Harrah's Entertainment Launches Total Rewards II

No other casino company markets its player's reward program as aggressively as Harrah's Entertainment, Inc.

Every casino in the country has a player's club, which essentially encourages loyalty, but Harrah's identifies its presence in the highly competitive market with its Total Rewards.

Harrah's Entertainment has the broadest scope in the industry. It operates 26 casinos in 12 states. Whereas most companies market to a regional audience, Harrah's is able to brand itself nationally and do some imaginative cross-marketing

The strategy has paid off handsomely for the gaming giant. Total Rewards is easily the most identifiable program of its kind and is consistently rated at or near the top in customer satisfaction surveys conducted among players in regional markets.

During the last decade, legalized casino gambling in this country has expanded from just two states (Nevada and New Jersey) to the point where a casino is within easy driving distance of a majority of Americans.

Harrah's has capitalized on the gaming boom through its expansion and acquisitions to become for all intents and purposes "America's Casino". The corporate thread that weaves it together is Total Rewards.

When casino gambling enthusiasts who are partial to Harrah's properties in Joliet, Ill., and East Chicago, Ind., make travel plans to Nevada, they are encouraged to play and stay at Harrah's properties in Las Vegas, Laughlin, Lake Tahoe, and Reno.

The "equity" that players build from their play using the Total Rewards card makes this possible. Now with the announcement of the new Total Rewards II, the program becomes even more valuable.

"No one in the casino business has attempted anything on this scale before," said Gary Loveman, Harrah's president and chief executive officer. "Total Rewards II breaks entirely new ground by offering our customers everything they loved about Total Rewards plus far more flexibility in how they redeem their credits and far more reward items from which to choose. Players can still get the free room, buffet, steakhouse dinner, and other traditional casino perks. But our customers can also save credits for premium rewards such as a trip on a private jet or a cruise package."

Total Rewards II will be structured using the same three-tiered formula as before: Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Players will still earn points as before, only now players will be offered greater versatility, such as being able to combine credits earned for both slot and table game play every time they visit a Harrah's casino.

Reward credits never expire as long as players play at any Harrah's property at least once every six months. Points may be redeemed whenever and wherever players choose. It also allows players to use their comps immediately or bank credits toward the premier rewards.

Harrah's will formally introduce Total Rewards II to customers on July 1 with the 100 Million Reward Credit Giveaway. Individual players at 24 Harrah's owned properties will have a chance to qualify in a grand prize drawing for $250,000 on Sept. 7 at Showboat-Mardi Gras Casino in Atlantic City.

The new Total Rewards II will also simplify the process by which players who are loyal to regional properties can redeem their points at Harrah's properties when they are out of town on vacation. Under the old system, it was unclear as to how valuable equity built at Harrah's Joliet, for example, was at Harrah's Rio or Harrah's Las Vegas.

Many of the upper tier rewards offered by the new program will out of reach for a majority of players, but there is nevertheless something better for players of every level with Total Rewards II.