Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests
A helpful introduction to setting Casino Host Goals! Jackie Parker, President, Harvest Trends. Jparker@harvesttrends.com Receive a free copy of our book Casino Host Goals when you schedule a demo of our Host CRM called PowerHost. Drop an email to Paul at pcutler@harvesttrends.com. Casino executives who ask these questions are on to something. They know that no matter what else is going on in the world, their guests always want one thing: a great casino experience. Guests want an experience that is so wonderful and memorable that it keeps them coming back even if they have less money in their pockets when they leave.
- Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests 2020
- Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests Free
- Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests
Gamble enough in Las Vegas or other casino destinations and you’ll get a casino host. This person helps you with travel arrangements. She also offers perks like free rooms and meals.
If you have a host, take advantage of the situation. Use their services for whatever you need.
But a casino host won’t tell you everything.
1- Which Games Offer the Highest Comps
- The Casino Host will provide administrative support to the Executive Casino Host onboard each ship. They will assist in all areas of casino services. This includes, but is not limited to, all administration & player program requirements, guest service operations, cruise preparations, verbiage/advertising & signage, casino tournaments & promotions.
- This is one of the challenges for a Casino Host when they move cross-country into a different culture, or into a very different Property where the guests have different expectations. Sympathy, by comparison, means feeling compassion, sorrow, or pity.
- The welcome letter does just what it says: It welcomes guests to the event. It doesn't have to be perceived as complicated in any way. In fact, if written correctly, the welcome letter should be simple and to the point. Ideally, a welcome letter is written on an organization's official letterhead.
The core of a casino host’s job is to get you to gamble as much money as possible. As long as they can get you to put as much money as possible into play, the casino advantage will eventually take the correct amount of it.
Good casino hosts know which games have the highest house edge and highest hold percentage. They also know which ones have the lowest. This information is usually directly tied to the level of comps you can get.
A casino determines a player’s comp level by how much the player is expected to lose. This is determined by the expected house edge on the game being played multiplied by the total amount wagered.
Here’s an example:
A player bets $100 per hand on blackjack. He plays 500 hands. His total amount wagered is $50,000.
With an expected win rate of 2%, the casino expects to win $1,000 ($50,000 X 2%).
The more money the player is expected to lose, the better for the casino host.
2- Which Games Offer the Lowest House Edge
The casino host doesn’t want you playing the games with the lowest house edge. So they probably won’t tell you which ones have it.
It doesn’t matter which games have a low house edge if you don’t play them with the best possible strategy. But your host still wants you to lose as much as possible. They won’t steer you to better games.
3- They Don’t Have Your Best Interests in Mind
Your casino host doesn’t have your best interests in mind. Sure, they want you to have a good time, but only because people gamble more when they’re having fun.
Your casino host wants you to gamble as much as possible during your stay. Everything they do is directly related to this goal.
4- They Don’t Like You
Not every casino host dislikes every one of their customers. But the host isn’t your friend, and she doesn’t like you. Depending on your behavior, she might not dislike you, but don’t make the mistake of thinking she likes you – no matter how she acts.
The casino host’s job is to get you to gamble as much as possible.
Thinking your casino host is your friend? Try this little test:
Call your casino host – tell her you need to come to town on business but won’t have any time to gamble at all. Ask them what they can do for you or recommend for your stay.
If you drop thousands of dollars a year, you might still get a room. The casino doesn’t want to risk losing your future play. But even this has limits.
And if they do comp your stay in this situation, expect them to encourage you to gamble.
5- They Don’t Care About Your Stories or Your Family or Your Business
Casino hosts listen to your stories and look at the pictures of your kids or pets. But they don’t really care.
Their job is to make you think they care enough to get you to start gambling.
6- Nothing in the Casino is Free
The free drinks, meals, rooms, and flights aren’t really free. They’re paid for out of your expected losses. The casino tells you all of these things are free. They want you to be grateful that they’re taking care of you.
Take the blackjack player who’s expected to lose $1,000 per 500 hands played. He comes to the casino and plays 5,000 hands four times a year. His expected loss for every trip is $10,000. He will have a winning trip every now and then. But on average the casino will have their percentages figured correctly.
The casino knows the player is going to lose an average of $10,000 every time he comes. They also know they can afford to give him thousands in “free” things and still make lots of money.
How much does a round trip flight, hotel room for a week, five buffet comps, and four or five nice meals cost?
Nowhere close to $10,000.
7- Everything You Get is Directly Tied to How Much You Play
Your casino host might hint at this if you aren’t playing enough. But they don’t like to come straight out and say you have to play a certain amount up front.
If you want more comps you probably need to play more. You’ll see exceptions to this rule, but for the most part, what you get from your casino host is directly tied to how much you gamble.
8- If You Don’t Ask You Won’t Get
Many players don’t ask their casino hosts enough questions. Your host will probably take care of your meals and room if you play enough. But you really have no idea how much more you may be able to get. If you don’t ask you’ll never know what you might get.
Want to see the Grand Canyon or the Blue Man Group? Ask if your host can help.
