FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
 WIN CARDS WINNING CASINOS OVER
LAKE TAHOE, Nevada (October, 2000) -- “Win Cards® are an exceptionally effective program,” declares Mike Couevas, Casino Manager at the Excalibur Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. “They’re very popular with our visitors. Soon after they arrive, many purchase a tri-pack of our customized WIN CARDS with ‘Merlin, the Magician’ on the cover. Then, like magic, they head straight for the tables,” Couevas reports.
“The enthusiasm of our dealers is a significant reason for the success of the WIN CARDS Program,” Couevas continued. “The ’Dealer’s Tip Coupon’ included in the tri-pack is brilliant.”
Paul Nash, Casino Manager of Circus Circus Las Vegas agrees. Although only recently implemented, he is convinced. “WIN CARDS work! We’ve been getting a tremendous positive response from our customers.”
Nash has affirmed the description of the WIN CARDS Program as being a ‘casino marketing masterpiece.’ “Our goal is to develop table games players,” he says. “WIN CARDS do that. We still maintain our table games instructional classes, but now we refer guests who attend those sessions to our special WIN CARDS offer. We use them to bolster our entire table games instructional effort.”
“Unlike the small ‘window of opportunity’ that live gaming lessons are limited by, WIN CARDS allow the casinos to attract and develop new players 24/7/365,” explains Ted Gottlieb, President of Gaming International, Inc., the marketing company that manufactures and distributes the WIN CARDS.
Although Stations Casinos rely on locals for much of their business, they also fill thousands of hotel rooms with tourists and visitors. VP of Corporate Table Games for Station Casinos, Inc., Bart Pestrichello considers the WN CARDS to be a worthwhile marketing tool. “I’m satisfied,” he concludes, “it’s the best method available to put new players on our live games.”
Boomtown Reno Table Games Director, David Galvin, also reports great success with their WIN CARDS Program. “When visitors sign up for our players club card, they are presented with the opportunity to buy a tri-pack. Consequently, we get a lot of new players to play that we wouldn’t have otherwise,” he explains. “Tracking customers through the players club,” Galvin says, “indicates we sell a lot of WIN CARDS and, what’s more, we seem to get a pretty good percentage of repeat play.”
WIN CARDS are handy, plastic cards, with a dial designed to assist beginners in quickly and easily learning the basics of how to play the casino’s live table games of blackjack, craps and roulette.
In just the past couple of years, the WIN CARDS Program, a simple and imaginative table games marketing program for novice players, has been gaining universal acceptance. Casinos, Riverboats and Cruise Ships all over the world have discovered that the WIN CARDS take the intimidation out of table gaming for beginners.
Casino visitors purchase a pack of three instructional cards for $10.00 and receive $15.00 in special non-negotiable chips that can be used only on the table games, and a Dealer’s Tip Coupon. This offer is limited to one per person, and customers must obtain a players club card before buying their tri-pack.
Four Queens financial analyst, T.J. Tan, endorses the WIN CARDS Program. “It’s popular; a good way to attract new players to the tables. What’s more, with the consignment arrangement, there really are no set-up charges, whatsoever. We pay for the WIN CARDS after they have actually been sold to our customers. The Program pays for itself!”
One of the most recent casinos to implement the WIN CARDS Program is Harveys Resort & Casino in Lake Tahoe, Nevada. After a highly successful 3-month trial, custom designed tri-packs have been ordered, featuring a beautiful picture of Lake Tahoe.
Harveys Director of Games, Bill Fletcher, reports, “The results of the trial exceeded our expectations. In addition to the large numbers of tri-packs bought by our visitors, we were able to identify over 350 new casino accounts directly due to the WIN CARDS. It was also determined that the minimum theoretical win per WIN CARDS player compared favorably with the gaming profiles of our regular players.”
Ken Arthur, Flamingo Hilton Reno Director of Player Development, is unequivocal. He declares WIN CARDS “the best education and development system in the gaming industry.”
“WIN CARDS provide an easy and discreet way for players to learn the games. And, due to their ’self-service’ nature, beginners can become acclimated to the games at their own pace, something that even in-house gaming classes can’t accommodate,” Arthur says. “In addition, we estimate that at least 30-40% of the people who buy WIN CARDS become repeat customers.”
Another benefit Arthur points out is that “the WIN CARDS tri-packs, custom designed with a casino’s theme, logo and distinguishing features, become excellent promotional materials because customers keep them as souvenirs and take them home with them. They often show them to their friends and associates, and in this manner, the WIN CARDS help us market the live games off property.”
The Colorado Belle in Laughlin, Nevada, will soon become the next casino to launch a full-scale WIN CARDS Program. Casino Manager, Ray Simpson, explained why. “Forty to fifty percent of our daily visitors are new players. We get a lot of boaters, vacationers and tourists. We expect the WIN CARDS to appeal to many of these customers.”
Jim Amato, Vice President of Casino marketing for the Norwegian Cruise Line, knows how universally accepted this program has become. Over the years, he has implemented the program at diverse locales including the Sands in Puerto Rico, the Sheraton in Tunica, Mississippi, and now aboard the entire fleet of the Norwegian Cruise Line.
“Each week we have hundreds of passengers aboard our ships who have never been in a casino, much less played a live casino game. WIN CARDS properly introduce these customers to our live games, and they really help get them over their intimidation,” he continues.
“With over five million of these WIN CARDS already distributed and over 40 casinos presently involved in the program, this promotion has really caught on,” declares Pam Butler, Gaming International’s Marketing Director.
Butler adds, “Casinos in many different jurisdictions are discovering the advantages of the WIN CARDS Program. The WIN CARDS have proven to be very popular with beginners. And since it costs little or nothing to maintain, it is being embraced by an increasing number of progressive casinos.”
Clearly, casinos the world over are introducing the WIN CARDS because the Program is effective, efficient and economical. Everyone wins with WIN CARDS -- the customer, the house, and even the dealers!
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Reprinted with permission from FUN & GAMING MAGAZINE
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