Editorial As far back as my managing editor days at Cash Box Magazine (which was a trade paper for the record business), I preferred to listen to the news station on the radio when going or coming from work rather than the Top 40 music station. That habit followed me when I relocated to Los Angeles and started RePlay. This was in 1975 and I still listen to the news in the car most of the time. A couple of weeks ago, during a particularly broiling, hot day here in Los Angeles, the radio announcer was breathlessly reporting how busy…
Author: RePlay Editor
Why Do Customers Engage? Ways to Keep People Feeling Good About Spending Money With Us by Howard McAuliffe, Partner, Pinnacle Entertainment Group In short, customers engage with us because it feels good to do so. Of course, key to making a customer feel this way is having good food, fun games and entertainment, as well as great customer service. When these essentials exist, our facilities are a great place for groups and families of all ages to have fun together. Without those essentials, nobody feels good about spending money. The greater question is: What can we do to deepen the relationship…
Member Engagement It Only Grows in Importance Q: You’ve traveled extensively this summer to state meetings. What’s been your takeaway? A: I’d have to say it’s the importance of engagement. I can illustrate that by talking about my end-of-summer travel to the events of two distinctly different state associations. In mid-August, I visited with members of the Montana Coin Machine Operators Association. Over the past couple of years, the group has had to adapt to significant consolidation of its membership in a rather short period of time. Already among the smaller state groups, it took time to acclimate. However, like any…
Free, Free, FREE! Thoughts on Giving Customers Something for “Nothing” by Jack Guarnieri, Jersey Jack Pinball & PinballSales.com I might be getting more like Andy Rooney as I get older. (Younger readers, Google him.) I’m not quite a curmudgeon yet, but I do like things a certain way. A trip to my favorite bagel store is an experience. Today I’m reminded to only get six bagels, that a dozen is not what we need. Okay, so I order six: two plain, two sesame, two everything. Never mind that the everything should be in a separate bag not to contaminate the…
Incredible! Barsness Brand of Family-Friendly Food & Fun Continues to Succeed by Matt Harding With more than four decades in the industry, Rick and Cheryl Barsness, owners of America’s Incredible Pizza Company (AIPC), know a thing or two about serving up slices. But it was the unorthodox idea to add games into the mix some 30 years ago that led to their success today. Rick started off managing a Hardee’s fast food restaurant while he attended the University of North Dakota in his hometown of Grand Forks. He met and married Cheryl, and the couple moved to Austin, Texas, where…
Chimichangas, Katanas, Ninjas … Oh My! Stern Designers Reinvent the “Merc with a Mouth” in Their Genre-Bending, Laugh-Inducing Deadpool Pin Some of the best pinball machines find a way to fuse funny with frantic flipping (think Tina Fey’s Elly May Clampet-style voice used in Williams’ classic Medieval Madness or the expertly inserted movie quips in Stern’s Ghostbusters). Stern’s latest license –– Deadpool –– is the epitome of doing just that, as the company once again teams with Marvel for a game that is sure to meld hilarity with some serious action. “A pinball shouldn’t be a hardcore, serious thing,” said…
What’s Hot…And What’s Not – Part Five Using Game Trends & New Ideas in Promotions to Heat Up Revenues by Frank Seninsky, President/CEO Amusement Entertainment Management (AEM) & Alpha-Omega Amusements & Sales There was a lot to learn by attending the Bowl Expo. Bowling Centers are taking a leading position and raising the bar of the family entertainment center industry. And they are being greatly assisted by the BPAA (Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America) that is nurturing the next generation with a long-term, definite plan to bring them into leadership. For the fifth part of this series, I’m going to…
Busy Times Hampton Updates on Upcoming Gala, Location Trade Show program, FEC Outreach & More Q: How are plans going for AAMA’s Annual Meeting and Gala on October 1-5? A: We’re really excited about how it’s coming together. First, we’ve continued to grow our membership, especially within the FEC sector. Secondly, the event will be a little different this year. We wanted to see more representation of voices from all over the industry, as well as develop a new feel for the social events. You’ll have a fun time for sure! We’re even trying to convince some of our AAMA staff…
Editorial On Aug. 7, the very first thing I did after enduring some exotic dental work was to celebrate with a Nestles Crunch Bar. Yum! Then, the cell phone rang and our ad man Barry Zweben told me Play Meter was closing shop. Whoa! We’d pretty well figured that was the case after their two writers had emailed looking for work here at RePlay, and then when follow up calls and emails to their headquarters in New Orleans went unreturned. But while this news may not mean a ton to many readers, it did to us. Play Meter was our…
VRstudios Makes a PowerPlay Company Continues to Surprise with Massive D&B Deal, FEC-Focused Management Platform & New Game that Lives Up to the Promise of VR by Casey Minter In a barely-charted industry like location-based virtual reality, it’s always a good idea to look for disruptors. Keeping an eye on the companies bringing technology to the forefront that radically shifts the potential of the industry is just common sense, and one of those companies (if they can live up to their hype) looks to be Hyperverse. The Leibniz-inspired Russian company has taken VR and injected it with a fantastical approach…