August 21, 2025 • 36 mins
In the world of hospitality and entertainment, where luxury experiences and personalized services are paramount, MGM Resorts International stands out for its ability to blend world-class gaming with immersive experiences. With a portfolio that spans across the globe—from Las Vegas to international markets like China, the United Arab Emirates, and Japan—MGM Resorts has mastered the art of customer loyalty through its innovative MGM Rewards program. At the forefront of this transformation is Anil Mansukhani, Vice President of Loyalty Marketing, who has led the charge in shaping the program to meet the evolving needs of MGM’s guests.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome back to our Leaders in Customer Loyalty
series.
This is Brand Stories.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
It's Thursday.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
We're glad to have you every Thursday for a new
edition.
For most successful brands,customer loyalty is becoming an
increasingly important focus.
These organizations are leaninginto their customer loyalty
program, aligning them closelywith their brand values and also
their marketing objectives.
Internally and externally, boththe brand and its customers
(00:30):
recognize and appreciate thevalue these programs bring.
However, enhancing loyaltyprograms through partnerships
can be quite challenging.
Many partnerships arechallenged to align exclusive
benefits and offers thatstrengthen the value of all the
programs involved.
For example, adding partnerslike Marriott, bonvoy and Royal
(00:52):
Caribbean Cruises might seemcounterintuitive for a
hospitality lodging brand.
Yet for MGM Resorts, thesepartnerships deliver incremental
and measurable value to amarquee brand and preeminent
loyalty program.
Today we're joined by AnilMansukhani.
He's the Vice President ofLoyalty Marketing at MGM
(01:14):
actually MGM ResortsInternational and he's going to
share his recent wins for theprogram and his vision for
keeping this award-winninginitiative ahead of the
competition.
Anil, great to have you back onthe podcast.
How are you today?
Doing well?
Doing well.
Mark, how are you?
I'm doing well?
Thank you, thanks for takingthe time to speak with us.
For those who may be new andare not familiar, but can you
(01:38):
give us a short introduction toMGM Resorts International, what
you guys do, how you do it?
Speaker 2 (01:43):
Sure, absolutely so.
Mgm, as many probably know, isone of the world's largest
gaming, entertainment andhospitality companies.
In the world.
Our operations are primarily inLas Vegas, but we also have
locations up and down the EastCoast as well as in the Midwest,
and then we have a number ofinternational locations as well.
(02:04):
Currently, we have propertiesin China, and then we have a
number of internationallocations as well.
Currently, we have propertiesin China, and then we have some
development projects going on inUnited Emirates and Japan.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Okay, how or why was the company started?
I mean, what's the backstorywith MGM?
Speaker 2 (02:20):
The backstory is probably a bit longer than we
have time for here.
The backstory is probably a bitlonger than we have time for
here, but it was definitely atone point, as many people know,
a combination of both TV andmovie assets as well as gaming
and entertainment.
I think at its core we're agaming and entertainment company
, but I don't remember the exactnumber of years, but a number
of years ago they split off themedia assets into a separate
(02:42):
division.
That I think was ultimatelyacquired by Amazon, probably in
the last five years.
But we are the liveentertainment, gaming and
entertainment portion of thatbusiness that again primarily in
the Las Vegas market, butnationwide, and also have a
growing worldwide presence aswell presence as well.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
So, okay, when you look at the success of MGM, the
resorts, you know kind of whathas led to the great success
that you've seen, what's led tokind of the extensive growth.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
I think the simple answer is that we just provide
excellent service andexperiences for our highest
value members.
That's what keeps them comingback.
I mean, you know.
The longer answer is that thecompany has really been strong
at being able to evolve ascustomer preferences have
evolved.
So, you know, over the past 25years, las Vegas market has
evolved from primarily being agaming destination to being, you
(03:37):
know, an early adopter in theexperience economy, and you know
that was always well known forconcerts and shows, but then
started gaining a reputation forbeing a culinary destination
through partnerships withcelebrity chefs and, more
recently, being a sportsdestination, with between the
UFC and the NHL and NFL andFormula One racing that hosts
(03:58):
races every year and then,coming soon, major League
Baseball with the A's movingfrom Oakland to Las Vegas.
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Your role at the company.
You're in charge of all thecustomer loyalty, customer
experience efforts within theorganization.
Can you tell us a little bitmore about the role within the
organization and then also begreat to know kind of, how did
you get to where you are today?
Were there some positions thatyou had kind of leading up to
this role?
How did you fall into theloyalty marketing game?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
that you had kind of leading up to this role.
How did you fall into theloyalty marketing game?
Sure, definitely, I would say,a non-linear path to get to
where I am today, but for thepast four years I've been
leading, as you mentioned,loyalty for MGM Resorts, and so
this includes everything fromloyalty strategy and marketing
to operations and systems, tofinancial and loyalty
partnerships, to memberexperience.
(04:46):
Prior to that, I spent a numberof years in the cruise industry
, leading revenue teams,marketing, product management,
operations, analytics andbusiness development, and then,
prior to that, I also spent anumber of years in strategy
roles, marketing and analytics,in a variety of different
industries, including telecom,consumer electronics and
(05:08):
financial services.
So definitely had a lot ofvariety in terms of industry
background as well as functionalbackground, which is supporting
a number of different functions.
But ultimately, I think youknow what my career has sort of
been tied to is how do I drivegrowth, how do I drive customer
experience?
How do I drive new productinnovation?
Speaker 1 (05:30):
you know, fundamentally, Okay, when you
look at your role in thisdiverse, obviously customer
loyalty is very important.
It's growing from impact butalso importance and you know it
can be more so challenging thanit ever has been before right
With data segmentation or sayingthe customer, customers being
able to listen to and understand.
So when you look at kind ofyour role holistically, what are
(05:52):
some of the challenges oropportunities you face that may
keep you up at night?
Speaker 2 (06:05):
role.
I think two of the bigger ones,which I, to some extent, wasn't
fully anticipating when Iprobably started in the role,
was the real need and desire tofocus on identity and customer
identity in particular, andsecond one just being data and
how critical it is to havingsort of clean data and being
able to leverage that data.
I think you know we operate in ahighly regulated industry, able
(06:26):
to leverage that data.
I think we operate in a highlyregulated industry given our
gaming background and ties, andso we have to make very, very
sure that we know our customersvery well.
We have to make sure they're 21years of age.
We have to understand if theyhave any specific guest
preferences on their account.
We have to understand.
You know we don't want tocreate duplicate accounts
because ultimately, we want tovalue people.
(06:48):
You talked about segmentation.
We want to value people basedon their holistic value, and
having two separate accountsoftentimes makes that job a
little bit more challenging, andso I think it's really focusing
on clean data and identity andmaking sure that we truly know
who our customers are.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Okay, and one of the things we're very interested in
is understanding what customerloyalty means to individuals,
but also organizations and theindividuals that run these
programs.
So, when you look at customerloyalty, what does customer
loyalty mean to you and to MGM?
Speaker 2 (07:22):
It's a good question.
I think the primary thing thatwe uh, we talk about as a, as a
team, as a leadership team, isis how do we build that
emotional connection with guestsand and have that everyday
association with our brand?
Um and being able to delivergreat value and experiences?
Um and and effectively justmaking sure that, when we're
(07:45):
looking at a customer's holisticvalue, that we know that
they're or we have at least agood understanding that they're
spending and visiting ourproperties more than others and
engaging with other capabilitieswe have in their everyday lives
.
So our co-branded credit cardbeing one of them that drives
(08:07):
that everyday association withour brand.
We also have a sports bettingjoint venture partner, betmgm,
that allows people to play anddo sports betting and iGaming in
the comfort of their livingroom at home, and so, again,
it's really driving thateveryday association and
connection and brand love withMGM.
