The Art of the “BAD” Deal & Industry Myths Are You Taking Advantage of Your Debit Card System …Or Is It Taking Advantage of You?” by Frank Seninsky, President/CEO Amusement Entertainment Management (AEM) & Alpha-Omega Amusements & Sales The family entertainment center and amusement industries are not immune to “bad deals” even though we are mostly fun-loving people whose mission is basically to make people smile. It’s sad to say, but “buyer beware” also applies to us. Deals that are “2Good2BTrue” are in fact, too good to be true! Knowing how to sharpen your antenna to alert mode and spot…
Author: RePlay Editor
Another Year Flies By A Look Back at 2016 and Ahead at 2017 By George McAuliffe, Chief FEC Strategist, Redemption Plus Years ago, the manufacturers in our industry –– then mostly video game makers since video was 90% of the equipment mix –– struggled for creativity to keep up the unbelievable streak of great games released. They couldn’t. Eventually, creativity gave way to imitation. In one conversation, as a manufacturer was showing me their new game, I think it was Crash, I noted that, aside from some color changes, it was identical to another hit of the time: Head…
Ready for Dallas! Expo Exhibit Sales Strong; Fair Play Pledge Makes Its Debut at Dallas Convention Q: How was the Annual Meeting and Gala? It looked like a pretty newsy affair! A: It’s certainly a busy and exciting time! I just found out this morning that we’ve sold out the hotel block at the Sheraton. That’s a good sign. For those who haven’t booked their rooms, it sounds like Brian Glasgow was able to get another block with rooms priced at $179 per night at the Marriott. It’s not optimal, but it’s in the same general area as the Sheraton.…
Power Up with Arachnid! New Galaxy 3 Charger Comes With Cellphone Charging Ports We’ve all been there….You’re out for a night of fun and you nervously watch as the power on your smartphone zooms down to the dreaded red zone. You look around and there’s not an empty outlet to be found. Thanks to the latest dart machine from Arachnid, such worries will be a thing of the past for bars and other locations with their new Galaxy 3 Charger electronic dart game. The unit, shipping this month, has four ports capable of recharging both Apple and Android phones. Explained…
AMI BUYS NSM Most Prominent European Jukebox Maker Is Now Part of the AMI Entertainment Network In a surprise Feb. 9, 20017 announcement, AMI’s CEO/President Mike Maas revealed that his company has purchased the assets of the NSM Music Group Ltd. and will continue their European manufacturing and marketing activities in an uninterrupted fashion. Clearly, however, design synergy between the two jukebox producers will happen downstream, as might certain changes in personnel and distribution. At present, Maas intends to keep everything in place in the European market, as well as in the U.S. where Tony Lantz and his staff have…
From Handwritten Notes to Tonka Trucks A Look at Changes in How We Communicate & Play by Jack Guarnieri, Jersey Jack Pinball & PinballSales.com Do you write letters or cards? The holiday season is over and I wonder how many of you still take pen to paper and write out a card. My wife gets a Valentine’s Day Card and a special funny poem that I write that morning with the latest events that happened in the last day or so. How about a handwritten thank you note. Perhaps with Jimmy Fallon doing Tonight Show segments on thank you notes…
“How Long Will This Last?” Looking at the Booming FEC Market’s Potential & Threats by Howard McAuliffe, Partner, Pinnacle Entertainment Group The family entertainment center portion of our business is in the middle of a growth period. I hear a lot of the legends in our industry asking how long will this last and speculating about whether or not there will be contraction. The truth is that nobody knows the answer, but I think we can look at trends in our industry to create a standard “SWOT” analysis (a look at Strenghts, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). In this month’s column,…
Up-Sell Without the Hard Sell! Help Your Guests Throw the Best Party Ever & Increase Profits By Beth Standlee, CEO, TrainerTainment When it comes to parties, up-selling can be a piece of cake. However, your staff may feel differently about this type of sales process. This month’s up-sell article focuses on the challenges and benefits to the consumer, the business and the individual employee. Selling is all about helping others. My hope is that this installment of the Party Professor will be a resource to increase sales during the coming months. Where does the reluctance come from when asking for…
A Final Push LaFleur Talks About the Coming Expo & Reflects on His Presidency Q: Before we get into a look at your term as AMOA President, how is the Amusement Expo shaping up? A: It’s going to be great! AMOA and AAMA, along with show manager Brian Glasgow, have taken huge steps in creating an even better show experience for this year’s event. You’ve probably already noticed a fresh new look in Amusement Expo International’s promotion materials. We’ve also brought technology to the show website at www.amusement expo.org so that it now features an interactive exhibitor floorplan. Shortly we’ll be launching…
And to demonstrate that there’s proof in Cooney’s VR pudding, VRstudios, a global VR company based in Washington, announced Jan. 31 its exclusive partnership with the classic theme park Knott’s Berry Farm and its parent company Cedar Fair. The collaboration will result in the installation of a free-roam VR experience at Knott’s slated to open the second quarter of this year. “Our collaboration with VRstudios to develop a new custom-built, immersive amusement experience at Knott’s Berry Farm is exciting for our customers and consistent with the memorable experiences they expect from our parks,” said Christian Dieckmann, Cedar Fair’s VP of…