Tuesday, March 11, 2008

The Apprentice Season 1 Episode 12

Task:
Register gamblers that bring in the most money at the Trump Taj Mahal Casino.

Rights:
Ask the casino what they have used in the past that has been very successful, and that's where the wheel came from.

Target VIP customers who are bigger spenders.

Wrongs:
They tried to raffle a car rental for a day. If you are turned off at the suggestion, don't expect the customers to act any differently.

Keep people waiting in line and not gambling. Time is valuable. If you make the person stay in line long enough, they'll just take their free winnings and walk right out the door.

What I would have done as project leader:This is my best idea yet. And frankly, this tactic should be used at all casinos if they have not already done so.

Put the attractive wheel out. And when you register, you get a voucher for one spin. The catch is, the voucher will have a timestamp on it where you can redeem it 4 hours later. And the wheel has free buffet coupon, $25, $50, and $100 prizes, a raffle ticket to one grand prize of $5000 that will be held at the close of the event (end of the day). Worst case scenario, people will wait 4 hours and get a free dinner out of it. And if they win a raffle ticket, they will be encouraged to stick around till the night. The longer they stay at a casino without much to do, they'll end up gambling. And if they win money, they will spend that money and time spending it in the casino anyway.

I would also stress that every customer they register, they individually get told that they should use the card so they can get points for more free stuff.

When I announce the incentive to register, I would also emphasize, "Today only." When people think that they are not going to gamble today, so they might as well register another day, and spin the wheel, they are not going to register.

I would also tell the customer that signs up that they are doing this registration extravaganza only today, and if they know anyone that is thinking about stopping by the casino, that they should and stop by to register.

Lessons:
Have a clear strategy. Mistakes were made to create a extravaganza of some sort, but when people were gathered they did not have a strategy to get the people gambling and keep gambling. The strategy wasn't thought through all the way.

People get caught up with the little things, like putting on a good show, and forgetting that money has to be made. Have a clear strategy that leads you to your goal.

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