And so, again, it's reallydriving that everyday
association and connection andbrand love with MGM, and so that
(08:28):
they don't want to necessarilyvisit our competitors as
frequently.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Okay, when you look at the MGM Rewards Program,
you've added some new benefitsto it.
How does the MGM BenefitProgram or the Customer Loyal
loyalty program, should I say,and specifically the new
milestone, rewards,functionality or incremental
benefits that you've added, kindof play into that vision you
have for customer loyalty withinyour organization?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Yeah, so we introduced a number of new
benefits at the end of March and, as you mentioned, one of those
benefits was the introductionof milestone rewards.
You mentioned one of thosebenefits was the introduction of
milestone rewards, and so partof the rationale or background
behind introducing that was welooked at both our qualitative
data so we do a lot of ongoingsurvey work of our members and
we also look at somequantitative data in terms of
(09:18):
how people spend with us and wenoticed a few things, and really
at the core of it was whenpeople achieve a certain tier
status, there was a percentageof our customers that
effectively stopped orsignificantly slowed down in
their engagement with us.
Is that again this is probablyvery similar to many programs
(09:38):
out there that some people justfeel like attaining that next
tier status was maybeunattainable, and so we wanted
to provide incentives along theway without having to just
significantly lower the tiers,make it easier for people to get
there.
And so, because we do, you knowwe took a lot of effort when we
(10:02):
relaunched the program threeyears ago in making it a bit
more difficult, to make it feela little bit more special and a
little bit more like the peoplethat earned it are truly
recognized for their spend, andso we really took a lot of time
to introduce things likemilestone rewards to give people
(10:23):
an incentive to continuespending, and one of the
milestone rewards that weintroduced was specific to
rollover tier credit.
So it effectively gives them,if they hit the milestone, they
would get tier credits thatwould roll over into the
following year.
That would give them a headstart towards achieving elevated
tier status the following year.
So that was one one introductionto that.
(10:43):
And then the second one had todo with when they actually
achieve a tier status that wouldunlock certain benefits.
So a tier celebration credit,so they'd have the ability to
get anywhere from $100 to $500in value when they stayed at our
properties, whether that'sthrough food and beverage
credits or whether it's throughspa treatments or entertainment
(11:04):
or at the higher levels.
We also introduced the abilityfor folks to qualify for an air
travel credit, so we wouldeffectively fly people out to
Las Vegas for their stay.
We would effectively cover thatexpense.
Now the last set of benefits Imentioned we had previously.
Those weren't new benefits, butwe tied them to a milestone
(11:28):
reward to make it clear thatthese were something that you
had to earn in order to achieve,so that was really the
rationale there 360 MGM being amember.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
We meet and talk about different topics, but kind
of keeping the customersengaged throughout not only
their life cycle but as theykind of navigate tiers and
making sure the customer valueproposition is spot on is very
important, right.
So early engagement, earlyredemption opportunities,
engagement opportunities butalso more consistent
opportunities is something thatbrands are pretty laser focused
on right now.
So when you look at some of thethings that you've done from
(12:08):
the Milestone Rewards Program,what went into making those
changes to the program?
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Yeah.
So a lot of it was we.
I feel like we do a pretty goodjob of listening to our
customers and so, beyondMilestone Rewards, we introduced
a number of new benefits withour partner Marriott, as well as
our partner World Caribbean,and so with Marriott, we
introduced some enhanced tiermatch capabilities where our
(12:35):
members would be able to tiermatch into Marriott Bonvoy
program.
We had a program last year thatwas sort of in its pilot phase,
if you will, and so we've sortof continued to extend that for
the duration of the partnership.
I've made it a bit more generous, starting in February of this
year, and then with RoyalCaribbean, a lot of that was
(12:56):
around providing enhanced cruisebenefits for our members when
they sail with Royal Caribbean.
So, for instance, our gold tier, which is sort of our third
tier, uh across our portfolio,uh, they previously didn't
receive an annual you know,complimentary cruise benefit,
and so now they they areentitled to an annual cruise
(13:16):
benefit, um, and then for ourplatinum and noir members, um,
the two highest tiers, uh, weprovided effectively better
cabins for them when they sailedwith Royal Caribbean and
Celebrity Cruises.
We provided longer and betteraccess to their itineraries, we
provided better onboard benefitsand a lot of that work that I
(13:37):
just talked about like I saidwas really just listening was a
direct result of listening tocustomers and hearing what they
wanted.
You know from the partnershipsthat we had and working with the
partners to deliver thosebenefits and I think you know
our early results, you know havebeen well received by members
that we've seen.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
Okay, the intra-tier, I think it'd be intra-tier the
benefits, the engagement betweenthe different tiers, very
important right to keep themprogressing, keep them engaged.
You know how does the newMilestone Rewards Program kind
of enhance the member engagementbetween tier levels, or kind of
more holistically, yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
Yeah, as I mentioned, I think, because one of the
observations that we had withsome of the data was that people
really slowed down their spendor in some cases you know maybe
you know they stopped visitingus after achieving that tier
level.
What we were trying to do is tokeep people motivated to
continue spending with us, andso we placed milestones in
(14:35):
between the tiers in order toget people to continue to engage
with us, and so that was thereal motivation behind
introducing those milestonerewards.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
And to recognize them .
Speaker 2 (14:47):
The other part of it was the tier celebration credits
, and so to really recognizethem for their spend.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
Okay, many brands are looking at the customer loyalty
program, putting more focus onit than they may have in the
past.
Some brands, like MGM andothers, are laser focused on
customer experience, customerengagement, that more holistic
customer loyalty engagement, andthey prioritize it within the
organization.
So when you look at MGM, howimportant is the customer
(15:16):
loyalty program to kind of yourwhole marketing efforts and you
know how do you prioritizewithin the organization.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
Yeah, it's very it's critically important to us.
I mean it's tied to almosteverything that we do.
I mean from the entertainmentand events that we program to
the data that we collect, youknow, to the offers and
promotions that we run, to theservice experience that we
provide.
The loyalty program is core toall of that.
(15:46):
So, whether we're againprogramming for things like
hosting a Formula One event orhosting a citywide Super Bowl,
like the first conversation ishow do we take care of our
highest value guests and makethem a part of it, offer them
early access or exclusiveexperiences, elevated service,
(16:07):
whether that's through a product, whether that's through the
room type or whether that'sthrough the seating at some of
the events that we host.
It really permeates its waythrough everything that our
teams do on the front lines.
I mean there's laser focused onthe NPS of those highest tier
members that we get.
It's tied to 65 or 60,000employees, bonuses and just
(16:33):
really making sure that we'redelivering excellent guest
service and experience for youknow those highest value members
.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Okay, value is a pretty strong area of interest
right now within the community.
It has a number of differentpillars value in the program,
value in the tiers, which isjust you know what you went
through when you looked at kindof redoing and enhancing the
program.
Value to product it's impactingdifferent brands.
Hospitality, prettysignificantly.
(17:00):
Grocery, also in kind of therestaurant, fast casual.
So when you look at value, thechallenges potentially with
inflation, some of theuncertainty with the tariffs no
tariffs, tariffs what are youlooking at with regard to value?
Are you seeing your customersasking more from a value
perspective from you, from theprogram, because many brands are
(17:22):
seeing that.
But they're also seeing thecustomers lean into the program
a little more than they may havein the past as well.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah, so there's a lot there.
I mean, I think, at its corevalue.
We're not unique in that regardwhere I think consumers they
expect to get tremendous valueout of their vacation
experiences, and so, as Imentioned, we spent a lot of
time obsessing about guestexperience and making sure that
people, when they're here,they're well taken care of,
(17:50):
especially our highest valuemembers, and so, you know, we've
put plans in place for the lastseveral years and really making
sure that those high valuemembers are well taken care of.
