Inside iGaming’s Biggest Deals, With SCCG Management’s Stephen A. Crystal

[00:00]  1. Intro: Welcome to Bet It Drives

Host:  Welcome to Bet It Drives, the show that takes you for a ride through the iGaming world. I’m Eugene, your driver and conversational partner. Let’s get this journey started.

Guest:  All right. Okay, I’m ready.

[00:31]  2. Meet Stephen Crystal: 30+ years in gaming, SCCG Management

Host:  Attorney, lobbyist, operator, investor, strategic partner: Stephen Crystal has been shaping gaming markets for over 30 years, as his beard can confirm. He’s built casinos, helped companies enter new markets, and advised different gaming communities, all while speaking at major events from Vegas to São Paulo to Asia. He runs SCCG Management, a global consultancy at the crossroads of regulation, tech and investment. Tonight he’s riding with us. Welcome, Stephen, to Bet It Drives, and thank you for joining us.

Guest:  It’s always fun to come to London.

[01:16]  3. Why face-to-face still matters in business

Guest:  I love London, and it’s good to be back for iGB. I like the show, it’s a lot of energy. I don’t think there’s a better way to do business than face to face. I guess I’m a little old school.

Host:  Have you actually seen a lot of business coming from these shows?

Guest:  Because the nature of our business is to connect the industry in a very strategic way, there’s really no better way than to touch and feel. This is what I was taught 33 years ago when I entered the industry. If I wanted to build or buy a casino, to be involved in brick and mortar, I had to get on a plane or in a car, go see it, touch it, observe, talk to people. I don’t think it’s any different now. No matter how technologically oriented we are, at its base it’s a process of connecting people to people.

[02:20]  4. What iGB could do better: case studies and real players

Host:  You’ve seen iGB shift and transform over many years. What would you suggest changing?

Guest:  One thing they could do better across the board is involve more case studies, more actual situations. A lot of the time companies don’t want to reveal too much about their secret sauce, because it’s a competitive business, but what people are really looking for is to learn from others’ experience, so encouraging more of that sharing would be one thing. The other is that lots of industry shows in other sectors invite the actual customer into the show environment. A lot of the time here it feels like vendors talking to vendors, hoping the operators have shown up. I’d suggest we bring real people, real players, into the fold more, so we can get real-time feedback. That’s something other industries do that I wish we’d do better.

[03:41]  5. Keynote in one sentence: “Be kind”

Host:  If you were given a keynote with only one sentence, what would it be?

Guest:  It’s not really a message specific to the gambling industry, but it’s relevant to the times we live in. As the world has become more complicated and interconnected, some of the basic principles of how we interact with people have been lost. Kindness means returning a call if someone reaches out to you. In the early days of the casino business, we’d never think of not returning a call within 24 hours. It’s now commonplace for people to ignore outreach, and to me that’s an example of not being kind. If someone takes the time to reach out, you need to find a way to touch back. So if I could leave one message after 33-plus years, it would be the notion of being a little bit more kind to the people we are in business with.

[05:01]  6. Why parties are part of doing business

Host:  A few words about parties and afterparties. Natural part of the business, or could we live without them?

Guest:  As a Vegas guy, we know how to throw a party. Vegas is the quintessential host. At the core of getting to know people and finding common interest is coming together in a fun environment. For me it’s simple: you need good food, good people, some drink, maybe some music, and a full, energetic room. I’m for it. I don’t think you can have enough of that kind of activity. It’s part and parcel of the business we’re in.

[05:56]  7. Celebrities and influencers that impressed Stephen

Host:  You’ve met a lot of different people, influencers, pop stars. Which ones impressed you?

Guest:  In the last few years we’ve seen a convergence between the traditional gambling industry and pop culture, in the form of celebrities and influencers, and we’ve been open to all of it. At the last Global Gaming Expo we hosted Mark Wahlberg, one of the top stars in the world. What most people know him for, beyond Hollywood, is his work on behalf of veterans and religious values, and when I met him in person I felt that from him. We also partnered with the top influencer in the world for slot machines, Lady Luck HQ, with over a billion impressions a month and growing. It was interesting to see how someone who went from being a technology executive to playing slots in her free time turned it into a mega business. Those are two extremes: one is real celebrity, the other is influence in an industry we love. In the old days, when we had casinos, I hosted names from my generation, Ed McMahon, who was the sidekick to Johnny Carson, Larry Manetti, who played Rick in Magnum P.I. Now we work with rappers, Hollywood stars, and influencers big and small. So it’s changing, and as I get older I have to be open to looking at things with a wider lens. This is the entertainment business.

[08:05]  8. Pop stars vs CEOs: who’s more unpredictable?

Host:  In your experience, who’s more unpredictable, a pop star or an operating CEO?

