A SERIOUS, MEANINGFUL THREAD

[DaBurglar]

I am earnestly asking for any and all readers of the forum to contribute whatever thoughts and ideas each of us has regarding the ongoing situation in Atlantic City and what can be done to at least stop the bleeding, if not start adding business and reclaiming market share.Forgetting for just a moment all that I have said and posted for the last several years, and forgetting any attempts or allusions (correct or otherwise) that I predicted this or "I told you so..." etc etc;   Just OBJECTIVELY look at the situation and search your mind and hearts for ideas that would HELP improve the situation in AC and save the jobs and livelihoods of employees of the casinos, as well as the vendors and store owners of all the resident businesses in AC as well,Objective facts to consider:   Since 2006, AC revenue from gambling has fallen every year, to the extent that with this year's disastrous results looming, 60% of business has gone elsewhere.AS of September 1, 2014 (less than 2 months away), Atlantic City will have lost four (4) casinos in a 9 month period (AC Club, Showboat, REVEL and Trump Plaza.)  While incorporating the various cause-effect scenarios into your posts, please give us your thoughts and ideas on what, if anything, can be done to improve this situation.....what needs to change?  How can it be changed?  what NEW ideas or things could they try?   AS you post, keep in mind that the situation is critical, and realistically, they have almost  no where else to go except UP!    So no reasonable idea is a "BAD" idea at this point!

[BillyJoe]

Having tripped over my MBA several times when it falls off my wall in my office at home, I will try and put some of that expensive education to use on this request.

Gaming in AC, or anywhere else, is just another business model. In any business model, you need to know four things: Costs, Competition, Value, Profit Expectation.

IMO, the AC model needs to understand better two of these things: it's competition and what it's patrons value. No amount of advertising will succeed if you are giving someone a product that they do not want. In the face of growing competition, you then need to decide whether you will compete on price or value. I always vote for value, as trying to compete on price is often a 'death spiral'.

So, if it was my railroad, I would work to demonstrate that AC offers a better product than the competition by highlighting things that matter most to the patrons.

If your market is a local market, then easier access to parking or casinos may help. In NW Indiana (not the corn fields, either), when they opened several casinos along the lake, they totally rebuild Cline Ave to be a limited-access road right to the casinos. Easy in and out was a winner for traffic-weary Chicago area folks.

With regard to competition, you out-perform them. Whether that is service, pay tables, or giveaways, your AC casino gives you what you value more than the others. This means continuing to monitor your competition's offers and environment, and one-up them every chance you can. You make it such that folks do not want to miss out by going to a non-AC casino.

All of this will take a commitment from management, since it will raise costs and have a negative effect on profits, until revenue rises.    

[olds442jetaway]

Well said BJ. Give people a real reason to go there instead of some place else and also want to go back as well.

[BillyJoe]

Well said BJ. Give people a real reason to go there instead of some place else and also want to go back as well.
The classic real-life AC example was Revel. At one time, they were offering to match your status at other casinos. This was during a 7Star gathering at Caesars, so I went over to Revel to take advantage of that offer. Instead of being treated as a high-level player at another AC property, I was told to go wait in a line of 100+ people, so I left.

I wrote an Email to a Revel exec, who called me to discuss my experience. We had a long discussion, and I asked him what his target market was - premium players or volumes of lower denom players. He admitted that he didn't know, but they built Revel to be the high class property in AC, so that will bring people in, along with a non-smoking policy. I asked "Is that what the AC market wants?" He said "Well, all our Execs thing so." We all know how that story ended.

[DaBurglar]