So it's everything from.
You know, we'll waive resortfees.
I just talked a little bit abouthow we've offered enhanced
benefits through partners, youknow.
(18:11):
So adding value.
That way, we've providedexclusive access to experiences.
I just talked about Super Bowland Formula One and providing
access to the Masters and youname it.
We have, if you watch the NBAplayoffs yesterday, golden State
Warriors.
We're a sponsor of theirs, andso we have front row seats,
(18:34):
suite access to a number ofdifferent sports teams across
the country, and so we try toprovide, you know, tremendous
value to those highest value,highest value members through
everything that we do.
Experience wise, whether that'scomping rooms or food and
beverage, or the experiencesthat I just mentioned.
(18:54):
It's a huge part of what we'refocused on.
That I just mentioned, it's ahuge part of what we're focused
on.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Okay, I know it's early but what have you seen so
far with regard to the newbenefits?
Is it making impact?
Are you seeing some measurabledifferences?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Or maybe you have some qualitative feedback from
your customers regarding thechanges that you made.
Yeah, like you said, it's onlybeen a little bit less than two
months, so it's definitelyprobably a little bit hard to
gauge.
Customer, you know, speakdirectly to our customers,
especially like hosted customers, trying to understand, trying
to share information, becauseobviously there's a lot of
(19:50):
clutter and noise that ourcustomers are very busy and like
cutting through all the othernoise, so the hosts are there to
help provide.
You know, hey, this is what'snew in the program and the early
, early feedback has beenoverwhelmingly positive about,
you know, pretty much everythingthat we just rolled out in
terms of the milestone rewardsand in terms of the new cruise
(20:11):
benefits.
We haven't talked about it, Idon't think yet, but I think we
also launched a new co brandedcredit card card and so, like,
the early, early feedback on allof them have been positive and
people are voting with their,with their clicks, and so we've
seen, you know, nice uptick onthe new credit card that we
launched and, as well as youknow, really positive
(20:32):
qualitative feedback fromemployees about the new benefits
.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Okay, Personalization is very important.
A new credit card offering anew entry-tier rewards are very
important as well.
How is MGM looking atpersonalization?
What does it mean to you from amarketing opportunity, from a
customer loyalty perspective?
How are you looking atpersonalization?
Speaker 2 (20:56):
I mean it's probably stating the obvious, but I mean
it's obviously critical to whatwe do, and we do this very well
and I would say we're probablyearly power to make sure that
they're delivering, you know, amemorable experience, uh, for
those types of members.
So they're, they're doingeverything from arranging air
(21:27):
travel to arrangingtransportation from the airport
and you know, black car serviceUm, you know they're, they're
helping with their property androom selection.
They're making reservations atdining outlets.
They know their foodpreferences, their beverage
preferences.
All of that is critical,especially at those very, very
(21:49):
high value customers.
I think our challenge, and mostbrands' challenge, is being able
to do this and deliver thislevel of service at scale.
To do this and deliver thislevel of service at scale.
And so that's where, you know,our team is a bit more focused
on trying to make sure that, asI talked about earlier,
collecting data and making sureit's available to our other
(22:09):
business partners so that whenwe're, you know, sending out
offers or promotions or invitesto experiences or events, that
we fully understand the customer.
And so it's critical to ourroadmap and we have a long way
to go, like most other brands,but it's very much at the heart
of what's going to make ussuccessful in driving additional
(22:32):
trips and additional revenueand additional engagement and
brand love that we talked aboutearlier, to build that emotional
connection with the brand.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
And partnerships are another area that are front and
center for brands as well, andyou've done it.
Actually, remember weintroduced you to a hotel
partner way back in the day notthe current hotel partner, but
one and you guys have alwaysseemed to have an affinity for
partnerships that work for bothpartners, because that could be
a big challenge for brands.
They often everyone wants to bethe redemption partner.
(23:04):
They want to have the mostbeneficial accrual or redemption
currency opportunity.
So it could be challenging,especially in this challenging
economic environment, to get theprograms right, but you guys
seem to do with aplomb.
How do you do that so well andhow holistically?
How are you looking atpartnerships?
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I mean holistically.
I think my perspective is wehave to set up scenarios where
it's win, win, win, ideally.
So you know both, both brandswin and then ultimately, the
customer wins, and those are thepartnerships that are most
successful.
And so I would, you know, youknow, give you the Royal
Caribbean celebrity cruiseexample where, like, I think
that's a good, really goodexample of the win-win-win
(23:43):
scenario where, um, for instance, we're offering a terrific
benefit where people can cruiseliterally almost around the
world, um, to our highest valuemembers, so it's a it's a great
benefit from a loyaltyperspective.
You know Royal Caribbean isacquiring new customers, um,
through that partnership, um, soit's a great benefit from a
loyalty perspective.
You know Royal Caribbean isacquiring new customers through
that partnership, so it's a winfor them.
And then you know the customeris benefiting from hey, I'm
(24:05):
getting recognized and rewardedfor my spend at MDM and I'm
getting to take these fantasticcruise vacations.
So I think it's to answer yourquestion more directly, I mean,
the focus has to be on makingsure that it's a win for
everybody, and I think that'sone of the reasons why I think
we've leaned into partnerships,and it's definitely not easy.
(24:25):
These things take time tonegotiate and try and figure out
the economics and try andfiguring out all of the
logistics that are involved inconnecting brands which
otherwise, from a systemsperspective, are typically not
connected.
And so getting all that rightit does take resources, it takes
time, it takes the right sortof strategy and execution to
(24:47):
pull that off.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Okay, you look.
Marriott Bonvoy partnerships,the partnerships with World
Caribbean Are there otherpartnerships that you're looking
to kind of bring on to add morevalue to your customers and
your rewards program.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Yeah, I would say our getting back to the philosophy
question, I think our approachis we're very much open to new
partnerships.
I would just say we probablyare a little bit more on the
quality over quantity level,because, I mentioned, these
things do do take time andresources, and so I think we're
focused on like, how do we, howdo we work with partners that
(25:25):
again are great brands, thathave great great databases, that
you know it helps both sides ina, in a, in a meaningful way,
and then you know it just it hasto to make sense for the, for
the customer, ultimately, andand so that.
So we're open to it.
I think you know there'sprobably a couple of different
categories, if you will.
(25:45):
So one being sort of theeveryday categories, like I
mentioned, that reinforceeveryday connection with the
brand, and then second would beadjacent categories within the
travel space.
So you know we have a hotelpartner, we have an airline
partner, we have a cruisepartner, but you know there may
be other partners in the travelspace that may make sense, okay.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
When you look at customer experience, customer
loyalty, what's the next bigthing?
New technology, ai.
You know, how do you plan tokeep the program rolling along
in such a positive manner?
Speaker 2 (26:23):
I mean, it's probably hard to answer that question
without saying AI has to be apart of it, and we are leaning
into one aspect of AI in termsof a digital concierge.
And so today, our digitalconcierge is primarily focused
on the hotel experience.
So if someone needs help, Iforgot a toothbrush, I forgot I
(26:44):
need a towel, things like that.
There's something wrong with myroom, but we're we've recently
sort of expanded that digitalconcierge with the capabilities
within that to be focused on MGMrewards as well.
So the loyalty program.
So today it's really, I wouldsay, primarily a tool that
people can use to get answers tofrequently asked questions in a
(27:06):
very, you know, seamless way,as opposed to maybe having to
hunt on the web or on the mobileapp for those questions.
But I think you know the visionfor that is to be able to
provide you know, we talked alittle bit about personalization
earlier using the digitalconcierge as a way to drive more
personalization, recognizingyour tier status, recognizing
(27:28):
what benefits are available toyou and then ultimately reducing
friction from the experienceand potentially performing
transactions to help people.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
You know a call center, go to a concierge type
desk so that they can perform,you know these things in the
comfort of their living room orin their room if they're
visiting us.
