Hail Atlantis
by Dennis Conrad
Dennis Conrad is an executive casino consultant and the former Founder and President of Raving Consulting Company.
Full article available at: https://cdcgaming.com/commentary/hail-atlantis/
Next year will mark my 30th year of living in Reno, after previously living in Las Vegas for nearly 20 years. I must say, after an initial adjustment period, I’ve very much enjoyed living in Reno. It certainly isn’t Las Vegas and frankly, it doesn’t want to be. And couldn’t be.
In Reno, a number of smaller locals casinos and a few larger resort-casinos necessarily cater to locals and tourists in somewhat equal numbers. The proliferation of tribal casinos in Reno’s feeder markets and the explosive growth of Las Vegas make it hard for Reno to have and support a true destination megaresort.
Readers of my column know that all my life, I’ve been an avid gambler, with a particular fondness for video poker, sports betting, and craps (now mostly electronic “bubble craps”). Besides offering a good gambling proposition, casinos in Reno with great food, good service, convenient parking, and a generous loyalty program get a nice slice of my gambling budget. Yes, I have a few favorite casinos in Reno and northern Nevada.
But until last year, the Atlantis Casino Resort Spa wasn’t one of them.
Why I’d rarely visited the Atlantis isn’t important. Suffice it to say my meager Atlantis visitation over the decades was certainly my loss and, to a small degree, theirs as well. But this is the story of my becoming an Atlantis regular customer over the last year, what I learned, and how I “discovered” a great casino experience that had been in my plain sight all along.
I stopped in when I heard that Atlantis had four Interblock electronic bubble crap games, my new favorites. They were the newest versions, better than what were elsewhere in Reno. They were well maintained and located near the live crap game, which I might have played, but it was, well, just TOO BUSY (how many casinos have THAT problem?). An Atlantis executive who knew me through my consulting practice recognized me and stopped by to say hello. Before I could say, “Good to see you too,” I was invited to lunch at the Atlantis with a few of their executives.
Not wanting to show my ignorance before this luncheon at the Atlantis Seafood and Oyster Bar, I made a point to check the place out.
I noticed that parking was plentiful and convenient. The casino was busier than anywhere else in Reno. The employees were mostly engaged and speed of service was good. The place was colorful and had a nice vibe.
After lunch, I asked myself, why don’t I play at the Atlantis? I didn’t have a good reason. So for the last year, I’ve visited on a regular basis. I ‘ve eaten numerous times at the Atlantis Steakhouse (my new choice for best in Reno), Bistro Napa, the Oyster and Sushi Bar, and the Manhattan Deli. I’ve played enough electronic and live craps and video poker to achieve some level of VIP status. I’ve had scores of service interactions and noted how the Atlantis business transaction processes worked. I’ve participated in several casino promotions and been invited to many more. In short, I’ve been a regular.
And in that eye-opening year of experiencing the Atlantis, I’ve come to the inescapable conclusion that it’s not only the top casino in northern Nevada for providing value to casino players, but one of the top casinos in the world. Its marketing tag line of “Every Player’s Paradise” is not an exaggeration.
So how does the Atlantis accomplish all this and what can other casinos learn from it? Here’s my take.
Truly liberal gaming proposition
To me, the Atlantis clearly has the loosest video poker in northern Nevada (even rivaling the loosest in southern Nevada locals casinos). No doubt, the slot games are the same. The crap game has 5X odds when other casinos have only 2, 3, and 4X odds (and there are unique bonuses for dice shooters who have the longest rolls).
There are numerous days where play is rewarded with additional point and comp multipliers. Bonus free play is available every day and comps can be turned into free play anytime. Large-scale casino promotions are frequent and generous. The Atlantis proves that if you want to “own all the business,” you do it by offering real players more value, not less.
Great food
The Atlantis “gets” food. It understands that great food gets players in the door, coming back, playing to get comps for that great food, and spreading invaluable positive word of mouth in the community, even better than some good advertising could do.
Excellent customer service
I’ve had enough excellent customer-service interactions at the Atlantis to know that someone is paying attention. Slot jackpots are paid as fast as I’ve ever seen them. Service in the Steakhouse is impeccable. Drink servers are smiling and attentive. The dealers are friendly. Bartenders know their customers and call them by name. And I’ve seen many examples of above-and-beyond service, including a memorable server in the Steakhouse, who trekked to another restaurant to secure chopsticks that my wife requested for her ahi tuna tartare.
VIP marketing
It’s clear that the Atlantis understands the 80-20 rule and the value of VIP players. There are numerous and diverse VIP events around every special occasion. Casino promotions are attractive to VIP players. Executive casino hosts know how to work the phones. There is a concierge floor for VIPs, special VIP check-in and parking, and a well-appointed VIP lounge. I saw many table-game floor bosses augment all this by acting as informal casino hosts. The Atlantis KNOWS VIP marketing.
The buzz
I know there’s a buzz at the Atlantis. I’m not sure it’s solely because of the value they create for their players or if, in addition, there is some magical maestro coordinating lights and smells and sounds, including overhead music. Whatever it is, you can feel a true buzz at the Atlantis, one that most casinos sorely lack.
I’m sure there are other parts to the Atlantis success formula that I look forward to discovering over the coming visits. For now, let me just say you should go see it for yourself. And be sure to take notes.
Hail Atlantis! I’m a little embarrassed that this longtime casino customer and industry observer took 30 years to find you.