Inside Asian Gaming

A couple of elderly Chinese ladies prayed to Zeus before they went into the casino - just in case! 36 Why have GM done so well? As far as I can tell, they are extremely targeted in their marketing. Their theme was carried through from the interior and exterior design and their entertainment and service offering through to their external promotions. It appeared as though it was almost done with the Mainland Chinese market solely in mind. I do think, however that they could send their grumpy Eastern European waitresses for further training on customer service. Their entertainment is probably the best in town in the absence of the Crazy Paris Revue (bring them back!), simple as it may be. Maybe Sands can take a leaf from their book? By the way, heard an amusing story the other day. A couple of elderly Chinese ladies prayed to Zeus before they went into the casino - just in case! Very typical, I must admit. I have met many Chinese who are steadfast Christians but will nevertheless continue to observe some old Chinese religious rituals.Well you never know, do you? Coming back to my opening paragraph. Can somebody please tell the people coming toMacau from the States that the high rollers in Macau are Chinese and not on the whole given to regular penchants for steaks and cigars? When a senior exec was sent out by Showboat to set up Sydney Harbour Casino, he was alleged to have made the statement that he knew what high-rollers wanted, and that was a big juicy steak with a nice fat cigar. So, the one and only restaurant they had was a steakhouse. What’s that restaurant up on the 3rd floor of the Sands? You know, the one that’s always empty except for the senior expats dining up there on their privilege. But they have a Chinese restaurant, you say. So they have, except they went upmarket but without the correct product. I have been reliably informed that even the players who stay in the VVIP suites prefer the buffet and the noodle house downstairs.Perhaps,again a lack of familiarity with the customers and their preferences. But “we are making money,” they say. So can a chimpanzee in a raging bull stock market. Heard the people over at Wynn have a slightly different approach. Out of 8 to 9 possible food outlets, only one is tipped to be Western. They must have learnt from the Sands lab. Even Coca Cola was not spared the hubris of American corporations’ failure to adapt their product and/or concept to other cultures. Coke’s first foray into China in 1928 was with a product name which while sounding phonetically like Coca Cola, actually translated into either “female horse fastened with wax”or“bite the wax tadpole”, depending on your preference. Pepsi went one better.They promised immortality if you drank their product. When they started marketing their products in China, they translated their slogan “Pepsi Brings You Back to Life” pretty literally. The slogan in Chinese really meant “Pepsi Brings Your Ancestors Back from the Grave.” Picture the Chinese putting bottles of Pepsi on their ancestral graves on the annual tomb spruce- up day. I think I would prefer coming back from the dead to biting a wax tadpole, and yes, they do taste different. Pepsi is less sickly sweet and, well, you never know, do you? Melbourne’s Crown has its own home grown beauty. They had a “Chase the Lucky Dragon” competition a few years back until someone from the local Chinese/Vietnamese community advised them that it was also slang for getting high on cocaine. Happy Chinese NewYear! I am looking forward to the next batch of Macau marketing beauties that are sure to come out soon.Who let the dogs out… woof! (Any amusing anecdotes or observations of the marketing variety, please feel free to forward to ka.chng@gmail.com ).