So those are.
I would say the focus is on howdo we improve the member
experience and reduce frictiongoing forward, and you know AI
is going to be one of thosetools that will help us do that.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
What are you seeing in how individuals are engaging
with the digital assistant?
Positive results.
How are customers engaging withthat?
Speaker 2 (28:11):
Yeah, it's early days on that one as well.
That's something that we werelike recently introduced, and so
I think we're still doing a bitto help.
We're kind of I would say moresoft launching it for now and
kind of just understanding whatare the types of questions
people ask.
And to my point earlier aboutlistening to customer feedback,
we want to see what people wantto, how they want to engage with
(28:32):
the digital assistant as itrelates to the loyalty program
and help have that guide some ofour future product roadmap,
because we think we know,generally speaking, what some of
the issues or questions thatthey typically have, but a
digital customer that's thisengaged may have a different set
of questions that we maybehadn't thought of.
(28:53):
So I think we're trying to do alittle bit of a hybrid approach
of like put some things outthere but also be ready to
potentially pivot and understandhow they want to engage in the
digital concierge.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
OK, when you look at the program holistically great
success, great partnerships, newco-brand, you know, driving a
great value to the brand.
When you look at itholistically, what are two or
three things you are most proudof when you look at the program?
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Yeah, it's a good question.
I think for me it's and I'vementioned probably a couple of
times is I'm proud of when youlook at the program yeah, it's a
good question.
I think for me it's and I'vementioned probably a couple of
times is I'm proud of ourability to listen to customers
and understand what, what aresome of their pain points, and
then use that to prioritizeproduct features and benefits
like, like, like the ones wejust rolled out, and then
ultimately execute against thatplan, against that roadmap, and
(29:44):
deliver.
You know, think, for instance,the thing like similar to the
things we just delivered,whether it's new credit card or
new benefits with partners.
I think it's very gratifying tosee that journey, because these
things don't happen overnight.
They take a lot of time, theytake oftentimes a lot of
resources, a lot of time, theytake oftentimes a lot of
resources.
So it's gratifying to see thatprocess end to end and see the
(30:06):
customer reaction and employeereaction as well, get that
positive feedback and thenultimately, the KPIs that we I
think we're pretty confidentwill come along with it, which
is greater engagement and justoverall satisfaction with the
program and building thatemotional connection to the
brand.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
OK, excellent, when you look at opportunities, you
may see.
You know how can Loyalty360help you and your team in your
customer loyalty journey.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I think.
I think there's probably a fewthings.
I mean, one of the things thatwe've, you know, we've talked
about with with you guys atloyalty 360, is trying to get a
better set of benchmark dataagainst, you know, people in a
similar industry at least.
I mean, ours is a little bitunique in the gaming side of it,
but certainly in the hotelindustry, when it comes to
(30:57):
looking at KPIs, like what aresome of the engagement metrics
that other hospitality brandslook at and how do we compare to
that?
Um, you, you mentioned wetalked about earlier the
partnership opportunities.
So I think that's another wayin which, um, you know if
there's partners that make sense, uh, that it's a part like
there's good ideas out there.
(31:17):
Uh, you know, we're open, opento listening to those ideas and
working with some of themembership within Loyalty360.
And then, I think, you know,with some of the content that
you guys put out around, justbeing able to network and, you
know, for us, as I mentionedprobably at the start of this
conversation, identity is a big,is a big challenge for us, and
(31:41):
clean data is another one, andso just being able to connect
with other brands that maybeface similar challenges or have
faced similar challenges andunderstand how they've addressed
some of those challenges Ithink can be pretty valuable.
Speaker 1 (31:55):
Awesome, anil.
Thank you very much for takingthe time to speak with us today.
You're not off the hook yet.
We have the quickfire round ofquestions, so we'd like to keep
these two a word or a shortphrase, or I get in trouble with
hannah and ethan everyone, soI'm already in trouble with them
.
Enough, so no more.
Uh, so how would you describeyour work life?
Speaker 2 (32:16):
uh, in a word I would say dynamic.
Okay, lots of variety.
We, as I mentioned, you knowfive and six different things
between product and technology,and operations and marketing and
strategy.
All that work.
Speaker 1 (32:30):
Excellent.
If you have a day or a week offfrom work, what are you doing?
Speaker 2 (32:36):
Travel.
Uh, past weekend, uh, I wastraveling for mother's mother's
day with my wife and friends,and next month travel, next
month after that travel.
So definitely love traveling.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Okay, excellent.
If you could live in any city,any country, where would you
live?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
Any city, any country .
I mean, I'm pretty happy whereI am in Southern California.
So maybe I would change thequestion a little bit and say
where would I want to visit?
So big fan of Tahiti, I've beenthere several times I'd love to
go back Places I haven't beenthat.
I'd love to go Australia, Spain, probably two others on the
(33:15):
list.
Speaker 1 (33:16):
Okay, excellent.
If you go back to school, youknow what would you study go?
Speaker 2 (33:22):
back to school.
You know what would you study?
Uh Ooh, that's a tough one.
Um, I don't think I wouldchange anything.
I mean, I I sort of started infinance and then, uh, for
graduate school, got a degree inmarketing for my MBA.
So I I feel like those are theright, right ones for me.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
Okay, is there an area, a facet of your job that
you would like to maybe know alittle bit less about or maybe
not be as involved with?
Speaker 2 (33:51):
We're definitely in the detail business of lots of
details in hospitality, justgiven the complexity of
everything we do, and sometimesit's a bit overwhelming and I'd
like to know less.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Is there a facet of your job, an area of
responsibility that you maybelike to do more with, be more
involved with?
Speaker 2 (34:12):
Yeah, probably, I mentioned it earlier just the
benchmarking KPIs and probablythe short answer versus industry
peers.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
Excellent.
And what do you drawinspiration from?
What lights your fire?
What keeps you fresh?
Speaker 2 (34:28):
I think it's just, it's a variety.
I think it's what we just wentthrough with just working with
various teams looking atproblems, looking at customer
feedback, you know, and lookingat it through the lens of
several different angles andtrying to decide on which
strategies that we want topursue that will benefit our
members and will benefit thecompany.
Looking at it through the lensof several different angles and
trying to decide on whichstrategies we that that we want
to pursue that will benefit ourmembers and we'll we'll benefit
the company and, in some cases,you know, benefit partners if
(34:49):
it's a partnership initiative.
So I think it's just, it's justthe, the variety and and and
driving growth and drivingengagement.
Speaker 1 (34:58):
Okay, what is your favorite sport or hobby?
Speaker 2 (35:03):
Golf.
I love, love to play golf.
I love to watch sports.
Either one of those.
Speaker 1 (35:09):
Okay, Excellent, and what do you?
And last question what do youtypically think about at the end
of the day?
Speaker 2 (35:18):
I would say probably the next day, in three words.
So it's trying to plan aheadand knowing what's on my
calendar and what may need somepre-planning for.
Speaker 1 (35:32):
OK, excellent.
Well, Neil, thank you very much.
It's always a great pleasurespeaking with you giving an
update on the program.
Just the comprehensiveness ofthe program, the approach is
great, and looking forward tolearning more from you and your
team with remainder 25.
So thank you very much fortaking the time to speak with us
today.
Thanks, mark, appreciate it.
Have a great day, absolutely.
And thank you everyone fortaking the time to join us today
(35:52):
.
Make sure you join us everyThursday for our Brand Stories
edition of the Leaders andCustomer Loyalty Podcast, and
until then, have a wonderful day.
Welcome back to our Leaders in Customer Loyalty
series.