Billy Joe, I cannot thank you enough for posting what you just did, especially that Revel story.....it hits what I feel is the SINGLE BIGGEST reason AC has been in this nonstop decline since 2006.Since I have been posting here in earnest from about 2011, I have been saying many things that got lost in the avalanche of garbage and noise and just plain too many posts that went no where.....I take responsibility for some of that since I chose to spend a lot of my posting time talking about what I felt was AC's warped Video Poker scene...but in my defense, this IS in fact a VIDEO POKER site, NOT a casino industry site .... even though we do end up talking about casinos, and the industry and everything related, like we are doing now.But Your point about the REVEL executive pretty much shows that they were ABSOLUTELY CLUELESS.....surely everyone reading this can see that and agrees......Billyjoe just exposed why Revel was such COLOSSAL failure right from the get-go.   I mean, there are certainly MANY things that worked against Revel, and it is doubtful that even with TOP notch competent management and a strong business plan that Revel would have been able to do anything more than tread water for a couple years....BUT REVEL SANK right out the gate!   And to think those executives like the one Billjoe talked to probably were making 400-500K per year PLUS a whole slew of perks.But What happened with Revel is also what happened in General with AC at the levels of state & local Government in their so-called "REVITALIZATION" project....just like Revel had absolutely no clue (or plan), the efforts and money spent by the state-sponsored CRDA with its "DO AC" slogan were never ever Focused or specific in their goals, objectives or message.   It's that simple in my view.....they never made it clear just what in theeee hell they really were trying to do or say, and as such it just magnified the failure and problems.   As Billyjoe alludes to with his MBA educated business acumen, MArketing is all about focus, knowing what (or who) your target market is, and doing what you need to get the business.AC execs and people in general complained from the time I first arrived in AC in 2009 about  "All the competition stealing OUR business!"   That's what I heard and continue to here to this day.....its absurd, its like all these AC execs felt they were just "entitled" to retain their business share and revenue and they do not need to do a thing!    We all know how that's worked out......what I have been saying since day one is that competition works both ways, and all those places in Pennsylvania had to compete with AC too!   And NONE of them had the head start and original position AC has, nor do the have the GODDANG ocean and a wonderful boardwalk!!!     How bad must AC have become in the eyes of so many customers for so many of them to up and LEAVE FOR GOOD, never to return, in such a SHORT period of time?!?!  think about that.....AC opened in 1978, and thru 2006 (28 years) had the market pretty much to itself...by 2009 they were in DEEP crap and falling further and faster still......in three short years they lost control...so again, how Lousy AND customer UNFRIENDLY were they?Lets hear from others out there......dont be intimidated or shy....there is no wrong answer here.    I'll throw some fodder out there for others:Advertising.....AC advertising is totally inadequate compared to other destinations like Vegas or other gaming enclavesGambling itself......I have said "loosen loosen loosen" many times.....I mean what on earth do they have to lose at this point?   Customer Service and Customer friendliness....Billyjoe's example is one of a million others.   ROveer tallked about his fiascoes at harrahs booking rooms.   Any others?

[Tedlark]

  DaBurglar I'll try not to hit this post too hard and I will stay on point but I will touch on your above post made at 4:06 pm today. As you stated; you began posting in earnest in 2011, about the same time you joined this site.    In the beginning many, more or less most of your posts, were geared toward slamming Atlantic City and many people who patronize this forum grew weary of your slams. Many people here questioned why you would continue to play video poker in Atlantic City when you were so firmly set on proving that something was askew with their video poker. Yet you plodded on like a snowplow driver trying to clear the road in a snowstorm that just never ends.    Now you are reaching out to the people here, asking for suggestions on how Atlantic City can regain their luster. What are you trying to do, start a grass roots movement to try and shake up the powers that be in New Jersey to get them to change things? It is a noble cause but this forum here is by no means big enough to accomplish this task. I am not trying to demean your efforts but I look at things in a very logical and methodical way; that's the way my brain is wired.    I admittedly do not play in Atlantic City as often as you do and it has been years since I have played there. I think the last time I was there Nucky Thompson was setting up some deals for the popcorn concession on the boardwalk.   My point is that Atlantic City has been the only go to destination on the East Coast for so long that they got too fat and lazy which easily gave outside entities the opportunity to snatch marketshare away from Atlantic City.   Unfortunately I think that for Atlantic City to totally reinvent themselves and regain their strong position; they must hit absolute rock bottom. Akin to an alcoholic hitting total rock bottom and then taking that first step by admitting they have a problem, only then does the will and desire rise to the top and take control bringing about change and modification.   The blurb in today's financial papers regarding the uptick in Atlantic City's gaming revenue only puts more smoke between the decision makers and the problem.

[olds442jetaway]

I really miss Boardwalk Empire. Have the DVD set though for memories.

[farmfreshguy]

I WILL THROW I MY .02 ON THIS ONE. WHAT I LOOK FOR WHEN EVER I SPEND MY MONEY IS, AM I GETTING A VALUE IT. WHETHER BUYING A CAR OR A NEW TV AM I GETTING A VALUE FOR MY $. IN THE CASE OF CASINOS I EXPECT A GOOD TIME, GOOD FOOD, A GOOD ROOM AND A CHANCE ( YES CHANCE ) TO USE MY VP SKILLS OR LACK  THERE OF TO WIN. IF I COME HOME WITH LESS THAN I WENT WITH BUT MET ALL OF THE ABOVE CRITERIA, I CONSIDER IT A GOOD TIME AND WORTH MY (EXPENDABLE FUNDS)JUST MY THOUGHTS.

