Jackpot! : Harrah's Winning Secrets for Customer Loyalty

by Shook, Robert L.

• ISBN13: 9780471263234
• ISBN10: 0471263230
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-12-23
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

The inside story of the gaming company that hit the jackpot playing by its own rules Robert L. Shook, a New York Times bestselling author, delves into the business behind one of the world's foremost gaming and entertainment companies, Harrah's. Since Bill Harrah took over a small card game business in 1937, Harrah's has become a top casino, dominating Nevada and beyond. The first gaming company listed on the New York Stock Exchange, Harrah's is a $4 billion-dollar business driven by smart marketing and smarter leadership. This book is the first to examine Harrah's and its leader, a man who dominated an industry and amassed a staggering fortune while refusing to deal with mobsters and corrupt politicians. Though Bill Harrah died in 1978 and the company has since been sold, Harrah's has retained its sense of history and remained an industry leader. Following the company's growth, Shook uncovers rich business lessons about marketing and customer loyalty, increasing market share in fiercely competitive industries, and maintaining a sense of integrity in a cutthroat business world. This is a compelling and intriguing story of a company that gambled and won, and it offers business readers an opportunity to benefit from the hard-won lessons of a paragon of the entertainment industry. Robert L. Shook (Columbus, OH) is a seasoned business journalist and the ghostwriter behind several New York Times bestsellers. He is the founder and former CEO of Shook Associates and the American Executive Life Insurance Company. He is the author or coauthor of thirty-five books, including The IBM Way, Mary Kay on People Management, and Mary Kay's You Can Have It All.

Author Biography

ROBERT L. SHOOK is a seasoned author, former salesman, and founder and former CEO of Shook Associates and American Executive Life Insurance Company. He is also the author of forty-five books, including The IBM Way, Honda: An American Success Story, and Turnaround: The New Ford Motor Company.

Table of Contents

Introduction.

PART I: THE ENTREPRENEURIAL YEARS (1936-1978).

The Early Years.

The House that Bill Harrah Built.

PART II: THE INFORMATION YEARS (1979-1994).

A Mixing of Corporate Cultures.

PART III: THE NEW HARRAH'S (THROUGH THE PRESENT).

Formulating a Marketing Strategy.

Winning With People.

The IT Commitment.

Not All Customers Are Created Equal.

There's No Business Like the Gaming Business.