This is Brand Stories.
Speaker 2 (00:07):
It's Thursday.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
We're glad to have you every Thursday for a new
edition.
For most successful brands,customer loyalty is becoming an
increasingly important focus.
These organizations are leaninginto their customer loyalty
program, aligning them closelywith their brand values and also
their marketing objectives.
Internally and externally, boththe brand and its customers
(00:30):
recognize and appreciate thevalue these programs bring.
However, enhancing loyaltyprograms through partnerships
can be quite challenging.
Many partnerships arechallenged to align exclusive
benefits and offers thatstrengthen the value of all the
programs involved.
For example, adding partnerslike Marriott, bonvoy and Royal
(00:52):
Caribbean Cruises might seemcounterintuitive for a
hospitality lodging brand.
Yet for MGM Resorts, thesepartnerships deliver incremental
and measurable value to amarquee brand and preeminent
loyalty program.
Today we're joined by AnilMansukhani.
He's the Vice President ofLoyalty Marketing at MGM
(01:14):
actually MGM ResortsInternational and he's going to
share his recent wins for theprogram and his vision for
keeping this award-winninginitiative ahead of the
competition.
Anil, great to have you back onthe podcast.
How are you today?
Doing well?
Doing well.
Mark, how are you?
I'm doing well?
Thank you, thanks for takingthe time to speak with us.
For those who may be new andare not familiar, but can you
(01:38):
give us a short introduction toMGM Resorts International, what
you guys do, how you do it?
Speaker 2 (01:43):
Sure, absolutely so.
Mgm, as many probably know, isone of the world's largest
gaming, entertainment andhospitality companies.
In the world.
Our operations are primarily inLas Vegas, but we also have
locations up and down the EastCoast as well as in the Midwest,
and then we have a number ofinternational locations as well.
(02:04):
Currently, we have propertiesin China, and then we have a
number of internationallocations as well.
Currently, we have propertiesin China, and then we have some
development projects going on inUnited Emirates and Japan.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Okay, how or why was the company started?
I mean, what's the backstorywith MGM?
Speaker 2 (02:20):
The backstory is probably a bit longer than we
have time for here.
The backstory is probably a bitlonger than we have time for
here, but it was definitely atone point, as many people know,
a combination of both TV andmovie assets as well as gaming
and entertainment.
I think at its core we're agaming and entertainment company
, but I don't remember the exactnumber of years, but a number
of years ago they split off themedia assets into a separate
(02:42):
division.
That I think was ultimatelyacquired by Amazon, probably in
the last five years.
But we are the liveentertainment, gaming and
entertainment portion of thatbusiness that again primarily in
the Las Vegas market, butnationwide, and also have a
growing worldwide presence aswell presence as well.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
So, okay, when you look at the success of MGM, the
resorts, you know kind of whathas led to the great success
that you've seen, what's led tokind of the extensive growth.
Speaker 2 (03:13):
I think the simple answer is that we just provide
excellent service andexperiences for our highest
value members.
That's what keeps them comingback.
I mean, you know.
The longer answer is that thecompany has really been strong
at being able to evolve ascustomer preferences have
evolved.
So, you know, over the past 25years, las Vegas market has
evolved from primarily being agaming destination to being, you
(03:37):
know, an early adopter in theexperience economy, and you know
that was always well known forconcerts and shows, but then
started gaining a reputation forbeing a culinary destination
through partnerships withcelebrity chefs and, more
recently, being a sportsdestination, with between the
UFC and the NHL and NFL andFormula One racing that hosts
(03:58):
races every year and then,coming soon, major League
Baseball with the A's movingfrom Oakland to Las Vegas.
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Your role at the company.
You're in charge of all thecustomer loyalty, customer
experience efforts within theorganization.
Can you tell us a little bitmore about the role within the
organization and then also begreat to know kind of, how did
you get to where you are today?
Were there some positions thatyou had kind of leading up to
this role?
How did you fall into theloyalty marketing game?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
that you had kind of leading up to this role.
How did you fall into theloyalty marketing game?
Sure, definitely, I would say,a non-linear path to get to
where I am today, but for thepast four years I've been
leading, as you mentioned,loyalty for MGM Resorts, and so
this includes everything fromloyalty strategy and marketing
to operations and systems, tofinancial and loyalty
partnerships, to memberexperience.
(04:46):
Prior to that, I spent a numberof years in the cruise industry
, leading revenue teams,marketing, product management,
operations, analytics andbusiness development, and then,
prior to that, I also spent anumber of years in strategy
roles, marketing and analytics,in a variety of different
industries, including telecom,consumer electronics and
(05:08):
financial services.
So definitely had a lot ofvariety in terms of industry
background as well as functionalbackground, which is supporting
a number of different functions.
But ultimately, I think youknow what my career has sort of
been tied to is how do I drivegrowth, how do I drive customer
experience?
How do I drive new productinnovation?
Speaker 1 (05:30):
you know, fundamentally, Okay, when you
look at your role in thisdiverse, obviously customer
loyalty is very important.
It's growing from impact butalso importance and you know it
can be more so challenging thanit ever has been before right
With data segmentation or sayingthe customer, customers being
able to listen to and understand.
So when you look at kind ofyour role holistically, what are
(05:52):
some of the challenges oropportunities you face that may
keep you up at night?
Speaker 2 (06:05):
role.
I think two of the bigger ones,which I, to some extent, wasn't
fully anticipating when Iprobably started in the role,
was the real need and desire tofocus on identity and customer
identity in particular, andsecond one just being data and
how critical it is to havingsort of clean data and being
able to leverage that data.
I think you know we operate in ahighly regulated industry, able
(06:26):
to leverage that data.
I think we operate in a highlyregulated industry given our
gaming background and ties, andso we have to make very, very
sure that we know our customersvery well.
We have to make sure they're 21years of age.
We have to understand if theyhave any specific guest
preferences on their account.
We have to understand.
You know we don't want tocreate duplicate accounts
because ultimately, we want tovalue people.
(06:48):
You talked about segmentation.
We want to value people basedon their holistic value, and
having two separate accountsoftentimes makes that job a
little bit more challenging, andso I think it's really focusing
on clean data and identity andmaking sure that we truly know
who our customers are.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
Okay, and one of the things we're very interested in
is understanding what customerloyalty means to individuals,
but also organizations and theindividuals that run these
programs.
So, when you look at customerloyalty, what does customer
loyalty mean to you and to MGM?
Speaker 2 (07:22):
It's a good question.
I think the primary thing thatwe uh, we talk about as a, as a
team, as a leadership team, isis how do we build that
emotional connection with guestsand and have that everyday
association with our brand?
Um and being able to delivergreat value and experiences?
Um and and effectively justmaking sure that, when we're
(07:45):
looking at a customer's holisticvalue, that we know that
they're or we have at least agood understanding that they're
spending and visiting ourproperties more than others and
engaging with other capabilitieswe have in their everyday lives
.
So our co-branded credit cardbeing one of them that drives
(08:07):
that everyday association withour brand.
We also have a sports bettingjoint venture partner, betmgm,
that allows people to play anddo sports betting and iGaming in
the comfort of their livingroom at home, and so, again,
it's really driving thateveryday association and
connection and brand love withMGM.
And so, again, it's reallydriving that everyday
association and connection andbrand love with MGM, and so that
(08:28):
they don't want to necessarilyvisit our competitors as
frequently.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Okay, when you look at the MGM Rewards Program,
you've added some new benefitsto it.
How does the MGM BenefitProgram or the Customer Loyal
loyalty program, should I say,and specifically the new
milestone, rewards,functionality or incremental
benefits that you've added, kindof play into that vision you
have for customer loyalty withinyour organization?
