Unlike most of our blogs, this blog is going to be written in first person. That’s because I’m super excited to breakdown the past weekend that Jenna and I spent with The Slot Cats at Seven Feathers Casino Resort.
Jenna and I made the trip to Seven Feathers to help their internal marketing team facilitate a series of influencer marketing events including a group pull. The first thing to breakdown is offering an explanation as to what a group pull is. Essentially, a group pull is an event where player’s pool their money into one slot machine and hope for a big win. After everyone pools their money into the selected machine, each person gets the same number of spins. What players are hoping for is a profit over their initial buy in- most group pulls are about $200 per person. After the last person takes their spins, the remaining money is divided equally by the total number of entrants.
So, with this basic understanding we can get into the specifics of The Slot Cat group pull at Seven Feathers Casino Resort. This event was hosted by Heidi and featured 14 total participants, each buying in for $200. This was honestly one of the livelier group pulls that I’ve participated in because the group was engaged, Heidi did a great job explaining the process, and the machine was, arguably, on fire. There were multiple bonus hits including one lucky spin that resulted in three retriggers! What was also interesting was that only one person in the group had participated in a group pull event before, this let me know that more traditional players are open and intrigued by this new form of gaming. All in all, those that participated left with a profit, but we’ll leave the exact amount for you to find out by clicking the link below.
As you can probably tell from the video, while big wins aren’t guaranteed, a sense of comradery is. That’s because content creators like The Slot Cats have been working incredibly hard to grow their fan base while making gaming approachable and friendly. Group pulls are often viewed as an event much like heading to the casino to see a musical act is. Events like these are also a way for players to experience gaming from a new angle. If they aren’t high level, high limit players on a regular basis, group pulls offer them the chance to experience the thrill of high stakes gaming. An added bonus is that group pulls can often take the intimidation factor out of gaming for “newbies” to the casino floor.
If you’re a property that is considering tapping into the power of the slot community, we encourage you to watch the video above. If you have any questions or would like to talk it through you can shoot me an email at courtney@shankmarketing.com. In addition to group pulls, we can work with your internal team (or handle everything) to facilitate slot tournaments, player dinners, Q&A sessions, meet and greets, and more. Happy gaming!
When thinking about bringing an influencer to your property, there are a number of things that you’ll need to consider. In addition to checking out WiFi strength, issuing players cards, and talking with security you’ll want to consider the music volume on the floor.
Yes, that might sound like a strange thing to consider but music plays a huge role in how influencers are able to capture and share content. This is because influencers are often operating monetized channels that earn money based on how well their videos do. When background music is easily heard on videos it is almost always going to be picked up by the computer programs designed to flag content for copyright material. In most cases, but not all, influencers depend on their channel bringing in money in order to keep the content flowing. When a video is deemed ineligible for monetization that becomes a very big problem for channels which in return means they will be less likely to visit again.
What can you do? To become more welcoming to influencers, make sure you understand when they play to record or go live. If able, we recommend turning down the music on the floor for the duration of content gathering. While we understand that music does play a part in creating an exciting atmosphere on the gaming floor, it should not be the reason that an influencer decides to go record at a different, more recording friendly, property. It can be argued that the excitement an influencer brings to the floor exceeds the power that music wields- especially when the music is only being temporarily turned down.
Another option is to zone out your gaming floor to create a more influencer friendly environment. We have seen properties have success using their High Limit areas as the influencer recording zone. Plus, if the High Limit area is self contained, it is easier for properties to monitor what is happening and know if they need to offer additional support. It never hurts to have a slot attendant nearby for quicker payouts!
If you’re interested in learning more about influencer marketing please check out our additional blogs: Traditional Media vs. Influencers, Crafting Influencers from Within.
Facebook Live is a great way to grab your audience’s attention in real time. Depending on a person’s notification settings they will be served a notification when a page they are following goes live. This notification serves as a great resource to quickly build your viewership on any given livestream. Whether or not you’ve gone live before or this is your first rodeo, everyone can benefit from implementing best practices. Read on below to learn more!
Don’t Jump Right In: When you press the go live button it is hard to resist jumping right into what you have to talk about or show off. No matter how excited you are, you should always wait at least 30 seconds, if not a full minute, before starting your programming. You want to give people enough time to see that you are live and join the stream. If you do jump right into what you have planned then you run the risk of viewers missing the introduction and key facts.
Script/Talking Points: This is personal preference. When going live some people prefer to have a word for word script written down while others opt for a list of talking points. I fall into the second camp, I like knowing what I should talk about but do not like being locked into a script. It is also important to note that since people will more than likely be coming in and out of the live, to repeat your main points. That way you can rest assured that your message has been delivered and (hopefully) received.
Join The Conversation: Another reason why Facebook Live is a great tool to use in your marketing plans is because it allows for you to interact with your audience in real time. In addition to verbally answering questions, it is recommended that you interact as your FB page in the comment section of the video. Thank people for watching, invite them to share the video, and answer any questions that they may have. It is also super important to provide booking links or other helpful website information directly in the feed.
Length: The length of any Facebook Live depends on the subject matter. In some instances, like giving room tours, these should not be assigned a time length goal.You’ll want to make sure you hit all points of interest and in a way that makes sense. I have found that starting on the perimeter and working your way into the middle of space works best.
Microphone: Unless you are going to do a professional grade voiceover in post production (see below) the use of a microphone is highly recommended. This is recommended for anyone going live but especially those that work in noisy environments, like a casino. A microphone will help isolate the person’s voice and cut down on unnecessary background noise.
Alternatively: Pre-recording your Live video is a great option when you’re giving a walking tour of a space.You can edit the video to include any relevant information or renderings. Then you can schedule the video as a “premiere” and it will appear as if it is live.
