It’s been a few days since I’ve been back from Vegas and each time I talk to one of my friends who was there with me (many of whom are degenerate gamblers!) they are talking about their favourite poker rooms.

This is very interesting to me because one of the things that I always preach to customers is that they have to distinguish themselves from the competition. It’s so important that you can answer the question “what makes us better”.

The poker room conversation with my friends strikes at the heart of this because poker is the same game no matter where you play it. You’ve got chips, cards, a dealer, some chairs and you’re set. Yet, some of my friends loved certain poker rooms and hated others, even when the game is the exact same.

The specific reasons vary from person to person and place to place that they were commenting on. Some of the poker rooms had nice flat screen TVs, more tables, friendlier dealers, special bad beat or “high hand” bonuses, larger variety of games, better decor, more comfortable chairs, and the list goes on.

So, even though it’s the same game being played in every spot, there is a long list of factors that separate one from the other. Each of the poker rooms knows that these factors make a difference and they work hard to make sure their patrons see the differentiating factors of their offering. And, based on how busy some poker rooms are versus others that are dead quite, it is clear that this makes a difference.

While you may not be operating a Las Vegas poker room, the lesson remains that finding out what makes you different and making that apparent to your customers, can go a long way towards separating you from the rest of the pack.