Guest:  Both have a certain ego, and ego isn’t a bad thing, it’s a necessary ingredient to creativity and to making things happen. CEOs have to live in the real world, because they have real-world issues to solve day in, day out. Celebrities sometimes put themselves into make-believe worlds, and that’s the nature of their business. That’s the big difference. But what I love most about both groups is the creative spark that comes when they do what they do. And it doesn’t only come from mega stars or CEOs. Sometimes it’s a skilled labourer, or someone who can do something I can’t even imagine doing. Everyday people who do their thing super well, I marvel at it. So the creative spark can come from anyone doing what they do best. That’s how I view the world.

[09:38]  9. Kansas City: from no business plan to multi-millions

Host:  Was there ever a situation where you closed a deal without even a slide?

Guest:  It wasn’t at an expo, but it goes back to the early days of expanding gambling in America. I had a partner for over 25 years, older than me, and what he taught me was that a lot of the time it’s not what’s in the PowerPoint or the deck, it’s about old-fashioned shoe leather, kicking over the stones. I remember standing on a levee in Kansas City, Missouri. It was a cornfield by a substation, and he said, “This site didn’t flood during the 1993 flood, maybe it would be a good site for a riverboat casino.” Without much thought, we all put a few thousand bucks in the pot and optioned that piece of real estate. Then we sold it, before we even purchased it, to Station Casinos, who built a 500-million-dollar casino two years later. We turned those thousands into many multi-millions, with no business plan, just shoe leather, observation and forethought. After that, it patterned the way I approach most things: some of the biggest, most exciting things in life happen because you’re using good old-fashioned instincts.

Host:  And sometimes a napkin is enough.

Guest:  Sometimes a napkin is enough. I have more than a few that sit in a case in my office. It’s actually the way business was done for years in Vegas.

[11:45]  10. Feel the beat: deal-signing song, high-stakes meetings

Host:  Moving into something personal, like music. When you’re signing a deal, what song comes to mind?

Guest:  I go back to a Las Vegas classic, Frank Sinatra. His music is timeless, and not only associated with Vegas where he ended his career. One song in particular, “My Way,” is really his anthem, looking back on a life that was well-lived, lived hard and on the edge, on his own terms. When I accomplish something, I think about the unique way I went about it, and that song speaks to me. That’s the song I play.

Host:  Different energy walking into a high-stakes meeting, to pump up. What’s on top of your list?

Guest:  Actually, I’m looking for a different vibe. When I go into a high-stakes meeting, it’s almost always about what I observe, not what I say. So I tend to like things that put me in a more contemplative or meditative state, classical music, something chill, because what I’m really trying to do is take myself down a beat or two so I can focus on reading body language and the little signs, because that tells me where I stand. It’s less about pumping up and more about pumping down. More about listening and observing than pushing and pitching.

[13:52]  11. Network or Not Work: DMs, Instagram, nightclubs, personal emails

Host:  We have this little rubric called Network or Not Work. Would you directly message somebody after a formal presentation?

Guest:  I’m a believer in communication. This is one of my biggest pet peeves, actually, because I’m an over-communicator. In my own life people can reach me 24/7, 365, literally. So I don’t personally set a boundary, but I’ve learned not everyone feels the same way. I’m in favour of communication, whatever form it takes, as long as it’s respectful, and it’s up to people to set the boundaries they want. So, network.

Host:  You see something appealing on Instagram and immediately share it to a private party that was announced. Network or not work?

Guest:  Not work. I’d leave those social media things where they belong. It’s fine to participate, I do, but I don’t cross the line into other people’s business that way.

Host:  Pitching your product at a nightclub. Network or not work?

Guest:  Honestly, I’m about my work, I love my work. If I’m at a trade show and socialising, everything is fair game for me. I have some emotional quotient, I can gauge whether someone wants to keep it one way or the other. But if I see an opportunity, it doesn’t matter that it’s a nightclub. I can have a discussion anywhere. So, network.

Host:  A tough one. Someone you were trying to reach through LinkedIn, and suddenly you have access to a personal email. Would you write to it?

Guest:  It depends what I’m writing about, but I have no shame reaching out however I can. I’ll say, “Hey, Joe Smith gave me your email, I hope it’s okay.” Nine times out of ten people interact with me, because they know my motivation isn’t to sell them something but to share information they’ll find helpful or not for their business. I try to respect people’s boundaries, but I’m not calling people just to shoot the [expletive]. I’m calling because we’re on the cutting edge, doing exciting things with amazing companies, and our job is to spread that word.

[17:16]  12. Wrap-up: Stephen’s final thoughts

Host:  Any final observations or impressions from this ride?

Guest:  I’ll give you a one-sentence keynote: be kind. Use this conference to take a moment out and be kind to somebody. If someone’s been trying to reach you, take them up on whatever they’re reaching out for. Be kind.

Host:  Thank you, Stephen. Nice having you with us, and good luck at iGB and G2E. We hope to visit Las Vegas soon.

Guest:  Please come. It’s a wonderful land of opportunities and dreams, and that’s where dreams come true. We’ll welcome you.

Host:  What a ride. Stephen officially earned the Bet It Drives seat belt, and that’s a wrap on Season 1. Thanks for riding with GR8 Tech.