Spirit Mountain Casino experienced a year for the books in 2023. I want to share some of last year’s key highlights and accomplishments and the collective efforts that made the year memorable. From elevating our players’ club experience to introducing innovative employee initiatives, we’ve forged ahead with determination and resilience, setting new standards in entertainment and hospitality.
Casino Highlights
In 2023, we focused on creating guest experiences that strengthened our position in the market and set us apart from other entertainment destinations.
Our loyal guests saw their core gaming experience improve with the retooling of our players’ club – the Coyote Club. The changes we made to Coyote Club added value and new rewards. Thanks to an improved players’ club experience, 250 new slots on the slot floor, new promotional kiosks, and an updated hosting program, we saw increased visits from Club members and increased number of people playing with their Coyote Club card.
Carded play (when a guest plays slot or table games with their Coyote Club card) increased from 54% to 59%, indicating increased player engagement. Carded play also lets us understand which games and experiences are most popular and with which guests, allowing us to adjust as needed and build loyalty with our core gamers.
We completed other existing property improvements, including a Slot Smoking Room for our smoking guests and significant improvements to the hotel. We expanded dining options with Rock Creek Grill, which shares space with Jalapenos in our new food court area. We also updated our gift shop experience, bringing in new Native American craftspeople.
All these improvements lead to a 9% increase in table games revenue, steady visitor numbers and the second-best New Year’s Eve event in our casino history. Revenue and guest service go hand-in-hand, and we’ve renewed our focus on the guest experience. This focus has resulted in an improvement in guest satisfaction scores and also highlighted key areas that we can improve in 2024.
Employee Initiatives
Our employees are the backbone of Spirit Mountain Casino. I’ve committed to building a culture that honors and acknowledges the hard work of our team and engages employees around the core values of our business.
This year’s biggest success in this area has been our high attendance rate and low staff turnover. These two markers help us create a place that our guests want to visit again and again. Through an innovative program called Gas+, we reward perfect attendance in two-week increments with a gift card the employee can use for gas or food. Thanks to this program, we have achieved 87% perfect attendance, up from 24% last year.
Tied closely to attendance, we saw a decrease in turnover rate to 27%. Casino turnover can be as high as 80%, and our low turnover indicates improved job satisfaction and engagement.
The increase in perfect attendance and decrease in turnover is possible because we’ve focused on this part of our business with a few key programs. Our Ambassador of the Month acknowledges employee contributions and a new employee app that streamlines communication has been proven to help ensure our teams feel connected.
The connection our team has to Spirit Mountain – and vice-versa – happens off-property, too! We launched Spirit Mountain Cares, which organizes team participation in awareness walks and events for causes our team cares about. In 2023, we walked for suicide prevention and Alzheimer’s. We also enjoyed spending time together at a family-friendly summer picnic, an event I look forward to hosting again this year.
Looking forward
We celebrate the successes of 2023 and set our sights on the possibilities of 2024 thanks to our commitment to excellence with our guests and our team members. As we continue to evolve and innovate, we’re poised for another chapter of growth, resilience, and celebration.
I invite you to share feedback, experience and suggestions via the contact form on this blog, and I’ll continue to provide updates throughout the year.