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Super Bowl is over! Hunter is back from the dead! Gimme your questions!

Discussion in 'Comps' started by PHVHost, Feb 7, 2015.

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  1. PHVHost

    PHVHost High-Roller

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    Hey everyone, I am back from the dead. During major events like Super Bowl I like to cut myself off from the outside world to focus solely on my customers in house (which they appreciate). Back for Q and A!
     
  2. ams722

    ams722 Side Bet Shunner

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    *grabs popcorn*

    This should be interesting.
     
  3. Gdicke13

    Gdicke13 Low-Roller

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    Are the March madness parties worth going to? 6 weeks and counting!!!
     
  4. PHVHost

    PHVHost High-Roller

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    They are pretty awesome. Ton of screens, satellite betting stations, free food and beer. Can't beat that!

    - - - Updated - - -

    I see you are from Ann Arbor, I grew up in Brighton until I was 13.
     
  5. Casinoqueen

    Casinoqueen Low-Roller

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    " there is much more to Vegas then free play and room type."

    I strongly disagree with that statement. For me the freeplay and room type will make the difference on where I stay and play.

    Being Canadian the cost for me to get to Vegas is high. The flight costs are on average $700 return have paid as high as $1200, then add the declining Canadian dollar to that and you just started out on a loosing trip.

    I'm not one of the big gamblers on this board but do go to Vegas on average 3 times a year with an averaged out bankroll of 10 to 12K for a 5 or 7 day stay each trip. Have been staying at CET properties for almost 20 years due to the very good offers of freeplay, suites, comped food, limo etc. The last few years have been dabbling with V/P and Mlife. V/P has been more than willing to match my CET offers to get me to stay with them. Yes if they start to decline offers of course I will be looking to change companies. I will keep moving to the best offers, who doesn't like a good deal.

    If a large percent of people going to Vegas start moving to other properties due to major cuts in freeplay, suite etc from CET you can't tell me CET won't hurt from that. So yes, freeplay, suites, food comps etc are VERY important to people going to Vegas especially if they are hard gamblers.

    My freeplay offers for CET have been cut to less than half. Last May my host booked me under 2 offers and ended up with $3500 in freeplay, one offer was $2500 the other $1000. Due to those offers I stayed for 7 nights at a CET property then moved to another company for 3 nights. Was that freeplay important to me, your darn right it was and it made the difference of where I stayed and played and which company got the bulk of my bankroll.

    This May, as every May is a 10 night stay, there is no way I'd stay with CET if the offers of freeplay and other comps are cut in less than half or more. I'd be a fool to take 50% or less in comps to stay at a CET property, of course I'd be playing and staying at other properties.

    So there you go, freeplay and suites are VERY important to some of us regulars and the difference will make us play and stay at other properties. Just my 2 cents
     
  6. Dynasty22

    Dynasty22 Blackjack Connoisseur

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    Glad we got to speak on the phone recently Hunter, appreciate you taking the time. I look forward to talking more as my trip nears as well as meeting you!
     
  7. oldarmy

    oldarmy Low-Roller

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    Hunter,
    We are going to the Caesars Sweetheart Celebration Ball on valentines day. We are staying at Harrah's. I was wondering if you could hook me up with someone that can have something special sent up to the room for the wife. We stayed at Planet Hollywood in the past on her birthday and we had something sent up to our room by our host with a note. She felt special that day. Can you help me out?
     
  8. DReynolds86

    DReynolds86 Let's Go Pens!

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    I'm a micro-roller ($15-25 a hand BJ for 5-6 hours a day). I spend most of my money at the pool and on shows and somehow ended up getting Sunday through Wednesday comped at Harrah's. My question is that with the changing business climate with CET shedding some debt and the economy rebounding, are offers like these more apt to dry up? With my level of play, should I even waste the time of a host? Thanks.
     
  9. smartone

    smartone VIP Whale

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    Well said...
     
  10. g35girl

    g35girl Low-Roller

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    Not to be disrespectful, but "it is what it is"? If I read between the lines, I take it that you are aware of this happening and there is nothing you can do about it. If CET knows that they are going to send offers, book and confirm the offer and the at the last minute renege, why wouldn't they just not send the offer in the first place? We can ride out the ebb and flow, but something like this just leaves a bad taste in our mouths.
     
  11. Gamesman

    Gamesman VIP Whale

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    Not to put words in Hunter's mouth, but I read that as there is nothing that he can do to sway the frustration of the folks in that thread. His focus is on building a host relationship with his customers.

    As an example: I pay too much for my pool service. But I like the guy, he's responsive to texts if something goes wrong with my pool equipment and my pool is almost always well maintained. If something seems not right, he's always quick to try to fix it, even if it isn't his fault that it went wrong. I think what Hunter is trying to convey is that he'll do what he can to make his customer's stay enjoyable, but he can't control all facets of the casino operation.
     
