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Gaming GuruAttracting new blackjack players23 July 2010
I once polled about 100 blackjack players to find out what ideas they had to get more casino players to play blackjack. I used their input in a presentation I made at an industry gaming conference in Las Vegas. You might find their ideas enlightening. Offer blackjack lessons during prime time Make sure the instructor is pleasant, knowledgeable, and helpful with new players. Lessons should be taught in the more convenient evening hours rather than in the morning. Use "funny money" and offer one session that focuses on the basic playing rules and table manners, and another on the basic playing strategy. One reader suggested having blackjack lessons taught by a respected authority on the game. At the end of the instruction, encourage the attendees to apply what they learned by offering them match play casino chips that can only be used at the blackjack tables (they bet $5 of their money along with a $5 match play chip and if they win the hand they win $10). Implement a learner's table. As one player commented, "Today's beginning low limit player is tomorrow's high roller, so provide a place for new players to learn the game, cheaply." Have a blackjack table that is very visible on the casino floor (not hidden away in some seldom visited corner) with clear signage that states "Learners Table". Table minimums must be super low and a friendly, trained dealer that can patiently answer new players' questions must staff the game. Every player should be given a basic strategy card to help them learn how to make the right decisions. The pace on this table should be deliberately slow with the goal of making the new player feel comfortable. Designate "Beginner-Friendly" blackjack tables Besides offering low limits and friendly dealers at these designated tables, make it clear that criticism of other players' playing decisions is not welcomed and is reason to boot a player off the table. By implementing some or all of the above ideas, new players will be able to build up their confidence to play blackjack without the "intimidation factor" that has turned so many players away from the game. Some of the other suggestions, which I shared with casino operations personnel, included: On the overall playing environment:
On the playing rules and the odds:
And last, but not least, came these suggestions:
A few casinos have implemented some of the above suggestions to attract new players but unfortunately most have not. In fact many are too focused on today's bottom line rather than cultivating new players for the future. This includes casinos that are offering the terrible single-deck games where blackjacks are paid only 6:5 and those that put continuous shuffling machines on all their tables. Unfortunately, this is not the way to develop new players. One skilled blackjack player sent me this email, which I used in the closing of my presentation. It says it all.
This article is provided by the Frank Scoblete Network. Melissa A. Kaplan is the network's managing editor. If you would like to use this article on your website, please contact Casino City Press, the exclusive web syndication outlet for the Frank Scoblete Network. To contact Frank, please e-mail him at fscobe@optonline.net. Recent Articles
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