketers, we have a choice. We can be proactive or reactive. In order to be proactive, we need a very clear picture of the current situation. Emotion can cloud that picture. The one thing that can take emotion out of the picture is facts.

5 keys to direct mail

By George Haldeman

There are right ways and wrong ways to execute effective direct mail programs. Segmentation, offer structure, messaging and image selection, format and alignment with other aspects of the marketing plan all have an effect on the profitability of direct mail campaigns.

You have to know what you are building

By George Haldeman

It seems to me that it is very difficult for an IT department to effectively build a business intelligence tool for their casino. In order to build an effective tool, you have to begin with the end in mind.  The only way to do that is have experience in analysis and the functional area you are responsible for.It is analogous to having a blueprint to build a house.You need an architect.

Avoid direct competition

By George Haldeman

It is completely unproductive to compete where your competitor is strong. Even if you have strengths in the same areas, it will be expensive to try and win a fight where you have common strengths. We need to win the battle for market share without fighting at all.

Get there first

By George Haldeman

It is much easier to defend a position then it is to take a position away from some who already has it. In order to get there first you have to do the research. You have to ask all potential customers in your trade area what they want from the casinos they visit. You then have to ask what needs are being met by competitors. You then have the basis to begin to take a position.

Take market share from the 500 lb gorilla

By George Haldeman

When deciding where we are going to get increased revenue from, we need to consider that we are more than likely going to have to go to war to get it. The economic conditions and exploding expansion of supply have created a difficult competitive environment in virtually every jurisdiction in the country including Las Vegas.

How a leader can help and hurt his team’s performance

By George Haldeman

At the risk of not being terribly original, I am going to quote Sun Tzu as I relate centuries old concepts which are relevant to the casino industry today. In chapter 3 Attack on stratagem, Tzu says there are 3 things a leader can do bring misfortune on his army.

Being all things to all people can lead to death of a brand

By George Haldeman

Knowing who you are as a person helps people to be confident and successful. People who know what their strengths and weaknesses are can spot opportunities where they can be successful and how to avoid pitfalls that play into their weaknesses.