Speaker 2 (08:55):
Yeah, so we introduced a number of new
benefits at the end of March and, as you mentioned, one of those
benefits was the introductionof milestone rewards.
You mentioned one of thosebenefits was the introduction of
milestone rewards, and so partof the rationale or background
behind introducing that was welooked at both our qualitative
data so we do a lot of ongoingsurvey work of our members and
we also look at somequantitative data in terms of
(09:18):
how people spend with us and wenoticed a few things, and really
at the core of it was whenpeople achieve a certain tier
status, there was a percentageof our customers that
effectively stopped orsignificantly slowed down in
their engagement with us.
Is that again this is probablyvery similar to many programs
(09:38):
out there that some people justfeel like attaining that next
tier status was maybeunattainable, and so we wanted
to provide incentives along theway without having to just
significantly lower the tiers,make it easier for people to get
there.
And so, because we do, you knowwe took a lot of effort when we
(10:02):
relaunched the program threeyears ago in making it a bit
more difficult, to make it feela little bit more special and a
little bit more like the peoplethat earned it are truly
recognized for their spend, andso we really took a lot of time
to introduce things likemilestone rewards to give people
(10:23):
an incentive to continuespending, and one of the
milestone rewards that weintroduced was specific to
rollover tier credit.
So it effectively gives them,if they hit the milestone, they
would get tier credits thatwould roll over into the
following year.
That would give them a headstart towards achieving elevated
tier status the following year.
So that was one one introductionto that.
(10:43):
And then the second one had todo with when they actually
achieve a tier status that wouldunlock certain benefits.
So a tier celebration credit,so they'd have the ability to
get anywhere from $100 to $500in value when they stayed at our
properties, whether that'sthrough food and beverage
credits or whether it's throughspa treatments or entertainment
(11:04):
or at the higher levels.
We also introduced the abilityfor folks to qualify for an air
travel credit, so we wouldeffectively fly people out to
Las Vegas for their stay.
We would effectively cover thatexpense.
Now the last set of benefits Imentioned we had previously.
Those weren't new benefits, butwe tied them to a milestone
(11:28):
reward to make it clear thatthese were something that you
had to earn in order to achieve,so that was really the
rationale there 360 MGM being amember.
Speaker 1 (11:45):
We meet and talk about different topics, but kind
of keeping the customersengaged throughout not only
their life cycle but as theykind of navigate tiers and
making sure the customer valueproposition is spot on is very
important, right.
So early engagement, earlyredemption opportunities,
engagement opportunities butalso more consistent
opportunities is something thatbrands are pretty laser focused
on right now.
So when you look at some of thethings that you've done from
(12:08):
the Milestone Rewards Program,what went into making those
changes to the program?
Speaker 2 (12:15):
Yeah.
So a lot of it was we.
I feel like we do a pretty goodjob of listening to our
customers and so, beyondMilestone Rewards, we introduced
a number of new benefits withour partner Marriott, as well as
our partner World Caribbean,and so with Marriott, we
introduced some enhanced tiermatch capabilities where our
(12:35):
members would be able to tiermatch into Marriott Bonvoy
program.
We had a program last year thatwas sort of in its pilot phase,
if you will, and so we've sortof continued to extend that for
the duration of the partnership.
I've made it a bit more generous, starting in February of this
year, and then with RoyalCaribbean, a lot of that was
(12:56):
around providing enhanced cruisebenefits for our members when
they sail with Royal Caribbean.
So, for instance, our gold tier, which is sort of our third
tier, uh across our portfolio,uh, they previously didn't
receive an annual you know,complimentary cruise benefit,
and so now they they areentitled to an annual cruise
(13:16):
benefit, um, and then for ourplatinum and noir members, um,
the two highest tiers, uh, weprovided effectively better
cabins for them when they sailedwith Royal Caribbean and
Celebrity Cruises.
We provided longer and betteraccess to their itineraries, we
provided better onboard benefitsand a lot of that work that I
(13:37):
just talked about like I saidwas really just listening was a
direct result of listening tocustomers and hearing what they
wanted.
You know from the partnershipsthat we had and working with the
partners to deliver thosebenefits and I think you know
our early results, you know havebeen well received by members
that we've seen.
Speaker 1 (13:56):
Okay, the intra-tier, I think it'd be intra-tier the
benefits, the engagement betweenthe different tiers, very
important right to keep themprogressing, keep them engaged.
You know how does the newMilestone Rewards Program kind
of enhance the member engagementbetween tier levels, or kind of
more holistically, yeah.
Speaker 2 (14:14):
Yeah, as I mentioned, I think, because one of the
observations that we had withsome of the data was that people
really slowed down their spendor in some cases you know maybe
you know they stopped visitingus after achieving that tier
level.
What we were trying to do is tokeep people motivated to
continue spending with us, andso we placed milestones in
(14:35):
between the tiers in order toget people to continue to engage
with us, and so that was thereal motivation behind
introducing those milestonerewards.
Speaker 1 (14:46):
And to recognize them .
Speaker 2 (14:47):
The other part of it was the tier celebration credits
, and so to really recognizethem for their spend.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
Okay, many brands are looking at the customer loyalty
program, putting more focus onit than they may have in the
past.
Some brands, like MGM andothers, are laser focused on
customer experience, customerengagement, that more holistic
customer loyalty engagement, andthey prioritize it within the
organization.
So when you look at MGM, howimportant is the customer
(15:16):
loyalty program to kind of yourwhole marketing efforts and you
know how do you prioritizewithin the organization.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
Yeah, it's very it's critically important to us.
I mean it's tied to almosteverything that we do.
I mean from the entertainmentand events that we program to
the data that we collect, youknow, to the offers and
promotions that we run, to theservice experience that we
provide.
The loyalty program is core toall of that.
(15:46):
So, whether we're againprogramming for things like
hosting a Formula One event orhosting a citywide Super Bowl,
like the first conversation ishow do we take care of our
highest value guests and makethem a part of it, offer them
early access or exclusiveexperiences, elevated service,
(16:07):
whether that's through a product, whether that's through the
room type or whether that'sthrough the seating at some of
the events that we host.
It really permeates its waythrough everything that our
teams do on the front lines.
I mean there's laser focused onthe NPS of those highest tier
members that we get.
It's tied to 65 or 60,000employees, bonuses and just
(16:33):
really making sure that we'redelivering excellent guest
service and experience for youknow those highest value members
.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Okay, value is a pretty strong area of interest
right now within the community.
It has a number of differentpillars value in the program,
value in the tiers, which isjust you know what you went
through when you looked at kindof redoing and enhancing the
program.
Value to product it's impactingdifferent brands.
Hospitality, prettysignificantly.
(17:00):
Grocery, also in kind of therestaurant, fast casual.
So when you look at value, thechallenges potentially with
inflation, some of theuncertainty with the tariffs no
tariffs, tariffs what are youlooking at with regard to value?
Are you seeing your customersasking more from a value
perspective from you, from theprogram, because many brands are
(17:22):
seeing that.
But they're also seeing thecustomers lean into the program
a little more than they may havein the past as well.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
Yeah, so there's a lot there.
I mean, I think, at its corevalue.
We're not unique in that regardwhere I think consumers they
expect to get tremendous valueout of their vacation
experiences, and so, as Imentioned, we spent a lot of
time obsessing about guestexperience and making sure that
people, when they're here,they're well taken care of,
(17:50):
especially our highest valuemembers, and so, you know, we've
put plans in place for the lastseveral years and really making
sure that those high valuemembers are well taken care of.
So it's everything from.
You know, we'll waive resortfees.
I just talked a little bit abouthow we've offered enhanced
benefits through partners, youknow.
(18:11):
So adding value.
That way, we've providedexclusive access to experiences.
I just talked about Super Bowland Formula One and providing
access to the Masters and youname it.
