Imagine receiving over 1,000 comments on your social media post. How would you respond?
If your answer is, “There’s no way we could respond to everyone, at least not in time", finding a capable agency within your industry would be of tremendous value to your business.
When the goal of social media is brand recognition, brand awareness, and engagement, striking while the iron is hot is the name of the game. However, gaining and keeping that engagement takes a lot of manpower.
Do you respond to EVERY comment?
The value of engagement is not hard to measure, it’s actually quite apparent. We know that anyone taking time to leave a comment is doing so to share and engage their feelings about something. That’s why it is critical to be prepared for when one of your posts, intentionally or not, reaches everyone who follows you simultaneously, plus all of their friends, because they shared it too. Don’t lose out on the opportunity to validate your guests' feelings, and drive a positive reaction and potential visit in the future, by not being prepared to respond to them all, because that’s what it takes.
This is the strength you get when you partner with us at Shank Marketing, not to mention the peace of mind that comes with knowing your business will be represented exactly how you envision it. With our experienced team of social media and reputation management experts, who have a successful history in the casino, entertainment, and hospitality sectors, we ensure your physical doors are bustling with satisfied guests and your social media platforms are thriving. Take advantage of this opportunity to stay ahead with our dedicated team.
If you don’t, they will.
Lastly, you’re at a huge disadvantage to your competitors if you’re not actively engaging with your guests. The reality is your competitors are doing everything in their power to garner the attention of your current and potential customers. Those guests may not be as loyal as you think they are, especially if they don’t feel like their interactions are being genuinely heard and respected on your profile pages. So, don’t risk not answering every comment that comes your way.
The proof is in the pudding.
Below is one of our most recent posts for a client that went viral amongst their followers. Seven Feathers Casino Resort in Canyonville, Oregon was promoting a contest on Facebook and Instagram which ended up receiving over 1,000 comments of participation. “They just keep coming!” was a common phrase sent in Slack throughout the three days of engagement as the contest rolled through the weekend.
But, that’s what makes Shank Marketing so great. Seven Feathers Casino Resort was able to engage with every follower who commented to ensure their guests felt validated. Only one person won the contest, but over 1,000 other people had a positive experience knowing Seven Feathers heard them and appreciated them. That’s a value that has no ceiling and the power of Shank Marketing.
Seven Feathers Casino Resort
Thu 2/29/2024 4:35 pm PST
Don’t sacrifice for cost and time, your guests deserve the best!
If you would like to see results like these for your business or learn what other ways our company will be able to facilitate your marketing needs, visit www.shankmarketing.com today. Reach out to us to learn exactly how we can become your biggest advocates, consistently driving positive interactions and engagement with your guests to prosper a delicate relationship in the social media space for you and your business. We’re excited to get to work for you!
In an industry that is always competing against each other, it was a lot of fun seeing so many casinos captivate the social media world for an entire week with their trending ‘Dance Off Challenge’ videos.
How it started
What started as an initial battle between the Coeur d'Alene Casino in Idaho and the Spokane Tribe Casino in Washington quickly spread like a conga line when Northern Quest Casino saw the fun and decided to get down to boogieing themselves!
In the world of marketing, getting creative and taking chances are a must. Job well done, Coeur d'Alene Casino and Spokane Tribe Casino for taking a creative risk, and thank you Northern Quest for keeping this going!
Northern Quest challenged Tulalip Casino, who went on to challenge Muckleshoot, who sent a hot invitation to Emerald Queen Casino, who decided they wanted to challenge everyone!
Let the fun begin
The fun really began for us at Shank Marketing when a few of our clients were called to respond in the same couple of days. We were more than prepared, though! With a full support team of account managers, videographers, and creative strategists, we were able to quickly coordinate and execute responses for each of our clients who got called to rise to the challenge.
Lucky Dog Casino, BJ’s Bingo & Gaming, Clearwater Casino Resort, and Seven Feathers Casino Resort were all able to respond with their flashiest dance moves on short notice to entertain their guests and answer the call of their challengers. Our team was on-site with these clients the day after they were challenged to help strategize, ensure participation from team members and guests, and film the videos. Edits took place immediately after because when something is trending there is no time to waste.
