The Future of Guest Engagement at Foxwoods: Data, AI, and On-Property Excellence

Session Summary

This fireside chat explored how Foxwoods is blending data, AI, and hospitality to deliver seamless guest engagement across physical and digital channels. Blair Bendel emphasized the unique challenge of the gaming industry: unlike e-commerce, most revenue comes from on-property experiences, so digital engagement must enhance—not replace—the in-person journey. The discussion covered data fragmentation across loyalty, dining, entertainment, and gaming systems, and how consolidating communications through MoEngage is enabling more curated customer journeys. Blair highlighted early wins from their migration, including improved efficiency and higher email open rates, while also outlining ambitious long-term goals like real-time insights and AI-driven personalization.

Top Takeaways

• Hospitality-specific challenge: Foxwoods’ engagement relies on making offline experiences seamless with digital touchpoints.
• Early ROI: The move to MoEngage reduced executional burden on marketing staff and drove a 500 bps lift in open rates.
• Roadmap approach: Emphasis on crawl-walk-run adoption, with MoEngage helping to prioritize goals and build a roadmap.
• AI in action: Future vision includes real-time insights and hyper-personalized experiences, such as celebrating wins on the casino floor instantly with relevant offers.
• Cultural shift: Change management and buy-in from IT and marketing teams were as important as the technology itself.