How a casino lost my business.

River Spirit casino in Tulsa, had been my favorite casino out of the three casinos in Tulsa.  They fired my host and another host last March.  The casino refused to give me another host, citing not enough carded play.  I quit receiving my vip dinners and vip gifts events and drawings.  

You earn your onyx card for 6 months at a time.  One benefit listed for Onyx includes a personal host.  They refused to replace my host.  I had dialouge with the marketing director and the head of the host dept via e-mail which proved fruitless.  I posted a  rather sarcastic review in Better Business Bureau.  Here it is:

"Having been an ONYX card holder for several years and currently an ONYX member. My Gross loss last year was $20K, Net loss was. $7K with $600,000 put into play. Being an experienced gambler I calculated the player EV, expected value, using the industry norm for THEO, theoretical value. I did this because of the nonsensical business model the marketing and player development departments are using. I question if they have much knowledge of the gaming business. In short the EV and THEO is used by players to evaluate the level of return from the casino. Casinos use THEO to establish the amount of comps they return to the players. Does Marketing and player development understand THEO? Probably not according to my latest interaction with them. My host was terminated with another host back in early March. I've not been assigned a new host. They say, " you need more carded play". I disagree.. Tier benefits state, ONYX CARD HOLDERS RECEIVE A PERSONAL HOST. I was being excluded from VIP dinners for not having a host to advocate for me due to lack of carded play. They have alienated a self described degenerate gambler, a player who will chase a 50 dollar loss by losing another thousand. The River Spirit had been my favorite casino.. Thanks to my being turned away at the VIP dinners, that costs less than 8 bucks a head, they are losing a player that lost an average of $1,700 a month. Now that is what I call PLAYER UNDEVELOPEMENT!!."

Since that posting, my e-mails to the Host dept manager has been undeliverable,  I'm being blocked. so I did an end run and sent the following post to the Marketing director:

"Ken, I'm forwarding this email to you because it was undeliverable to Audrey, please forward this to Audrey.  Thanks in advance."

"Audrey, Carl Jenkins here, I met a very pleasant young lady last Saturday at the VIP dinner/ truck drawing.  She is a new host.  I'm unable to recall her name. I did explain to her that I've been without a host since Amanda was terminated.  She took a photo of my card.  I did ask her to let me know what type of response she would receive when she brought up to the host dept. that I needed a host.  I've not heard anything.  I would like to have her contact me about her becoming my new host.   Her description is, she is blonde probably in her early twenties, very personable and she came to River Spirit from Dillard's.  It is evident she will be a great asset to the player development dept.  I have some experience with hosts, having more than a dozen over the years from Las Vegas casinos to 5 different Oklahoma casinos, some good, some not so good.  She is a keeper.  If you could have her contact me or send me her name, be much appreciated.  It looks like you have a full complement of hosts now, so if I can't be assigned this particular host for whatever reason, I would like to have a new host assigned to me. " 

Any thoughts anyone?  

My thought is: they've pretty much absolutely and unequivocally told you that you're worth nothing to them. So...vote with your feet. Why patronize a business--any business--that lies to and abuses you?

Your story is pretty damn common in the casino industry these days. We've all been told by casinos that considered us "loyal customers" that our benefits were being cut back, often drastically--and sometimes, we've been suddenly ignored completely. And that often extends to people not returning our phone calls and emails.

Unfortunately, the casinos don't have to treat their customers decently right now. The lemmings come flooding in, regardless of how much it costs and how crappy the experience is. So if we want to be treated as so-called "loyal customers" (like it says in the players' club brochure), we have to somehow outbid the herds of morons who are pounding on the casinos' doors, waving bags of cash. And most of us can't or won't cough up money like gravel out of a dump truck.

I don't know how much you enjoy gambling (other than your self-description as a "degenerate"), but I strongly recommend you find some other activity to occupy your leisure time. It's just not worth the expense, aggravation, and self-humiliation to deal with the casinos any more.

I have voted with my feet.  Since this happened I stay away from River Spirit casino.  I do enjoy needling them and plan to post to other forums about the moronic behavior of management. I also plan to send an e-mail to the General manager after the win / loss statements for this year.comparing the money they missed out on by alienating me.  

  Considering the average amount you lose monthly, it seems that the casino is doing you a favor by giving you a reason to quit them. Look on the bright side - the money you save not gambling there is money you can earmark for more visits to Vegas.

If you talk to my wife, she is saying the same thing.  I plan to send the casino a big thank you from her with a copy of win/loss statement comparing last year with this year.  I've heard sarcasm is the lowest form of humor, but I can't resist, I will lower my bar just for them.  I will also let em know the other two competing casinos would like to thank em too.  

I've boycotted places for much less.     Golden Nugget didnt comp my drink at their VP bar one year....I didnt step foot in that place for 6 years after that.    Thats what's great about having alternatives.

I'm sorry that you waste so much of your valuable time composing sarcastic messages for casino uppers to read, as if they gave a rat's butt. 

I feel your pain about the carded play not qualifying you as it had in the past.  Due to personal circumstances I've had to cut way back on casino trips, just at the moment when mLife (MGM, etc.) reduced the tier points earned at Las Vegas casinos, way more than at Beau Rivage, etc.   In the past I could count on bulking up my MGM tier points with a couple visits to Vegas.  Now, for the first time ever, I start 2023 as Pocket Lint.   Loyalty has nothing to do with it, sadly.  

Candy

Candy, don't despair! MGM (Money, Gimme Money) just announced a new tier, Pocket Lint Fluffy. Pocket Lint players can advance to Fluffy status by playing at least $250,000 through the slots ($1,500,000 for video poker). In return, they will receive: 

1. Thirty cents in comps.

2. 1% off hotel rooms (Mon-Thurs).

3. Special "Fluffy" paper napkins in all MGM restaurants (just show your player's card).

4. Exclusive admission through the front door of the casino.

5. Complimentary drinks ("What do you mean, $12 for my gin and tonic? I thought the drinks were complimentary?" "Oh, sorry. Nice tits.")

6. No charge for air conditioning.

7. No charge for bathroom usage (toilet paper extra).

8. The opportunity to advance to "Pocket Change" status.

9. Free parking after you pay for parking.

10. Free photo of you being devoured by the MGM lion.

Lol, Kevin!

I'm in the same boat, Candy.  A trip or two to Vegas with the former 25 times tier credits for non-gaming and 8 times tier credits on gaming allowed the tier status to be decent.  Now, my status will be "fuhgit about it".  

Tommy 

LOL Kevin and Antennanut!  Thanks for the laughs.   

Candy (aka Pocket Lint, hoping to advance to PL Fluffy).