At the time of this writing the videos we helped produce have generated over 76,000 video views! The video challenge itself has now spread to casinos in California and Oklahoma so this trend will only continue to grow!
The most exciting part, from our perspective, was the engagement between casinos. Yes, we all compete for attention, but this industry is unique. It is built on relationships and values, and those were evident in the fun being had between general managers, marketing teams, and staff members alike in the comment sections and in their individual callouts, and we all reaped the benefits!
The moral of this story is that when an opportunity to have a little fun and cut loose comes, take it.
If you wanted to be a part of this trend but weren’t called upon, start one yourself!
If you’re worried you don’t have the staff or resources to accomplish it, give us a call at Shank Marketing. We have a team of casino marketers just itching to get your name trending too!
Watch the videos
Click here to watch the BJ's Bingo & Gaming video.
Click here to watch the Lucky Dog Casino video.
Click here to watch the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort video.
Threads is Meta’s “clap back” to X, formerly known as Twitter. With Twitter’s rebranding and recent changes, Meta felt it was an excellent time to put some skin in the game with Threads, the fastest-growing app in history with 100 million downloads in the first five days. So if you are familiar with the original Twitter, Threads will be a breeze. If not, Threads is a text-based sharing platform where you can engage with your Instagram following via text threads (where the name comes from). Unlike X, Threads allows you to create posts up to 500 characters long! Although, it is not recommended to use all 500 characters.
If you are interested in creating a Threads account for your business, you must know its best practices! First, follow accounts with similar interests. Next, establish your brand voice. After that, keep your posts concise and to the point. With attention spans these days, the less reading the better! Just like with all of your social media, consistency is important, your business should be posting at least 5x per week! Engage in conversation with the accounts you follow and your followers. Account activity shows the algorithm you want the exposure. The use of emojis effectively conveys emotions and reactions to content - being yours or your responses to others. Sharing images on Threads can be effective given it is a text-based platform, your visual content can get more engagement.
Threads gives businesses a unique opportunity to reach their customers in a new less-saturated way. Creating a Threads account linked to your business’ Instagram allows you to follow your current followers and gives them direct notifications to follow you back. These leads are hot because they are already connected to your brand via Instagram. This allows the opportunity to post mid-funnel content to your already existing leads/followers.
Threads is a new, fast-growing, exciting platform with connections to your already existing, warm Instagram following. Extend your social media reach and your brand voice to Threads by posting at least 5x per week with short, concise messaging. Reach your warm leads via Threads to build your brand’s presence on social media!
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We’re excited to celebrate a huge milestone for our team leader Justin Shank! He is entering a brand-new decade and we can’t wait to see all he will accomplish as a friend and colleague. Birthdays are the perfect time to reflect on previous years and set goals for the future. Though it can be deeply personal and individual, looking back at the past decade of Justin’s life, there have been so many obvious milestones and accomplishments.
He created and formed Shank Marketing, brought so many talented folks onto his team, married an incredible woman, became a homeowner, and most recently a proud doggie dad! We’re so impressed and privileged to know Justin, and though we know we’ll have many more memories and experiences with him ahead, we thought we’d share a little bit about what it’s like working with him.
I have a slightly biased relationship with Justin as his younger sister, Amy. I count him as my first and longest best friend, a fierce protector from the moment I was born, and now an incredible mentor and leader that gave me the incredible opportunity to be part of this team. As someone still new to the crew, I wanted to hear more about how everyone else sees Justin. Here are the amazing responses they shared!
How long have you known Justin and what was your first impression of him?
What do you like most about working for Justin? What do you like most about him personally?
Any funny stories to share?
Like Jordan, I’ve got too many funny stories to share about Justin! The common thread throughout these experiences’ ties so well into the Justin I’ve known my whole life. A wonderful leader, honest in a biting yet eloquent way, and a charismatic nature that people can’t help but want to get to know better. Happy Birthday Justin! Here are birthday wishes from the team.
