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Originally Posted by SuffolkDowns Fan
I know every time I try to get friends to go to the track they have no interest (I am 35 years old) they all would prefer to drive an extra hour to the casino's near us. I would think that if the industry could advertise that for a $2 wager the Derby winner paid $103 or on a random day at the track an exacta or tri paid $200+ that would peak more interest in fans that know nothing about the sport. Granted it is tough to pick winners and there is more to it than that, but i think the generation of betters that have missed out on the track would see some of the payoffs for a $2 bet and give it a try. I would rather do that than play $25 minimum hands at one of the Indian casinos. For a $100 at the track I can last 10 races or more, for $100 at the casino i could be packing it in in about 5 minutes after 4 hands. I would think that some information about payoffs would be interesting to those people that know nothing about the sport. any thoughts?
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I have been thinking about your post because its interesting since its actually a multi-faceted issue, the advertising angle is just one component. I firmly believe that a lot hinges on the differentiating features of the customer experience at a casino versus your typical day at the racetrack. For the longest time I have thought that racetracks could pick up a few items regarding customer service and the customer experience from casinos. The number one rule is to create an environment that is
pleasant,
comfortable and put people in the proper mindset to spend their money. I will be blunt and state that sometimes I feel like I have to tolerate stuff at racetracks and I visit enough different tracks each year that I have a very good feel for exactly what items I am going to run into that I will be less then thrilled with, in other words what amount of crap am I going to have to put up with (in fact I am actually going through that right now trying to figure out whether I want to go up to Belmont Memorial Day Weekend for the Met Mile). The reason I spend two week in Vegas each year at casinos like Wynn, Bellagio, Venetian, TheHotel is because I always have an exceptional time with fabulous food, exquisite surroundings and am treated very well. If I didn't really enjoy horse racing and playing the races, I would rarely attend the races, let alone planning my vacation around various stakes and track meets. Now there are a few tracks which do understand customer service such as Arlington Park and Keeneland, but they are an exception rather then the rule.
The reason I went on my little customer service rant is that needs to be addressed in order to get the full value of any sort of advertising campaign, no matter what marketing angle you are using.
Another interesting side note is how the mood level of a casino versus a typical day at the track. The mood level of a casino is set to make it "busy" and try to give the impression of high energy. There are a lot of racetracks, especially the bigger, older ones, have a very tired feel to them, very little buzz, almost like its sucking the energy out. I am convinced that is one of the reasons why special events like Friday Night Racing with Concerts at places like Hollywood Park play so well compared to just a typical day. It gives the facility more of dynamic buzz instead of being so stagnant and its easier to attract people to be a part of that.
