The Montana Gaming Research and Education Fund directors met in Helena Jan. 27, and when they adjourned they were the Montana Hospitality Research and Education Group.
The name change reflects a shift in the non-profit organization's mission. It was originally founded in 2002 to study gaming business problems, then devise solutions and public information campaigns.
The group was established through the cooperation and funding of the Montana Tavern Association, Gaming Industry Association, Montana Coin Machine Operators Association and Town Pump. Later, Summit Gaming, IGT and Fleetwood Gaming also became contributing members.
It has conducted focus groups, scientific polls and assisted the University of Montana with a gaming economic impact study. It operates the problem gambler help line and works with the Montana Council on Problem Gambling to provide group therapy treatment programs.
It produced newspaper circulars, television and radio commercials, billboards posters and flyers publicizing problem gambling and available help. It operates two web sites focusing on help for problem gamblers and information on businesses licensed for adult beverages and gaming.
Subsequent polling revealed the efforts had paid off in a much improved public image. The group then began to focus more on liquor issues and now, with the endorsement of the sponsoring organizations, is beginning to explore ways to help licensed businesses cope with the changes coming with the full implementation of a state-wide smoking ban in 2009.
New mission
The research and education group has contracted with Woodward & McDowell in the past to conduct focus groups and polling and to devise strategies to improve the business environment. Woodward and McDowell's Bill Hunter was the firm's Montana liaison but retired last year. However, Chairman Rich Miller said he has contacted Hunter and reported Hunter is interested in working with the group again.
Hunter sent Miller a brief discussion paper on dealing with smoking bans. He said Montana licensed businesses could see a loss of business, an increase or no effect at all. He said the first scenario was most likely, though the duration of the negative effects is unknown.
He said operators could do nothing, simply waiting to see the results and then living with them or trying to recover, or could behave proactively, anticipating that things will not remain the same.
He suggested a patron survey to gauge--even by geographical region--what their reaction will be, and an owner survey as well. He suggested the survey be followed up with focus groups of current patrons and non-patrons to ferret out what can be done to overcome a loss of business, and to expand the customer base by enticing new customers.
Focus groups should be followed with thorough polling to discern likely customer behaviors, but also to once again measure public perceptions of the business.
Hunter also said it would be to the benefit of the industry if individual businesses would work in concert with others to share results and ideas, but that "the competitiveness that currently exists makes this highly unlikely."
MTA's Mark Staples discussed effects of the smoking ban, noting a small number of anti-tobacco radicals would like to see the Montana compromise "blow up" and that some who are in the business of running citizen initiatives are still pressing for that result.
"There are hard-liners still active on both sides," Staples said, but "those who struck the compromise are sticking to it."
He said health department officials indicated the educational phase of the ban implementation is ending and enforcement was set to begin in early February.
Staples urged the group to begin studying promotion and marketing strategies to deal with the effects of the smoking ban.
He, Ronda Carpenter and Miller all pointed to the recent citizen initiative approved in Washington state and other similar moves elsewhere as proof that smoking bans are gaining steam rather than losing it. Several directors expressed the opinion that by 2009 much of American society will have banned public smoking.
Smoking in all buildings accessible by the public was outlawed Oct. 1, but some businesses with alcohol licenses have received exemptions until Oct. 1, 2009.
Miller said the ultimate challenge for businesses is to find ways to retain smoker patronage while tapping into the potential new customer base of non-smokers.
New funding
But funding from sponsoring organizations has dwindled over the last two years and the group is actively seeking new sources of money. They heard several proposals from directors about how that may be accomplished, including solicitations from supplier tier companies.
It was noted that to date it has been members of business associations paying all the costs of the program while more than half of the licensed establishments are not members and have paid nothing but receive equal benefits. It was suggested an effort be mounted to solicit help from businesses that don't belong to an association.
Web sites
Kevin Leavell of Missoula's Pyron Technologies, the developers of the group's web sites, opened the meeting with a upbeat presentation on site usage. The sites went live in Dec. 2004.
The Montana Gaming Group site has seen the most activity, Leavell said, growing from just 87 "sessions" or visits in January 2005 to 624 sessions in December. Total page-views have grown from 657 in January to 2,035 in December.
Average page-views per session have been declining, as has the length of a session, Leavell said, which is to be expected as a significant number of visitors are repeat, so are viewing mostly the new material that has been posted and don't need to browse as long to find what they want.
He reported that smoking related articles are receiving a lot of attention as have stories on gaming regulation and taxes. He suggested the group continue adding content, improve search engine optimization, forward articles to friends, develop e-mail directories for groups interested in specific topics and link the site to as many others as possible.
Cole Boehler of Continental Communications, whose company creates, provides and updates content for the sites, reported the scope of topics covered had recently been expanded to include a separate liquor issues category as well as ones for social reform/activism, national items and opinion articles. (Continental Communications also publishes the monthly industry trade periodicals Montana Tavern Times and American Beverage Licensees Leader.)
In addition, an on-site archive has been created to catalog articles that are considered no longer current. Previously, those articles were simply discarded.
Boehler said his company has been adding and taking down 20-30 articles a month along with accompanying illustrations and graphics, keeping content fresh and up to date. "We've even posted some articles on the site before they have been published anywhere else," he said. He said the site now features about 250 articles with another 50 stored in the site archives.
"Just about anyone with any questions regarding any aspect of licensed businesses and their regulation can find the information at this site," Boehler said. "I've also been told it is exceptionally easy to navigate and is very intuitive in its function."
Source: Montana Tavern Times, March, 2006, published monthly by Continental Communications, 125 W. Granite St., Suite 102, Butte, MT 59701.