[DaBurglar]

 

   My point is that Atlantic City has been the only go to destination on the East Coast for so long that they got too fat and lazy which easily gave outside entities the opportunity to snatch marketshare away from Atlantic City.   Unfortunately I think that for Atlantic City to totally reinvent themselves and regain their strong position; they must hit absolute rock bottom. Akin to an alcoholic hitting total rock bottom and then taking that first step by admitting they have a problem, only then does the will and desire rise to the top and take control bringing about change and modification.   The blurb in today's financial papers regarding the uptick in Atlantic City's gaming revenue only puts more smoke between the decision makers and the problem.This is the relevant portion of your post to what this thread is about, and it does point out something that is actually very accurate......AC management (i.e. the casino top brass and marketing) was INDEED too fat and lazy from years of monopoly to respond to the sudden threat posed by Pennsylvania starting in 2006.    That is why, as I said in my original post, AC managed to LOSE a 28 year head start and a natural advantage (THE OCEAN & Boardwalk) in a mere three years....2006 to 2009, the went from fat and happy to bleeding to death.    And your point about hitting rock bottom is valid....but I think it is totally ridiculous that a place like AC must hit rock bottom in order to change, given the major corporations vested there like CAesars and many others who employ many jighly paid  so-called experts on business and gaming, and with the State of New Jersey being dependent on AC's tax revenue!!   Its awful for the thousands and thousands of employees that "ROCK bottom" is the only way up......That said.....this is not a "grass roots" campaign.   This series of RAPID & SUDDEN casino closures is a MAJOR event in the middle of one of the biggest gaming markets (and hence, video poker markets) in the world.....and since this is the Atlantic City portion of the forum, I felt behooved to look at this objectively.    This is a "social forum" with a central theme of video poker and casinos....people come and post and discuss topics of mutual interest and relevance,   Everyone posts what he or she is interested in or what they KNOW......I know AC and my recent experiences revolve around that,  So that means most of my posts will reflect this.   A lot of people come here and post about the most recent video poker playing session at such-and-such casino.   Most choose to post info or pics about some successful hits they had (you included)...but as expected most OVERALL playing results from each session results in a net loss (not everyone, but most.)       In my case, instead of posting the few big hits I had in my AC sessions, I posted about the very real, true, horrible statistical results I kept seeing in AC, and my hope was others would either corroborate or simply show my results were just Aberrations.   Neither happened, all that did happen was several vocal people complained about my complaining.   But now, the situation finally blew up,,,,,whatever people want to say about my views regarding AC, it is clear that the destination is in deep trouble and that many of the things I said about it AS MY OPINION turned out to be more true than even I realized.....and BIG deal.   I am not happy about it, I think it sucks big time.   8,000 people (not 6,000 like I previously stated) are out of work come September.....and now people like myself, who truly LIKED at least what AC represented and wanted it to succeed, will have to decide if what remains of AC after September is worth patronizing.    I loved the accessibility of the place, it was easy to get around and all I had to do was get on a bus (no airplane/airport to deal with)    For me this is a HUGE issue and one I would not expect everyone else to understand.

[DaBurglar]

I really miss Boardwalk Empire. Have the DVD set though for memories.AMEN     Although I will have a hard time watching the upcoming 5th and final season since they killed off Richard Harrow!    He was truely the most compelling character on the show and whenever Richard Harrow was on screen (played by Jack Huston), he STOLE the scene.FYI -  When Boardwalk Empire debuted in 2010, I had been going to AC about 1 year and was still getting to know it while also starting to realize just how much trouble the place was in and how crappy the VP was......anyhow, this show on HBO, Boardwalk Empire, temporarily at least spurred a lot of interest in AC, and many thought it might be a nice little kick start to a slow but steady recovery.......but naturally, NO ONE (not one of the boardwalk casinos) did much with the show or its appeal, other than a couple places hosting Sunday night parties to watch the HBO episodes the first 2 seasons (they stopped it after the 2nd season.)   Resorts did have its waitresses switch to 1920s costumes that show a lot of skin, and it promptly resulted in several lawsuits by a few of the older less svelte waitresses who had been their for 20 plus years!   Doh!!!