Bill has always championed spatial design frameworks designed to convert visitors into players. His method combines playground thinking with scientific measurements of full funnel strategies.
He details how casinos use audio and visual features to both excite their patrons while relaxing them simultaneously, such as using low-tempo music to encourage gamblers to stay longer at the tables.
Loss Aversion
Loss aversion is a familiar concept from prospect theory1,2: people tend to react more strongly when losing money than when receiving comparable gains. This phenomenon may help explain some behavioral anomalies associated with gambling and risk taking; for instance, subjects in one study opted for guaranteed wins of $525 rather than taking risks that had an equal 50/50 chance of happening but which had negative expected values (Kahneman and Tversky 1971).
Humans are known for being flawed at processing probability and judging randomness, yet a new cognitive approach to gambling argues that problem gamblers’ misguided beliefs stem not simply from general cognitive distortions but that various features of casino games actually foster them.
Example: Slot machine wins are often associated with flashing lights and loud noises that trigger our availability heuristic, a mental shortcut which allows us to recall past wins more readily than losses (Wagenaar, 1988). Researchers recently conducted a study to see whether casinos contribute to irrational decision-making through computer gambling tasks. The authors manipulated participants’ chances of winning by manipulating whether their choices were made under risky or uncertain conditions, fitting models of prospect theory to their choices and finding correlations between ambiguity, the negative at-risk bias, loss aversion behavior and anxiety levels; anxiety status did not have any impact on this relationship.
Positive Reinforcement
As you navigate your way through a casino’s maze of tempting slot machines and games, one thing may become apparent: something always seems to be happening! This is no coincidence – casinos are designed to keep people gambling by constantly providing stimuli that make leaving difficult.
Another strategy is to give gamblers the illusion that they’re in control of their game. For instance, some casino games allow players to roll dice or select numbers themselves, creating the impression of more control than would otherwise exist with random drawings or coin flips. This may encourage gamblers to stay longer because they believe their chances of success have increased; thus encouraging longer sessions.
Casino spaces also play an integral part in how long patrons remain to play and their coin-in (revenue) rates. According to Bill, casinos take into account various modes and themes of escapism – from solitude or crowds – when designing their facilities accordingly.
Though some tactics employed by casinos may appear predatory, their frameworks can still provide valuable guidance. Gambling industry frameworks could serve to inspire and guide initiatives across various other settings both digital and real-world; especially since we spend increasingly more time immersed in apps, virtual worlds, and the metaverse.
Anchoring
Experienced casino visitors know it can be an unnerving maze of slot machines and tables. Casino designers want you to gamble as long as possible by making it difficult for you to locate an exit route; that is why no windows or wall clocks are included, and various tactics such as arranging tables and machines to keep visitors guessing are used by designers to do just this.
One such trick is known as anchoring effect – this occurs when initial values or numbers impact subsequent estimates of them. For instance, if asked to estimate 8 x 7 x 6 x 5 x 4 x 3 x 2 x 1, your estimate could likely increase if one of the numbers you saw initially was lower (Tversky & Kahneman 1974).
One strategy used by casinos to lure gamblers back is creating the illusion that they’re close to winning big. By rotating two cherries instead of just one, casinos can lead players to believe they’re closer than ever to hitting jackpot. This encourages them to keep gambling even though they may be losing money.
Casinos use sound and music to shape their environment by manipulating sound levels to attract gamblers. Upbeat music can create excitement while bells or sirens indicate when people have won. They often offer free drinks as alcohol reduces inhibitions, encouraging gamblers to take more risks.
Scarcity
Lights flash, music blares and slot machines whirr as you pull the lever to reveal glittering fruits, gems and sevens swirling all around you – until suddenly text appears on screen informing you of reaching your maximum time limit and must leave. Casinos use psychological methods to manipulate players into spending more than planned; according to Jim Leitzel from University of Nevada Las Vegas they utilize everything from windows and clocks to fragrance and sound manipulation of patrons in their arsenal of techniques to do this.
Scarcity is one of the most effective tools used by marketers and businesspeople alike to entice players to spend more than they want. A popular experiment found that when something is scarcer than usual, its appeal increases accordingly, as evidenced by responses given during a test where participants were asked to rate cookie jars with only six cookies versus ones that contained 12 and saw that participants rated those with 12 cookies more positively and those containing only six as less so.
Additionally, casinos create an atmosphere of opulence by featuring grand ceilings and luxurious lobbies to make players feel part of something grand and special. Some may offer free drinks; studies show that alcohol decreases inhibitions and makes people more willing to take risks.