Daily averages can hurt players more than help them. For example, in
Atlantic City many casinos used Daily Averages. If you gambled $20,000 on
Day One and then two weeks later you come back to cash your Bounceback check
for your cashback but do no gambling, most casinos will count this as a trip,
and suddenly your daily average is now $10,000. Taj Mahal is one place where
cashing in any bounceback check, using a comp, or getting a gift would count
as a new trip and reduce your average. A "zero" play day could really hurt
you there.
In Las Vegas, as a local you would think many casinos would be happy to
encourage me to keep coming back as often as possible. But in some cases the
dreaded "Daily Average" can hurt me.
One major example is the Palms. If I play $20,000 on Day 1 I might be
eligible for their "Big Shot" extra club with special benefits, and monthly
Freeplay coupons of $40. But if I also go in 4 or 5 times during the month
to play that $40 of Free play and keep my card inserted but do no other play,
My average will suddenly go down to say $5000 and now my next month's Free
Play bonus will drop to $10 instead of $40.
The Palms loves to send all sorts of special coupons such as free Megabucks
pulls, free gifts, etc. I probably could go about 10-20 times during a
month to pick up all the Free Play and bonuses. But if I do so and just play
for 5 minutes each time I pick up a bonus, and play one day heavily on the $5
machines and run $40,000 or more through, my Daily Average will go all to
hell and the next month my offers will be a lot less, plus no "Big Shot" club
for me.
On the other hand, if I play at Orleans or Gold Coast or Barbary Coast, which
use Monthly Total Play, My monthly play of $20,000 or $40,000 or whatever
will put me in their highest category and I will get the best offers
available from them. Even if I go over to the Orleans 5 other times during
the month and play for 5 minutes and collect my bounceback checks or see a
show, that play won't reduce my Monthly total into a Daily total or reduce my
offers.
While some casinos may think that basing comps on Daily Averages makes sense,
really it doesn't. If the Daily Average gets too reduced by extra trips to
the casino and that lowers the quality of offers, players just won't go back.
For example take the Palms. I played heavily on the $5 machines for a couple
of months. Let's say I put through a total of $100,000 or more (it probably
was more) in a month. Much of this play was on "reel" machines by the way,
which I do play occasionally as well as Video Poker. If you were a casino
owner, wouldn't you want someone like that in your casino? [I'm using
$100,000 as a theoretical amount - I don't know exactly how much I put
through, but for a couple of months I did play a lot on $1 Triple/5 Plays, $1
and $5 Reel Slots. Below you will see more - it is a somewhat theoretical
example, but generally based on what actually happened to me.]
But instead of say 2 or 3 trips of $40,000-50,000 play, I went to the Palms
about 10 times during the month to eat meals, cash Free Play,
pull a free Megabucks, or maybe see a movie and play for a 1/2 hr while
there. On those extra 7-8 trips I played quarter VP or only played for a
short time on $1 machines.
Instead of $100,000 a month player or a $40,000 a visit player, now suddenly
I was considered a $10,000 Daily Average Player - regardless of my total play
for the whole month.
The previous month I had been a Hot Shot (lower than a Big Shot, but with
extra benefits). Now my Daily Average is suddenly reduced, and the next
month I don't get Hot Shot status, and my Free Play mailings drop from $40 to
$20 per time.
(For the sake of argument - assume that the previous month I played only 3
times at $33,000 play each time - giving my monthly total the same $100,000
but my daily average at $33,000 instead of $10,000. This caused me to get
Hot Shot Status).
Okay - now my daily average has dropped to $10,000, but I still played the
same Monthly total through.
But my mailings from the Palms drop and I'm now upset that I no longer get
Hot Shot Status.
I phone them and they say I didn't get Hot Shot because my Daily Average was
too low.
What do I do? I get upset - I'm not happy with the Palms, and I start
playing more at Bally's (where the offers and total cashback/other cash are
higher than I'm getting from the Palms) and Orleans.
The next month I play a total of $20,000 at the Palms because I am unhappy
with them. Instead of playing $100,000 at Ballys - I now play $180,000 at
Ballys. (This is total money played through mind you).
Result from the Daily Average policy is that I'm angry at Palms and they lose
a lot of my $1 and $5 play.
Wouldn't it make sense that the Palms would want to reward someone who plays
$100,000 in a month through the same whether it be on 3 days or 10 days??
But no - that is not what they do.
As a result of using a Daily Average for measuring play at the Palms, I as a
local who lives nearby the Palms and liked to visit them a lot, ended up
getting less in offers than someone from out of town who might have visited
only once during the month and played that $100,000 all in 3 days.
Actually by visiting the Palms a lot, I probably played more at the Palms
than I would have if I had been coming in for a visit - maybe $100,000 for
those 2-3 heavy play days plus another $10,000 for all those extra visits
with short play.
But in the end, I get a lower rating, and lower Free Play and lower offers.
I played a whole lot, but get not so much. I get angry at Palms and I play
more elsewhere.
Did the Palms benefit from their use of the Daily Average? I don't think so.
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