  12. leo21

    leo21 VIP Whale

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    Yup. There is nothing Hunter can do to change opinions on all that so there is no point in taking the time to try. Let someone actually responsible defend what's going on. It's more useful to use his time with stuff he can actually help with.
     
  13. Iceicecool

    Iceicecool Low-Roller

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    There's nothing worse to a host than a customer who threatens to go to another casino and gives him an ultimatum. Hunter is right, customers will go back and forth to different properties every time another property gives a better offer. We had a saying where I used to work, every time a customer would storm out and say they're never returning, we would always respond "See you next time."
     
  14. Funkhouser

    Funkhouser In Charge of the Big Door

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    Don't pick on poor Hunter, he doesn't running the CET Marketing machine or control their budgets. He is about player development and like all hosts at CET keeping the higher value players happy.
    Most of us on the board, besides a few people (Nate, etc) don't register a level of play that matters or impacts whether Hunter hits his quarterly numbers. Like he said most of his players have not noticed
    (Translate CET is not looking to piss off or nickle and dime the high value players yet). So we are all just victims to CET financial parallels. If airfares are cheap and rooms are free people will continue
    to visit their properties since they don't have to try as hard to get business.

    Like I said on another thread, if your a long time Vegas visitor / gambler you have seen the change the past 5 years. Hence why I don't feel loyal to the CET brand anymore. Don't get me wrong CET and my Sales Executive
    are pleasant enough and I'll gladly play the comp game, but if I am going to fork out cash for rooms or dining, I plan to give it to the higher value joints where the property and service is great. The only way the comp game will change in vegas is more competition, and only a CET breakup will impact that right now. Maybe if CET gets out of the debt whole they are in, things will improve. For now everyone just has to suck it up.
    .
     
  15. Aces and Eights

    Aces and Eights VIP Whale

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    There are going to be people who don't like what's happening and go somewhere else, and there are going to be people who stick with what they have because of many reasons. I think that's the way businesses work, and they have to settle on the right "formula" which maximizes their earnings. If no one left, then there would be no reason for businesses to increase their offer. It would even make sense for them to decrease their offers until the point which they see some negative returns. That's the business side. I won't talk about reneging offers that have been reserved, because I think that's bad business practice regardless of the situation. But it works both ways. Businesses are going to try to charge as much as they can from their customers while not giving away the store, and some customers will try to get as much as they can while paying as little as they can.

    The hosts have to play the hands that are dealt to them. In this case Hunter has to do what he can to build relations within the constraints that CET provides him. There are some things that make it harder for him, but I think he realizes that there are going to be times where it's going to be easier for him.

    I heard that Planet Hollywood is changing their floor layout a little bit and may be adding another Pleasure Pit area. I was wondering if this has been done? If not, is it still being planned, or was it ever planned? The Pleasure Pit is one of the things that I enjoy about playing there.
    Another question I have is, "Do hosts have the discretion of giving out restaurant passes like Planet Dailies without the player having to use his Rewards points?
     
  16. salukidean

    salukidean High-Roller

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    Why are there a lot less tourneys than there used to be? I've been diamond for 8 or 9 years and have earned most my points while staying on property and playing in tourneys. In the last 6 months, my tourney invites have dried up and the only one I received was Winterfest. Unless things change, I doubt I'll make diamond this year (and may not even make platinum). Caesars properties used to have the best tourneys and they were my big draw to stay and play at your resorts. I think the great reduction in the number of these events will prove costly as you are losing a significant number of players like myself.
     
  17. BCMike

    BCMike VIP Whale

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    Actually, I noticed some changes last week there. It looks like there's another Starbucks going in right at the corner of the mall and the Sportsbook. The poker room is now between earl of sandwich and the sportsbook. I actually really missed the 2 giant slot machines that used to be there. There was wheel of fortune on one side and avatar on the other before.

    The changes at the pool with the surf machine thing are coming along nicely but still looks like it's early in construction. From what I remember, there's more tables where the old poker room used to be but nothing 'pleasure pit' like yet.
     
  18. Aces and Eights

    Aces and Eights VIP Whale

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    Thanx for the update! You jogged my memory of some of the things that were proposed. I guess some of those things have been done or in the process of being done.
     
  19. chitownjohn

    chitownjohn High-Roller

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    You can get away with that level of customer service when you operate in a duopoly market, as in the case with CET and MGM in Vegas. You don't necessarily have to be good, you just have to be slightly better than the competition.
     
  20. parallax

    parallax High-Roller

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    I was curious how hosts from other casinos obtain your information. In the last month, I have be contacted by hosts from SLS and the Venetian. I have never been to the SLS and the last time I gambled at the Venetian was in 2008. I do 99 percent of my gambling at Mlife. I did recently increase my LOC for an upcoming trip to MB. Any thoughts why I'm getting the interest?
     
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