What about a trip to the spa for your spouse?
You don’t even have to ask for monetary value things. Sometimes information can be valuable. Your host should either have a great deal of information or be able to access it.
9 – You Can Get a Better Deal at Other Casinos
Your casino host doesn’t want you to consider another casino. She doesn’t even want you to start thinking about talking to another host.
Are you a big player?
You should shop your play as much as possible. Get as much in return for your play as you can.
10- You Can Get an Upgrade for $20
$20 is an arbitrary amount. But often you can get a room upgrade for a small amount of extra money. Has your casino host arranged for a room?
Ask her how much you would have to pay to get an upgrade.
11- When You’re Just Short of a Big Upgrade or Perk
Unless you track your play (which you should do) and know how the casino determines the amount of your comps (almost impossible to find out), you won’t know where you are on the scale of players at the casino. The bigger the player, the more you can get, but there’s always a line separating one level of play from another.
If you’re just a few thousand short of the next level of player it would be nice to know so you could play a little more.
A smart casino host may let you know when you’re close, but most of them won’t. If they do tell you, make sure you know exactly how much more you need to play and what you will get in return. You don’t want to lose twice what it would cost you to buy the same perks.
12- When You’ve Had Too Much to Drink
Why do you think casinos offer free drinks to players?
The more you drink, the more you gamble.
Because your casino host wants you to play as much as possible, she’s more likely to order you another drink than tell you it’s time to stop.
13- Where to Find a New Casino Host
The casino host business is competitive. Hosts protect their clients fiercely. If you start thinking about finding another host, don’t tell your current host.
Conclusion
Playing enough to have a casino host and getting perks from the casino feels great. But you still need to make sure you’re watching out for your best interests.
The casino host wants you to play as much as possible. Everything she does is done with this ultimate goal in mind. Remember this. You should be able to take advantage of their services and have a good time along the way.
I’ve been doing a lot of web-based training lately for Casino Hosts and I have been reminded why I so enjoy working with Player Development professionals! They show up on time for their appointments, they welcome me with a happy greeting, and they work hard at staying upbeat and energetic in their tone and attitude. What’s not to like?
I’ve also become fascinated by the difference between Empathy and Sympathy.
There is no way for a Player Development professional to build relationships with a diverse set of casino guests without consistently employing a lot of empathy.
Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests 2020
What is Empathy? In short, having empathy means you can understand how others feel.
The Empathetic Host is focused on really understanding the guest’s situation, attitude, and behaviors.
This can be done in a number of ways and they all involve close observation and an open mind. There are 5 key skills and they can all be improved with practice.
- What is the body language of the guest? What can you deduce from the way they walk, the way they gesture, and the way the stand in front of you?
- What is the facial expression of the guest? What can you tell from the shape of their mouth, and the position of their eyebrows?
- How do they sound? What is their tone, the speed of their speech, the volume of their voice?
- What are they really saying? Behind their choice of words, what message are they really trying to send to you?
- And finally, what can you learn by asking open-ended questions? (An open-ended question, such as, ‘Why are you so disappointed?’, can lead to many answers. A closed question, such as ‘Do you want a comp?’, will only lead to one of two answers, Yes or No. Okay! It will always lead to Yes!)
My point is that Empathy, the ability to understand the other person, can be constantly improved upon, by continuing to sharpen our skills in interpreting body language, reading facial expressions, listening for tone, probing for underlying issues, and asking open-ended questions.
Of course, for a Player Development professional, these skills also have to be refined over time to be able to understand people from other cultures, from other backgrounds, from different age groups. This is one of the challenges for a Casino Host when they move cross-country into a different culture, or into a very different Property where the guests have different expectations.
Sympathy, by comparison, means feeling compassion, sorrow, or pity.
If my guest is angry because they showed up for the Ham Giveaway Promotion and there is nothing left, then I can have complete empathy but not necessarily sympathy. After asking some open questions, I can realize that they left home too late and they are mad at themselves, but that they want to express themselves as frustrated at the Casino. With this empathy, I can decide on my approach. And without sympathy, without actually feeling sorry for them, I can still use my professional face and demeanor to handle the situation.
If you think about it, having a Big Heart and being Sympathetic to your guests, could lead to your emotions clouding your judgement, let alone to you crossing the invisible line and befriending your players.
Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests Free
I believe that Empathy is the key to successfully developing meaningful relationships with your coded players. And, constantly improving your skills of insight, will lead to more Empathy in dealing with fellow Hosts, working across departments within the Casino, and probably to a promotion because Empathy is key to being a successful Manager.
In conclusion! Empathy means you understand what they are feeling; and Sympathy means your own mood changes and responds to theirs.
I suggest that you constantly refine your ability to be Empathetic and double-check any impulse to be Sympathetic.
Not that it is bad to care but, as a professional, you are in the business of consistency and your emotional reaction (positive or negative!) may lead you to react differently to different people. And that always leads to trouble. So! Use all of your skills to understand but keep your heart in check, and act from your head.
Casino Host Introduction Letter To Guests
Yours Empathetically,
Jackie P.