Macau’s Gaming Service Index, released last week by the Macau Gaming Research Association (MGRA), ranked casino resort staff high for overall performance, as judged by “mystery shoppers” who visited the casinos and reported on their experience.
According to Inside Asian Gaming, the overall index in the fourth quarter of 2023 was 145 points, compared to 138 points in the fourth quarter of 2022, and the second highest reading, 139 points, in the second quarter of 2017.
The survey was conducted by the MGRA in association with SGS Hong Kong Ltd., an inspection and testing company. Together they sent hired shoppers to observe service levels on mass-gaming floors across the city.
The index measures three things: “smiling,” or friendliness by casino staff towards customers; “proactive” behavior, or the readiness by staff to approach customers; and “tolerance,” or patience displayed by staff when interacting with customers.
Only the “tolerance” sub-index showed a notable drop, to 103 in the fourth quarter of last year from highs of more than 120 during 2018 and 2019.
However, the latest “smiling” and “proactiveness” scores reached record highs, at 171 and 172.
The survey mostly covered table game dealers but also looked at employees in customer service, bathroom attendants, slot machine areas, security and cashier roles.
Dealers posted a record score of 2.51 in a range of zero to 3.5. Compared to the fourth quarter of 2022, dealers showed improvement in every category.
Customer service and slot staff also showed improvement, but those working in security saw lower scores compared to the 2022 survey and declines in all three categories. Cashiers also ranked lower overall, a score that was affected by lower performance in the “tolerance” sub-index.
The overall service index of Cotai properties’ employees was 154, 10 points higher than the ones on the Macau peninsula, IAG reported.
High marks are important for Macau, which hopes to welcome about 33 million visitors in 2024. The Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO) will promote the destination with “road shows” in Thailand, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries as well as Europe, said Director Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes.
Fernandes noted average daily visitation of 70,000 to 80,000 in January, rising to “as high as 100,000” on weekends. She expects up to 120,000 visitors per day during the Lunar New Year holiday, which begins February 10 and continues through February 24.
