Las Vegas Case Analysis

Las Vegas Case Analysis

Karen Keller

Bryan Bourret

Thomas Johnstone

Wendy Jungten

The hospitality and travel system model presented below (Morrison P#) entails a set of five questions that every hospitality organization should use when planning marketing activities.

Looking back over the past ten years, it is apparent that the Las Vegas Convention and Visitor’s Authority (LVCVA) has done an excellent job of progressing through these stages. Las Vegas was identified as a family destination in 1998 when the LVCVA launched their “It’s Anything and Everything” Campaign. So when the Authority asked itself “Where are we now?” in 2003, they established that Las Vegas was currently a family destination—or at least, that is what they had been trying to promote it to be.They then realized that although they had been marketing to the family, they may in fact have been marketing to the wrong crowd. Coming to this realization, the LVCVA asked and answered “Where would we like to be?”and decided to reposition Las Vegasas an adult destination. In response to “How do we get there?” the LVCVA ignited the “Vegas Stories” campaign featuring the tag line “What happens here, stays here.” This campaign focused on the idea that traveling to Vegas allowed an individual to engage in any and all activities imaginable without bearing any guilt.

Now that the LVCVA had decided to change Vegas’s image from family-oriented to adult-oriented, it was time to focus on achieving results. After some time, they proposed “How do we make sure we get there?”, and in response launched another ad campaign called “Alibi.” “The family-oriented ads were a partial reflection of the changing nature of Las Vegas properties… [T]he attractions at Circus-Circus and Treasure Island [were] oriented towards children” (McMullen). Another way of assuring that the new image was received by travelers was to renovate attractions so that they would no longer be oriented towards the entire family. For instance, as Tom Mikulich, the president and C.O.O. of Treasure Island explains, “We downsized our arcade, added a sultry nightclub, changed out the skull-and-crossbones marquee for more contemporary signage and enhanced the pirate show to include the sexy Sirens of Treasure Island” (McMullen).

The most intriguing question of all is “How do we know if we got there?” The changing image of Las Vegas has definitely proven to be a story of success. The ad campaigns played a huge factor in this success; during the campaigns, “an increase of more than 460,000 visitors traveled to Las Vegas,” (R&R Partners) and“Las Vegas occupancy was 85 percent—a full 26 points above the national average” (R&R Partners). The hospitality industry in Las Vegas flourished. As highlighted in MGM Mirage’s 2004 Annual Report, “Net revenues increased 10% over 2003 to a record $4.2 billion, with 12% REVPAR growth at our Las Vegas resorts… We exceeded the expectations of every market observer, and significantly beat our forecasts” (MGM Mirage).

Such convincing quantitative statistics make finding flaws in Vegas tourism a difficult task. Perhaps, however, a sixth question needs to be asked in addition to those in the model—that being, “How do we maintain our image and growth?”. This is where Las Vegas may fall short.

“Whatever the title, lodging, innkeeping, the hotel business, ours is an amazingly resilient industry. It flourishes because it adopts and adapts easily and quickly to changing circumstances” (Vallen P#).

A key concept emphasized to those interested in pursuing a career in the hospitality industry is that if one is to succeed, he or she must be aware of the industry’s ever-changing nature and be willing to adapt to change. It seems that Las Vegas has grasped this concept. It seems that in today’s society each generation becomes a bit more open-minded and liberal than the one before it, and Las Vegas seems to do the same;Las Vegas may very well be the most liberal destination around. The senior manager of media relations for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Bureau said, "Las Vegas has established itself as the most frivolous adult destination, and is really embracing its sexiness" (McMullen). Perhaps, however, Las Vegas has drawn its focus so much to innovationand adaptation that it has neglected the primary essentials—namely, friendly customer service and quality facilities—that have always and will always be needed to provide desirablehospitality.

