Is it time for us to stop using the word “casino” when describing a property that has more to offer the customer?
Understanding that the smaller casino floor of the future may help to better define the entire property experience.
I was a panel member at a city planner’s conference in Philadelphia this past fall. The session was about the future of casino gambling in Pennsylvania. A member of the audience asked me, “Is it time for us to stop using the word “casino” when describing a property that has so much more to offer the customer?”
My response was yes. Here on the east coast of the US it is definitely an over- used phrase to generically describe a property.
Today we see a more holistic view of the casino floor and the customer experience is seamless with a more inclusive and diverse product mix for the guest. What was a once rigidly defined casino floor in years past is now presented as part of a mixed use model.
A smaller footprint of the casino is in-part inevitable because of the flexibility of today’s technology’s allowing more freedom to define the casino design elements.
Customers also want more than just the casino experience. The social lifestyle of the millennials have contributed to this diverse model. Non-gaming property segments have proven to be major profit centers and fit well into the parameters that define the social environment of the next generation of customers.
Marketing initiatives are generally applied to a mixed-use facility in a way that reflects the broader picture of the customer experience being offered. It is not always reflected when “casino” is part of the name. It will take time before it becomes common place and the word casino will be used to describe an amenity at a particular location and not the location itself.
Branding a property such as the Las Vegas Cosmopolitan, Aria, or using acronyms like SLS is also part of this model. The brand name defines the environment where several experiences are offered, rather than to have it be defined by just one term that describes a single experience.
Robert Ambrose
Instructor Gaming & Hospitality
Center for Hospitality & Sport Management Drexel University
A former gaming executive he joined Drexel as a Gaming/Hospitality Instructor. Instructor Ambrose continually collaborates with industry professionals and reports on the industry about his research through publications, lectures and consulting. He also developed and oversees the Dennis Gomes Memorial Casino Training Lab on the Drexel Campus.
Follow: @bobambrose
