Ocean Case Study - The Buzz Creative Group

PARTNERSHIP SUCCESS
REVITALIZING A FAILED PROPERTY

WHAT WE KNOW:

Historically, Atlantic City has been viewed in a negative light due to past issues with illegal gaming and political corruption. In recent times, the increase of casino market saturation and an overall decline in property revenue has led to further adversity.

In March of 2019, Buzz Creative Group was approached to pitch agency of record to the newly acquired and renamed Ocean Casino resort, located along the historic Atlantic City boardwalk. Our team had several apprehensions at first. Not only did Atlantic City’s gloomy reputation stand in our way, but different investor groups had attempted to operate within the same property multiple times, most publicly under the name Revel, which was considered the largest debacle in gaming history.

Still, we saw tremendous potential in the future of Ocean, so when this unique opportunity presented itself, we went for it. We were familiar with the new leadership team, and believed in their operational and programming potential. We were equally impressed by the property itself. The casino and hotel structures are both stunning, the layout is enormous; 130,000 square feet, 13 restaurant venues, two entertainment venues, multiple swimming pools and 1,399 hotel rooms.

OUR GOALS:

Take a previously failed property and join forces with their marketing team to shift the tide and make it successful. After conducting market research, we determined our focus was to:

Shift Brand Awareness
Re-secure the Core Guest Database

FOCUS STRATEGY:

SHIFT BRAND AWARENESS

A change in the name! The essence and truth of all brands is to live up to their promise. We felt by repositioning the word CASINO before RESORT it served as a promise to show the public, and guests that Ocean Casino Resort is committed to keeping the casino player at the forefront.

To capitalize on this promise, we focused on developing the following creative campaigns:

BRAND VOICE: Reimagining and rewriting their Brand Story, Personality, Pillars.

BRAND CAMPAIGN: Launching a “NEW WAVE” brand campaign. There was a ‘New Wave of…’ Excitement, Gaming, Entertainment and Offers that was advertised on traditional and digital media.

DIGITAL PAID ADVERTISING: Simultaneously, as the new brand was being introduced, digital advertising strategies were being launched to capitalize on mass awareness.

RE - SECURE THE CORE GUEST DATABASE

The biggest marketing and advertising hurdle the loss of trust the guests had in the property. Because of Revel, Ocean needed to reestablish their credibility; to communicate the doors are open, lights are on and their offers and points will be reinstated.

Initiatives included:

DATABASE OFFER DRIVERS: Establish a new core mailer layout that showcased more gifts and highlighted personalized offers.

“ALL-NEW WOW” PLAYERS REWARD PROGRAM: Targeting the casino guest core customer, the all-new wow program paired Ocean’s new building along with national luxury brand partnerships to drive guests to sign-up and earn cruises, vacations, trips and vehicles.

PERSONALIZED DIRECT MAIL: Each piece of direct mail includes personalized variable so the guests knows their offers, and date range to redeem. This allows the property to strategically drive guests visits.

In just twelve short months, Ocean Casino Resort became among the fastest growing casinos in the nation. The property posted record profits and net revenues with over 25% growth.

“The Buzz Creative team knows how to define, build and take a hospitality brand to the next level.
They are a true partner in every sense of the word.”

MIKE DONOVAN, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, SVP OCEAN CASINO RESORT