We have, if you watch the NBAplayoffs yesterday, golden State
Warriors.
We're a sponsor of theirs, andso we have front row seats,
(18:34):
suite access to a number ofdifferent sports teams across
the country, and so we try toprovide, you know, tremendous
value to those highest value,highest value members through
everything that we do.
Experience wise, whether that'scomping rooms or food and
beverage, or the experiencesthat I just mentioned.
(18:54):
It's a huge part of what we'refocused on.
That I just mentioned, it's ahuge part of what we're focused
on.
Speaker 1 (18:59):
Okay, I know it's early but what have you seen so
far with regard to the newbenefits?
Is it making impact?
Are you seeing some measurabledifferences?
Speaker 2 (19:29):
Or maybe you have some qualitative feedback from
your customers regarding thechanges that you made.
Yeah, like you said, it's onlybeen a little bit less than two
months, so it's definitelyprobably a little bit hard to
gauge.
Customer, you know, speakdirectly to our customers,
especially like hosted customers, trying to understand, trying
to share information, becauseobviously there's a lot of
(19:50):
clutter and noise that ourcustomers are very busy and like
cutting through all the othernoise, so the hosts are there to
help provide.
You know, hey, this is what'snew in the program and the early
, early feedback has beenoverwhelmingly positive about,
you know, pretty much everythingthat we just rolled out in
terms of the milestone rewardsand in terms of the new cruise
(20:11):
benefits.
We haven't talked about it, Idon't think yet, but I think we
also launched a new co brandedcredit card card and so, like,
the early, early feedback on allof them have been positive and
people are voting with their,with their clicks, and so we've
seen, you know, nice uptick onthe new credit card that we
launched and, as well as youknow, really positive
(20:32):
qualitative feedback fromemployees about the new benefits
.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Okay, Personalization is very important.
A new credit card offering anew entry-tier rewards are very
important as well.
How is MGM looking atpersonalization?
What does it mean to you from amarketing opportunity, from a
customer loyalty perspective?
How are you looking atpersonalization?
Speaker 2 (20:56):
I mean it's probably stating the obvious, but I mean
it's obviously critical to whatwe do, and we do this very well
and I would say we're probablyearly power to make sure that
they're delivering, you know, amemorable experience, uh, for
those types of members.
So they're, they're doingeverything from arranging air
(21:27):
travel to arrangingtransportation from the airport
and you know, black car serviceUm, you know they're, they're
helping with their property androom selection.
They're making reservations atdining outlets.
They know their foodpreferences, their beverage
preferences.
All of that is critical,especially at those very, very
(21:49):
high value customers.
I think our challenge, and mostbrands' challenge, is being able
to do this and deliver thislevel of service at scale.
To do this and deliver thislevel of service at scale.
And so that's where, you know,our team is a bit more focused
on trying to make sure that, asI talked about earlier,
collecting data and making sureit's available to our other
(22:09):
business partners so that whenwe're, you know, sending out
offers or promotions or invitesto experiences or events, that
we fully understand the customer.
And so it's critical to ourroadmap and we have a long way
to go, like most other brands,but it's very much at the heart
of what's going to make ussuccessful in driving additional
(22:32):
trips and additional revenueand additional engagement and
brand love that we talked aboutearlier, to build that emotional
connection with the brand.
Speaker 1 (22:41):
And partnerships are another area that are front and
center for brands as well, andyou've done it.
Actually, remember weintroduced you to a hotel
partner way back in the day notthe current hotel partner, but
one and you guys have alwaysseemed to have an affinity for
partnerships that work for bothpartners, because that could be
a big challenge for brands.
They often everyone wants to bethe redemption partner.
(23:04):
They want to have the mostbeneficial accrual or redemption
currency opportunity.
So it could be challenging,especially in this challenging
economic environment, to get theprograms right, but you guys
seem to do with aplomb.
How do you do that so well andhow holistically?
How are you looking atpartnerships?
Speaker 2 (23:22):
I mean holistically.
I think my perspective is wehave to set up scenarios where
it's win, win, win, ideally.
So you know both, both brandswin and then ultimately, the
customer wins, and those are thepartnerships that are most
successful.
And so I would, you know, youknow, give you the Royal
Caribbean celebrity cruiseexample where, like, I think
that's a good, really goodexample of the win-win-win
(23:43):
scenario where, um, for instance, we're offering a terrific
benefit where people can cruiseliterally almost around the
world, um, to our highest valuemembers, so it's a it's a great
benefit from a loyaltyperspective.
You know Royal Caribbean isacquiring new customers, um,
through that partnership, um, soit's a great benefit from a
loyalty perspective.
You know Royal Caribbean isacquiring new customers through
that partnership, so it's a winfor them.
And then you know the customeris benefiting from hey, I'm
(24:05):
getting recognized and rewardedfor my spend at MDM and I'm
getting to take these fantasticcruise vacations.
So I think it's to answer yourquestion more directly, I mean,
the focus has to be on makingsure that it's a win for
everybody, and I think that'sone of the reasons why I think
we've leaned into partnerships,and it's definitely not easy.
(24:25):
These things take time tonegotiate and try and figure out
the economics and try andfiguring out all of the
logistics that are involved inconnecting brands which
otherwise, from a systemsperspective, are typically not
connected.
And so getting all that rightit does take resources, it takes
time, it takes the right sortof strategy and execution to
(24:47):
pull that off.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
Okay, you look.
Marriott Bonvoy partnerships,the partnerships with World
Caribbean Are there otherpartnerships that you're looking
to kind of bring on to add morevalue to your customers and
your rewards program.
Speaker 2 (25:02):
Yeah, I would say our getting back to the philosophy
question, I think our approachis we're very much open to new
partnerships.
I would just say we probablyare a little bit more on the
quality over quantity level,because, I mentioned, these
things do do take time andresources, and so I think we're
focused on like, how do we, howdo we work with partners that
(25:25):
again are great brands, thathave great great databases, that
you know it helps both sides ina, in a, in a meaningful way,
and then you know it just it hasto to make sense for the, for
the customer, ultimately, andand so that.
So we're open to it.
I think you know there'sprobably a couple of different
categories, if you will.
(25:45):
So one being sort of theeveryday categories, like I
mentioned, that reinforceeveryday connection with the
brand, and then second would beadjacent categories within the
travel space.
So you know we have a hotelpartner, we have an airline
partner, we have a cruisepartner, but you know there may
be other partners in the travelspace that may make sense, okay.
Speaker 1 (26:09):
When you look at customer experience, customer
loyalty, what's the next bigthing?
New technology, ai.
You know, how do you plan tokeep the program rolling along
in such a positive manner?
Speaker 2 (26:23):
I mean, it's probably hard to answer that question
without saying AI has to be apart of it, and we are leaning
into one aspect of AI in termsof a digital concierge.
And so today, our digitalconcierge is primarily focused
on the hotel experience.
So if someone needs help, Iforgot a toothbrush, I forgot I
(26:44):
need a towel, things like that.
There's something wrong with myroom, but we're we've recently
sort of expanded that digitalconcierge with the capabilities
within that to be focused on MGMrewards as well.
So the loyalty program.
So today it's really, I wouldsay, primarily a tool that
people can use to get answers tofrequently asked questions in a
(27:06):
very, you know, seamless way,as opposed to maybe having to
hunt on the web or on the mobileapp for those questions.
But I think you know the visionfor that is to be able to
provide you know, we talked alittle bit about personalization
earlier using the digitalconcierge as a way to drive more
personalization, recognizingyour tier status, recognizing
(27:28):
what benefits are available toyou and then ultimately reducing
friction from the experienceand potentially performing
transactions to help people.