This month is Native American Heritage month and at Shank Marketing, we want to highlight the incredible work so many of the Tribes we work with are doing to help restore natural habitats, encourage economic growth in Native communities, and replenish the environment of its natural resources. Many of our clients are committed to giving back to their communities in so many ways and throughout the month we want to express our gratitude and appreciation for their continued efforts since time immemorial.
We are so fortunate to work with clients throughout the Pacific Northwest, where many of our Shank Marketing team also reside. Washington state is well known for its beautiful and bountiful trees, once thriving river and ocean systems, and the constant rain that attributes to our illustrious landscapes. However, the land has changed enormously and due to human development and neglect has wreaked havoc on once thriving ecosystems and wildlife. One of these resources are the salmon that were once plentiful throughout the Western Washington river ecosystems. According to the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission, “the tribes in Western Washington participate in the annual Pacific Salmon Commission meetings to promote their harvest opportunity, but their primary focus is conservation of depressed chinook and coho stock”(www.nwific.org). We are so proud to work closely with several Washington state tribes; Tulalip, Lower Elwha Klallam, Puyallup Tribe of Indians, Suquamish, Swinomish, all of which are Coast Salish tribes, or tribes that are a part of the Salish Sea basin that is rich in heritage between rivers and the ocean. We are so appreciative of the heroic efforts of those that came before us to affect change, and express our gratitude for the continued efforts of Washington State Tribes to return the land to its more natural condition.
The days have grown colder, the leaves brightening and changing, and the season of gratitude, togetherness, and remembrance has begun. At Shank Marketing, November also holds special significance as we observe Native American Heritage month. We know a month of reflection and celebration for the rich and bounteous Native cultures will never be enough to erase the many wrongs and injustices done to the first people of America. Each day can be an opportunity to highlight the incredible work so many of the tribes we work with are doing to help restore habitat, encourage economic growth in Native communities, and replenish our environment to its natural and once bounteous condition. We are so grateful to work with several tribes in Washington, Wisconsin, Oklahoma, California, and Oregon and will highlight their incredible efforts throughout the month.
The history of Native American Heritage Month is one that spans time immemorial. It is a time to bring attention to lesser-known heroes in American history and embrace the past and present efforts of Native American people. According to Native News Online, Dr. Arthur Caswell Parker, a Cattaraugus Seneca Indian, was one of the first known advocates to introduce a day of celebration for Native Americans (www.nativenewsonline.net). He dedicated his life towards Native American efforts and advancement and established several American Indian rights organizations. Shockingly, in 1924 Native Americans were finally granted American citizenship, and Dr. Parker strongly advocated for what should’ve been a birthright. Another exceptional Native rights advocate was Reverend Red Fox James, of the Blackfoot Tribe. Reverend Red Fox James, “embarked on a 4,000-mile trek on horseback to petition the President for an “Indian Day” (www.nativenewsonline.net). These heroic efforts were still not enough to bring attention and recognition to Native communities and it wasn’t until 1994, that official proclamations were issued each year.
We are so proud to work closely with several Washington state tribes; Tulalip, Lower Elwha Klallam, Puyallup Tribe of Indians, Suquamish, Swinomish, all of which are Coast Salish tribes, or tribes that are a part of the Salish Sea basin that is rich in heritage between rivers and the ocean. In Oregon, we work with the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe. In California, we work with the Redding Rancheria Tribe with Pit River, Wintu, and Yana people. We also work with a tribe in Wisconsin, the Sokaogon Chippewa community, and in Oklahoma the Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma. Within our team at Shank Marketing, Abby Yates is a Tribal Member with the Nooksack Indian Tribe, and Olivia Rick is a Tribal Member with the Puyallup Tribe of Indians. We want to encourage people to take the time this month for reflection and to honor and express our gratitude for true Native American heroes, both past and present.
The Northwest Regional Casino Marketing Boot Camp will be held at the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort, in Suquamish, WA from October 24-26th. This is the first time this event will take place in the northwest and we’re thrilled to gather with like minded folks in such an incredible setting. This collaborative experience is one that highlights the innovative efforts of marketing businesses to reach our customers in up to date and groundbreaking ways. We’re eager to be in an environment where colleagues, professionals, and entrepreneurs get to stretch our minds, indulge our creative side, and learn more about how to keep up with the ever-evolving world of casino marketing. Justin will be a session Coach teaching the benefits of marketing through social media content. He’s honored to be coaching alongside such talents in the industry as Julia Carcamo, Dan White, Bobby Thornton, Elizabeth Dixon, and Daniel Kustelski.