Proof that the SinCity’s hotels need to reunite themselves with the basics can be found in listening to recent visitors. Vegas properties new and old are receiving complaints indicating lack of customer service as well as a downfall in the conditions of the facilities. Common customer service complaints include long waits at the front desks. A visitor to the Flamingo, the most popular of the earliest established Vegas properties, says, “It was surprising to witness such a long delay upon check-in. We waited in a line-up to check-in to the hotel for over 30 minutes.” Furthermore, an upset guest who stayed at the Circus-Circus wrote, “Expect there to be long lines waiting to check-in… that’s assuming you can find the line amongst the masses of travelers sitting all over the floor.” Other problems deal specifically with the employees. For instance, many returnees from Vegas vacations express the negative attitudes the front desk attendants expressed. One person who stayed at Treasure Island, one of the initial family mega resorts, tells a story of his anniversary stay there. He mentioned that it was his anniversary upon check-in hoping for an upgrade, but the attendant replied with a harsh, “If you want to pay for it!” This front desk staff member then proceeded to say that a bottle of champagne would be sent to his room, but it never was delivered. Not only do Vegas hotels have problems with unfriendly employees; they also have problems with untrustworthy employees. Multiple guests have referred to items that have been stolen from their rooms during their stays. A guest at the MGM Grand reports, “[M]y earrings were stolen from my room; I was very upset as they were my wedding earrings.” Another woman who stayed at the same property explains, “We will definitely stay somewhere else next time… I’m missing my ‘past, present, future’ diamond necklace I brought with me.”

Not only is the customer service on the downfall, but so is the quality of Vegas’s hospitality facilities. There are numerous accounts of visitors complaining about the smoke-filled rooms in the hotels and casinos. “MGM was consistently smoky to the point of my eyes bothering me… and I’m a smoker. Saved money on cigarettes,” voices one visitor. A lady who stayed at the Circus Circus resort similarly states, “the stale smoke smell which lingers in the air and gets all over your clothes etc is not satisfactory for young kids especially those with asthma.” Another guest at the Circus-Circus makes the overall judgment that, “the hotel is shabby and in need of complete refurbishment.”

Clearly the Las Vegas hotels suffer from many of the same wide-spread dilemmas in both customer service and in their facilities. To resolve these issues, the properties should probably start by being more selective when hiring employees. No guest wants to be greeted by a cold face or a snide remark. Standards should be raised; employees should be expected to help every guest and make their stay more enjoyable. Also, more money should be invested in training and incentive programs for employees. These programs would teach them how to deal with different types of customers and would motivate them to perform better. In regards to the facilities, more intense renovation projects should be initiated. Rooms need to be updated, or at the very least, kept clean and functional. There should be more restricted non-smoking areas and better ventilation systems.

There is no doubt that Las Vegas’s branding strategy has been successful. In essence, “Las Vegas” is a brand; or rather, it is many specialized brands (MGM, etc) that make up one broad brand (Las Vegas). Currently the overall image of the city continues to attract growing numbers; however, if the hotel/casinos within the city do not shape up, the overall image may be ruined. After all, the concept of branding is to promote customer loyalty. Many individuals have made reference to the fact that they love coming to Vegas, but will never stay at a particular hotel again. “I was talked nasty to, made to look like a liar, and given horrible looks all because they made a mistake or wanted to get more money from me. Sorry MGM but my time, money, and referrals, you will not receive anymore.” If customers continue to have bad experiences with multiple brands, their positive image of Vegas as a whole may diminish.

When the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority was created in 1955, it was created to “attract… a steadily increasing number of visitors to support the hotel and motel room inventory” (Guthers and Gertner). And while their slogan, “What Happens Here Stays Here” tempts many consumers world-wide to explore and experience Vegas’s distinctive opportunities, there may not be much happening or staying there if improvements are not made. If the hotels do not shape up their act and provide a friendlier and more comfortable atmosphere for their guests, Vegas’s tourism may be destined for a future not nearly as bright as its city lights.

Works Cited

Guthers, Dennis, and Rosane Gertner. Destination Marketing: Branding Las Vegas.

Thunderbird: The GarvinSchool of International Management. 2005.

Las Vegas Tourism. TripAdvisor, Inc.

2005. 2 Nov. 2005

las-vegas-hotels.tripadvisor.com/ >

McMullen, Shannon. 'Sin' is in again at Vegas hotels. 2005

MGM Mirage 2004 Annual Report. MGM Mirage.

2005. 6 Nov. 2005

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Morrison, Alastair. Hospitality and Travel Marketing.

Thomson Delmar Learning;3rdedition, 2001.

The Work: Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. R&R Partners.

2005. 2 Nov. 2005

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Vallen, Jerome J. and Gary K. Check In; Check Out: Managing Hotel Operations.

Prentice Hall; 7th edition, 2004.