In our last blog of this series, we discussed
Millennial traits and characteristics. A key characteristic we see affecting
casinos is in the swift adaptation to new technologies and the accompanying expectations.
High Expectations
An article in the Las
Vegas Review Journal by millennial Richard N. Vilotta summarized it well:
“When I come to the casino, I’ll have six of my buddies with me and we want a
blackjack table so that all of us can play and interact at the same time. I
have a list of our favorite drinks and microbrews that we’d like to have while
we’re playing. Oh, and since we’re all Michigan State grads, we’d like to be
sure that the Nebraska game is on a television we can all see because we’d like
to catch the game as we play. And because we’ll be watching the game, the pace
of our play may be a little slower — hope that’s OK. We also want to make sure
it’s all right for us to take pictures at the table so that we can show some of
our other friends what a good time we’re having.” So Millennials have adapted
to, and expect, multiple simultaneous entertainment outlets.
Another adaptation is that Millennials often prefer to spend
money on experiences, rather than things. Casino operators have seen the shift
from the traditional slots and big buffet model to spending on things like
high-end night clubs, pool cabanas and table service. How can gaming operators integrate
these preferences?
Skills-based games
We’ve
written previously on the potential to integrate skills-based
games to the casino floor. Nevada and New Jersey have approved regulation
that opens the door for some unique skills-based games. Nevada’s bill is
specific to skills-based slot machines, which could integrate a video
game-style bonus round that would increase a player’s chances based on their
video gaming skills. These types of games are seen
as integral to attracting the younger patrons.
New Jersey’s
law is much broader – accepting proposals for a broader definition of
skills-based games. A free
throw shooting contest at the Borgata was approved in February, bringing
unique visitors to the casino from across the US. Clever ideas like this will
not only expand the casino’s clientele, but also appeal to those younger
patrons who are looking for an experience rather than a bank of slots.
Social gaming
Millennials spend an average of 12 hours a week on social
gaming and casino operators are looking for ways to translate that to the
gaming floor. Eric Meyerhofer, CEO of Gamblit Gaming, estimates the potential
market in the United States to be $8 billion to $10 billion.
The idea is to integrate games like Candy Crush, Halo and
Call of Duty into the gaming floor. But some say that just adding a new name to
the same old slot machines won’t cut it. So slot machine designers are looking
at ways to integrate a real-time social element to a bank of slots, enabling
players to play against their friends.
In fact, one
study showed that Millennials actually prefer simple slot machines - slots
with 3 coins, one line. Millennials don’t want to play the penny slot with 50
lines, and they lose interest quickly. So casinos actually risk losing interest
by introducing the same old slot machine that has just been rebranded as Candy
Crush. Perhaps a more appealing game would be a slot machine that has fewer
lines and combines a bonus skills-based round, and/or that social element of
playing against other players.
In the meantime, casinos have seen traffic move away from
slots and toward table games, and casino operators are increasing table games
to accommodate this shift.
From an entirely different perspective, the MGM group has
created a successful social gaming platform called MyVegas that allows users to
win points which can be exchanged for hotel nights or experiences like dinners,
club entry or drinks. This successfully
combines the social gaming platform with the experience factor that Millennials
crave while building brand loyalty.
Wrapping it up
So, we know
that Millennials are multi-taskers (or have short attention spans, for the
nay-sayers) who tend to play games while watching TV. So while the traditional
thinking was to keep players on the gaming floor, offering few distractions, we
now see that those “distractions” are exactly what Millennials want. Casinos
could look to implement multiple focal points in gaming areas. A bank of
socially connected slots could also feature a wall of TVs showing sports or
perhaps center around an entertainment feature such as a rotating competitive
rock climbing wall or even an indoor skydiving tunnel.
And gambling
is no longer the focal point of the vacation; rather, it’s just a part of a
vacation experience that is expected to include high-end clubs, excellent food
and other resort amenities. While some of these preferences are specific to the Millennial group, we do see a shifting in expectations throughout the generational spectrum - a casino vacation is no longer about sitting at a bank of slots before heading to the buffet. It's become much more.
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