Social Media: Content Marketing for your Casino
At Shank Marketing, we pride ourselves on our ability to keep up with the times and constantly strive to be inventive so our clients can utilize the many facets and opportunities social media engagement provides. We love attending and moderating events like Casino Marketing Bootcamp NW. It gives us the opportunity to educate ourselves, learn best marketing practices, and bring our own ideas to the forefront of the industry. Recently, Julia Carcamo interviewed Justin on LinkedIn (Casino Marketing Boot Camp), to discuss the ways in which he plans to engage everyone with a special assignment before they get to the Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort. He’ll be challenging attendees to think about their usage of social media platforms in ways that are simple, consistent, and constant. His hope is to highlight casinos through the eyes of customers. In the day to day experience of being at work, we often forget to look around at the space around us. Creating constant content can be exhausting but he plans to emphasize how to use your own facility in new and varying ways to help bring in more customers and excitement surrounding these businesses. This session with Coach Justin (Social Media: Content Marketing for your Casino) will be held the final day of this exciting three day event, on October 26th at 9am.
If you’re attending the Casino Marketing Bootcamp NW at Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort (casinomarketingbootcamp.com) October 24-26th please reach out to connect!
There has been a lot of buzz and excitement surrounding the Global Gaming Expo (www.globalgamingexpo.com) next week at The Venetian in Las Vegas from October 10-13. Every time the event is brought up in meetings and discussions, faces light up, voices raise, and a general enthusiasm sweeps our collective computer screens. It is evident that this event has an impact on our team in so many ways.
“My favorite part about attending G2E is getting a chance to catch up with industry folks who I have known for years. Getting a chance to hear about the growth of their properties, tribes and careers is really amazing. I have been able to watch my colleagues make huge strides for their own tribes. It is really heartening.”-AbbyJustin and Abby were eager to share their long standing history with G2E. Justin has been going since 2011, and as Shank Marketing since 2017(the first year he started the company). Abby has attended regularly since 2003, when she was only twenty years old. She remembers clearly how impressed she was by her surroundings and knew she’d be returning. They expressed how important the event is in terms of networking, engagement, and innovative new technologies surrounding the marketing and gaming industry. Ultimately, both love being a part of the casino industry and connecting with others to learn and grow as a company. Justin says, “we hope to share more about what our company can do to help potential new clients in our industry, but mostly we’re just excited to strengthen relationships with clients and continue building our network.”
The Shank Marketing team is thrilled to attend one of the top events gathering so many talented individuals in the industry. We look forward to seeing and connecting with everyone attending two of our sponsored events. On Tuesday, October 11th, from 5:30-7:30, a Happy Hour event will be held at Sugarcane in The Venetian. Sponsored by Shank Marketing, J Carcamo &Associates, MMRC, C3 Gaming, and Profitable Customers. The Native Networking party is on Wednesday, October 12th from 8pm-12am at the Ghost Bar in the Palms Casino Resort. Sponsored by Shank Marketing, Raving, TG&H, SlotC, Red Circle, eConnect, TutorPerini, and Kencocompany. Justin Shank, Jordan Crahan, and Abby Yates are excited for another incredible G2E, held at The Venitian Expo in Las Vegas from October 10-13th. Please reach out and connect we’d love to meet up and discuss the potential of working together and meeting new talents in the industry!
Travel season is here and we’re having a blast catching up with friends, playing a few holes in tournaments, and checking out the latest and greatest advancements in the field.
This week we’re attending the 2022 Northwest Indian Gaming Conference & Expo (WIGA). We’re excited to be attending for a number of reasons including that it’s being held at the scenic Tulalip Resort & Casino. Aside from the beautiful setting, Justin is moderating a panel discussion titled “Social Media — An Operations Point-of-View.”
