Sure, AGS could gather its clients for the usual corporate shindig and bombard them with information about their latest and greatest products. But that’s just not the AGS way.
Instead, patrons at the third annual GameOn Customer Summit will hear from experts in brain science, industrial design, and even artificial intelligence. The AGS products are almost an afterthought.
“We don’t just go from AGS presenter to AGS presenter,” said AGS CMO and EVP of investor relations Julia Boguslawski, who notes that recent post-GameOn surveys showed that guests actually wanted to hear more about AGS products. “We’re glad they don’t feel like they’re going through a sales pitch.”
This year’s GameOn is June 5-7 at Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California. The two previous summits were at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida, and at the MGM National Harbor in Maryland.
AGS launched the first GameOn conference in 2016, several years after the company, then known as American Gaming Systems, was purchased by funds managed by Apollo Global Management, a private equity firm. David Lopez joined the company as CEO soon after. AGS, which got its start with Class II gaming in Oklahoma, then grew when it paid about $375 million to acquire Cadillac Jack, a Class II supplier that was working on launching a Class III platform. The company has since added table games products and social apps.
“We wanted to change perceptions about what AGS was, and it was super important to have an event that wasn’t part of a trade show,” said Boguslawski, noting that customers’ time is spread thin at events such as G2E.
“When customers come spend three quality days with us, we work not only on the professional relationship but the personal relationship, too,” she said. “It gives us a chance to bond.” Boguslawski also noted that while the information sessions are vital, it’s also important for attendees to have informal time together, as well as fun. With that in mind, there’s a golf event on June 5, a winery tour on June 6, and a poker tournament on June 7.
GameOn will have close to 100 customers attending, about double from last year, she said. The event will likely not grow much more, so it can retain its intimate nature and allow for everyone to get to know one another over the course of three days.
This year’s speakers consist of experts outside of gaming, and even a competitor of sorts, Elaine Hodgson, president of Incredible Technologies. She’ll be on a gaming executive panel discussing innovation, growth, and customer service.
“I think people appreciate our professional maturity and the respect we have for another growing supplier in this industry,” Boguslawski said.
Also at the summit:
* Industrial design expert Dan Harden, president of Whipsaw, will talk about industrial design and the power of attraction. “We talk about how content is key, which is true, but it’s kind of a perfect marriage of the hardware, too,” she said.
* Craig Forest, an associate professor at Georgia Tech’s Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, will inform patrons of the brain science of the gaming experience. He will run a live EEG on an attendee to demonstrate his points.
* Nick Thompson, editor in chief of “Wired” magazine, will speak about the dynamics of the mobile universe, as well as robotics and artificial intelligence and the future of how we work, play, and solve problems.
* AGA President Geoff Freeman will speak; among other things, he’ll give his take on the future of sports gambling. Boguslawski’s comment on that: “Finally, we don’t have to let billions go to unregulated offshore sites and bookies. It’s a big win for the industry at large.”
This year’s event also gives Pechanga a chance to show off. The owners, the Pechanga Band of Luiseño Indians, just completed a $285 million expansion. “It’s a fantastic property. We also wanted to bring the conference to the West Coast,” Boguslawski said. “We have a lot of California customers and this was easy for our West Coast customers. Plus, East Coast customers enjoy coming to the west coast occasionally.”
AGS itself has undergone great changes, too, since the last GameOn. Most notably, the company went public in January. “It’s been a huge change on the business and PR side of things,” Boguslawski said. “But I don’t think our customers have felt any change, other than it has certainly created greater visibility.” The company’s May results were up 36 percent, Boguslawski said; for the quarter, the company had set records in every key metric. “Our stock is continuing to rise,” she said. “There are a lot of positive tailwinds right now.”
The company now employs more than 600 employees, up about 100 from last year. “We’ve grown quickly in a short period of time,” Boguslawski said, noting that AGS was recognized as one of the nation’s Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in 2017.
