Well you leave for a few days....Share price takes a hit and I have to catch up with a cup of coffee. (edit 2 cups)
Here's a quick food industry story that could add some dimension to our foods discussions.
Back in the late 90s, I flew to Germany to extablish a relationship with a software developer, who took me to a Masterfood Int. (it is a Mars company) facility there that was running the software I was interested in. It allowed me to see it in action and talk to users directly.
They make all of the chocolate brands we see here in North America, with one important exception. The chocolate was very high quality because the Europeans do not put up with the low quality %^& that NAs do....and indeed the samples they gave me were excellent. Essentially more and better cocao and far less sugar
The point I guess is that in any kind of food scheme, you have to cater to the local taste or you won't get the client back...so not only high quality, fresh, well prepared etc, but the right menus.
Not saying it is not happening, or that GH is not addressing this, or that it needed saying because no one else has.....just that it is an important success factor I have direct experience with.
Plus it become relatively more important if you move away from the familiar, comfort burger pizza wings tacos etc chains that simply pull people in on familiarity\brands and expectations of a certain satisfaction before even going in.
I am going to do a segue here then ask for input to what I am thinking, and ask you to help me relate it to GH and its food and gaming offering
Something I have learned over my years is that the saying "business exists to satisfy the needs of the customer" is not quite "sharp" enough.
I am not in marketing, but I believe it is better articulated as "a successful product or service provides the customer a means to achieve something important them"
A customer's need IS the means to achieve that "something".
Now I know it may be a bit of wordplay, but I am a huge believer in asking important questions all the time and the frame of mind and questions themselves must be insightful or lead to important insights that can be used.
These two questions are different, yet somewhat the same, but can lead down different paths because the starting mindset is different.
Mindset 1)
What can we offer our client that fills in important need they have?
Mindset 2)
What can we offer our client that provides them the means to achieve something important to them?
Talking needs, go to Google and they offer up pages and pages on satisfying needs, listing things like functionality...it works...price, convenience, design, reliability........
Not saying these things are not important. They are key to product design.
But the real offer to the customer is that means to achieve something important to them and the real value is in those outcomes...which is why you sell on outcomes and benefits, not features.
so back to GH
First I would love to get your insights
1) Does Q2 work better for you than Q1) in seeing a path forward to next questions, action steps etc
2) what "means" does GH provide to its customers?.
I expect much the same kinds of things we talk about in addressing needs, but perhaps phrased differently...and because the
"a need for entertainment" might become "a means to enjoy an evening out with friends" and a "means to provide gaming excitement"
Those two questions allow, at least to my mind, a better entry into analysis
For example, if "the need" is to fill the customer's desire for gaming entertainment, the solution might logically lead to more machines, a larger variety of them, more table games etc. Give the customer more entertainment options.
If "entertainment" become "gaming excitement", that is a different beast. Maybe instead of more machines there are more anciliarry activites.
Anyway, back to you for any comments