Speaker 1 (27:39):
Okay.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
You know a call center, go to a concierge type
desk so that they can perform,you know these things in the
comfort of their living room orin their room if they're
visiting us.
So those are.
I would say the focus is on howdo we improve the member
experience and reduce frictiongoing forward, and you know AI
is going to be one of thosetools that will help us do that.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
What are you seeing in how individuals are engaging
with the digital assistant?
Positive results.
How are customers engaging withthat?
Speaker 2 (28:11):
Yeah, it's early days on that one as well.
That's something that we werelike recently introduced, and so
I think we're still doing a bitto help.
We're kind of I would say moresoft launching it for now and
kind of just understanding whatare the types of questions
people ask.
And to my point earlier aboutlistening to customer feedback,
we want to see what people wantto, how they want to engage with
(28:32):
the digital assistant as itrelates to the loyalty program
and help have that guide some ofour future product roadmap,
because we think we know,generally speaking, what some of
the issues or questions thatthey typically have, but a
digital customer that's thisengaged may have a different set
of questions that we maybehadn't thought of.
(28:53):
So I think we're trying to do alittle bit of a hybrid approach
of like put some things outthere but also be ready to
potentially pivot and understandhow they want to engage in the
digital concierge.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
OK, when you look at the program holistically great
success, great partnerships, newco-brand, you know, driving a
great value to the brand.
When you look at itholistically, what are two or
three things you are most proudof when you look at the program?
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Yeah, it's a good question.
I think for me it's and I'vementioned probably a couple of
times is I'm proud of when youlook at the program yeah, it's a
good question.
I think for me it's and I'vementioned probably a couple of
times is I'm proud of ourability to listen to customers
and understand what, what aresome of their pain points, and
then use that to prioritizeproduct features and benefits
like, like, like the ones wejust rolled out, and then
ultimately execute against thatplan, against that roadmap, and
(29:44):
deliver.
You know, think, for instance,the thing like similar to the
things we just delivered,whether it's new credit card or
new benefits with partners.
I think it's very gratifying tosee that journey, because these
things don't happen overnight.
They take a lot of time, theytake oftentimes a lot of
resources, a lot of time, theytake oftentimes a lot of
resources.
So it's gratifying to see thatprocess end to end and see the
(30:06):
customer reaction and employeereaction as well, get that
positive feedback and thenultimately, the KPIs that we I
think we're pretty confidentwill come along with it, which
is greater engagement and justoverall satisfaction with the
program and building thatemotional connection to the
brand.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
OK, excellent, when you look at opportunities, you
may see.
You know how can Loyalty360help you and your team in your
customer loyalty journey.
Speaker 2 (30:36):
I think.
I think there's probably a fewthings.
I mean, one of the things thatwe've, you know, we've talked
about with with you guys atloyalty 360, is trying to get a
better set of benchmark dataagainst, you know, people in a
similar industry at least.
I mean, ours is a little bitunique in the gaming side of it,
but certainly in the hotelindustry, when it comes to
(30:57):
looking at KPIs, like what aresome of the engagement metrics
that other hospitality brandslook at and how do we compare to
that?
Um, you, you mentioned wetalked about earlier the
partnership opportunities.
So I think that's another wayin which, um, you know if
there's partners that make sense, uh, that it's a part like
there's good ideas out there.
(31:17):
Uh, you know, we're open, opento listening to those ideas and
working with some of themembership within Loyalty360.
And then, I think, you know,with some of the content that
you guys put out around, justbeing able to network and, you
know, for us, as I mentionedprobably at the start of this
conversation, identity is a big,is a big challenge for us, and
(31:41):
clean data is another one, andso just being able to connect
with other brands that maybeface similar challenges or have
faced similar challenges andunderstand how they've addressed
some of those challenges Ithink can be pretty valuable.
Speaker 1 (31:55):
Awesome, anil.
Thank you very much for takingthe time to speak with us today.
You're not off the hook yet.
We have the quickfire round ofquestions, so we'd like to keep
these two a word or a shortphrase, or I get in trouble with
hannah and ethan everyone, soI'm already in trouble with them
.
Enough, so no more.
Uh, so how would you describeyour work life?
Speaker 2 (32:16):
uh, in a word I would say dynamic.
Okay, lots of variety.
We, as I mentioned, you knowfive and six different things
between product and technology,and operations and marketing and
strategy.
All that work.
Speaker 1 (32:30):
Excellent.
If you have a day or a week offfrom work, what are you doing?
Speaker 2 (32:36):
Travel.
Uh, past weekend, uh, I wastraveling for mother's mother's
day with my wife and friends,and next month travel, next
month after that travel.
So definitely love traveling.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Okay, excellent.
If you could live in any city,any country, where would you
live?
Speaker 2 (32:53):
Any city, any country .
I mean, I'm pretty happy whereI am in Southern California.
So maybe I would change thequestion a little bit and say
where would I want to visit?
So big fan of Tahiti, I've beenthere several times I'd love to
go back Places I haven't beenthat.
I'd love to go Australia, Spain, probably two others on the
(33:15):
list.
Speaker 1 (33:16):
Okay, excellent.
If you go back to school, youknow what would you study go?
Speaker 2 (33:22):
back to school.
You know what would you study?
Uh Ooh, that's a tough one.
Um, I don't think I wouldchange anything.
I mean, I I sort of started infinance and then, uh, for
graduate school, got a degree inmarketing for my MBA.
So I I feel like those are theright, right ones for me.
Speaker 1 (33:40):
Okay, is there an area, a facet of your job that
you would like to maybe know alittle bit less about or maybe
not be as involved with?
Speaker 2 (33:51):
We're definitely in the detail business of lots of
details in hospitality, justgiven the complexity of
everything we do, and sometimesit's a bit overwhelming and I'd
like to know less.
Speaker 1 (34:05):
Is there a facet of your job, an area of
responsibility that you maybelike to do more with, be more
involved with?
Speaker 2 (34:12):
Yeah, probably, I mentioned it earlier just the
benchmarking KPIs and probablythe short answer versus industry
peers.
Speaker 1 (34:21):
Excellent.
And what do you drawinspiration from?
What lights your fire?
What keeps you fresh?
Speaker 2 (34:28):
I think it's just, it's a variety.
I think it's what we just wentthrough with just working with
various teams looking atproblems, looking at customer
feedback, you know, and lookingat it through the lens of
several different angles andtrying to decide on which
strategies that we want topursue that will benefit our
members and will benefit thecompany.
Looking at it through the lensof several different angles and
trying to decide on whichstrategies we that that we want
to pursue that will benefit ourmembers and we'll we'll benefit
the company and, in some cases,you know, benefit partners if
(34:49):
it's a partnership initiative.
So I think it's just, it's justthe, the variety and and and
driving growth and drivingengagement.
Speaker 1 (34:58):
Okay, what is your favorite sport or hobby?
Speaker 2 (35:03):
Golf.
I love, love to play golf.
I love to watch sports.
Either one of those.
Speaker 1 (35:09):
Okay, Excellent, and what do you?
And last question what do youtypically think about at the end
of the day?
Speaker 2 (35:18):
I would say probably the next day, in three words.
So it's trying to plan aheadand knowing what's on my
calendar and what may need somepre-planning for.
Speaker 1 (35:32):
OK, excellent.
Well, Neil, thank you very much.
It's always a great pleasurespeaking with you giving an
update on the program.
Just the comprehensiveness ofthe program, the approach is
great, and looking forward tolearning more from you and your
team with remainder 25.
So thank you very much fortaking the time to speak with us
today.
Thanks, mark, appreciate it.
Have a great day, absolutely.
And thank you everyone fortaking the time to join us today
(35:52):
.
Make sure you join us everyThursday for our Brand Stories
edition of the Leaders andCustomer Loyalty Podcast, and
until then, have a wonderful day.
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