Joining him will be JaNessa Bumgarner, CEO at Lucky Eagle Casino & Hotel, Kevin Zenishek, Executive Director of Casino Operations at Northern Quest Resort & Casino, and Letisha Peterson, GM at Legends Casino Hotel.
Social Media — An Operations Point-of-View
The scope of social media marketing has grown beyond the marketing department into everything we do as organizations to engage with players, employees, guests, and our local communities. Our panel will discuss social media from the operations perspective and provide some key takeaways for every leader in our industry to consider. How are we leveraging social media to innovate and attract new employees and/or players? How are we sharing news, events, promotions, and information about our casino property? What can we do to encourage participation throughout the organization to expand the digital footprint of our casino brands?
If you’re attending WIGA and want to learn more about Social Media from an operations point of view, be sure to check out the session on June 21 at 4:00PM.
Over the course of the next couple months you can catch us at a few more conferences including the Casino Marketing & Technology Conference, The OIGA Conference & Tradeshow, and… of course, G2E! Slide into our DMs or send a text if you’d like to connect. We’re always down for a cup of coffee, any and all snacks, and gambling action!
Our Upcoming Conference Travel Schedule:
July 12-13: Casino Marketing & Technology Conference — Las Vegas, NV
August 9-11: The OIGA Conference & Tradeshow — Tulsa, OK
October 10-13: G2E — Las Vegas, NV
From reminders about often unnecessary appointments to pings about someone looking at any one of our social media channels, there is a lot of noise being created in the digital sphere. So much so, that according to Business of Apps the average cell phone user receives 46 push notifications a day. This is part of the reason why a recent study about mobile device usage found that the average person checks their phone once every 4 minutes.
Instead of adding to the cluttered social scene, there is one platform stepping up to break people out of the endless barrage of notifications. “BeReal.” is a social media platform designed to capture the same moment from hundreds of thousands of people around the globe while simultaneously encouraging users to ditch the social media facade.
BeReal. only serves users a single notification per day and with that being said, the notification is more of a challenge than aimless beacon sent into the ether designed to melt your brain. Once the notification is sent out to their daily users (up 315% YTD), each person has exactly two minutes to capture their world. The time crunch motivates users to get snapping without overthinking or overcomplicating the process. There are no stickers, buttons, hashtags, or any of the other elements we’ve been groomed to peruse. The attention is on the moment, the activity (or lack thereof!), and the relationships captured between frames.
When it comes to how the social media audience is reacting to the new player in the heavily populated sector, the numbers continue to speak for themselves. With nearly 5 million downloads since December it’s clear that BeReal is scratching an itch for the over-indoctrinated.
In the U.S. market Google Trends has nearly every search query associated with the app in its “breakout” category, with the District of Columbia, Virginia, Rhode Island, Massuchussettes, and Utah leading the charge amongst early adopters. The app, which was founded in 2020 and based out of the microstate of Andorra, has raised $30 million in VC funding and is not yet monetized in any way. Given their emphasis on authenticity and human connection it will be interesting to see how they approach that process, though it is almost assuredly going to be unique relative to how other social media platforms have chosen to monetize and lure brands to their users.
The Takeaways
Jordan: Marketers are all too familiar with the challenges of being on all the platforms all the time, and I think that fatigue has definitely extended to the end user. Rather than try to get users to spend more time on their platform, BeReal turns that notion on its head and prompts users to spend less time collecting content and less time scrolling through content posted by only your closest connections. It also forces you to post content in order to view what your friends are up to eliminating the ability to just aimlessly scroll for as long as you want. I think this is a wake up call for social media as an industry, and for companies and marketers that use these platforms that it’s time to rethink how we measure the value of content and the value of what brands provide to their followers. We are in the very early stages of this journey but I think companies who ask those questions now, and are not afraid of the answers, will be the ones who set themselves up for success moving forward.
Courtney: I’m not going to lie, when Jordan first told me about this application I was VERY skeptical. That’s because I couldn’t get over the name “BeReal.” I thought that the application was going to be boring or function more as a “self-help” venture to break social media addictions. It only took me a few minutes to be proved wrong, the platform is actually a great window into the lives of people across the globe without the pressures of having to do anything. If I want to post a picture, I can post a picture. If I don’t that’s just as well too.
