Seminole Casino Coconut Creek selected as the winner of the 2012 Barona/VCAT Award For Excellence In Indian Gaming Marketing

COCONUT CREEK, FL – Seminole Casino Coconut Creek has been named winner of the 2012 Barona/VCAT Award for Excellence in Indian Gaming Marketing. The prestigious award was presented to the casino on Feb. 1 during Raving’s 14th Indian Gaming National Marketing Conference at the Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa in Rancho Mirage, Calif. The event was just one day before the casino held the much publicized grand opening of its $150 million expansion, complete with tribal ceremonies, a “move that bus” celebratory reveal by ABC’s television’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition show star, Ty Pennington, and a rock concert by Foreigner.

Barona/VCAT Award for Excellence in Indian Gaming Marketing is the sole award in the gaming industry specifically recognizing the marketing efforts of tribal casinos and acknowledging their importance in the success of a gaming enterprise.

“One tribal casino has led the way in growing their existing players with excellence and innovation in marketing. Seminole Casino Coconut Creek has always entertained me with their constant, unusual and creative promotions, but what has truly impressed me is that all of these promotions drive revenue and speak to their key constituencies,” said Dennis Conrad, president and chief strategist of Raving Consulting Company, and creator of the award.

The U.S. and Canada competition is based on a casino organization’s total body of work, not one year of performance or a single marketing campaign. A group of seven tribal gaming properties vied for it this year.

“We’re extremely honored to win, especially in the current economic climate,” said Michael Michaud, Seminole Casino Coconut Creek vice president of marketing. “Everyone, not just our marketing staff, contributed to achieving this award because it takes a strong team to create and execute promotions and events to the volume we’ve experienced over the past few years.”

Requirements for the Barona/VCAT Award For Excellence In Indian Gaming Marketing include: demonstrating that their casino links superior marketing efforts to superior financial performance; builds marketing excellence around key constituencies of customers, employees and communities; and integrates marketing effectively throughout their entire casino operation.

In receiving the coveted award, Seminole Casino Coconut Creek joins industry leaders Barona Resort and Casino, CA (2007), Santa Ana Star Casino, NM (2008), Black Oak Casino and the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians (2009), and Osage Million Dollar Elm Casinos (2011).

This year’s judges included Greg Shay, CEO of gaming consulting firm VCAT, LLC; Troy Simpson, assistant general manager of Barona Resort and Casino; Jennifer Bighorse, director of marketing of Osage Casinos, and Dennis Conrad. The winner is given the opportunity to provide a judge for the following year’s deliberations.

The actual Barona/VCAT Award itself is unique; each is handcrafted by a Native American artist. This year’s was created by Candace Penney, a member of the Tolowa, Chetco, Tututni, Wailacki, Pomo and Wintun Tribes, and marketing manager of Lucky 7 Casino in Smith River, Calif. She hand-picked a piece of redwood burl and spent more than 36 hours creating custom beadwork for it.

For information about Raving’s Indian Gaming National Marketing Conference to be held in 2013, or the Barona/VCAT Award for Excellence In Indian Gaming Marketing, please contact Christine Faria, VP Operations & Communications, Raving Consulting Company, 775-329-7864, chris@ravingconsulting.com.

About The All-New Seminole Casino Coconut Creek

Open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, Seminole Casino Coconut Creek has completed a $150 million expansion with a 100,000-square-foot gaming floor, the non-smoking, well-appointed Stax Poker Lounge located on the second floor, and three new restaurants, the upscale NYY Steak, the spectacular flavors of Italy in Sorrisi Italian Restaurant, and the New York-style 1st Street Deli. NYY Steak is open daily 5 p.m.-11 p.m. (closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays). Sorrisi Italian Restaurant is open daily 5 p.m. – 11 p.m. (closed Sundays and Mondays). 1st Street Deli is open every day from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m. 5,700 square feet of retail shops are located on the first floor courtyard of the new 2,400-space LEED Silver Certification-registered parking garage. On the south side of the state-of-the-art green garage there is a convenient transportation hub consisting of a large charter bus service lounge for the comfort of guests, a valet station, and a guest vestibule.

Other amenities in the expanded casino include a new Player’s Club and a High-Limit gaming area. The new Player’s Club features revolutionary electronic guest interaction technology that eliminates guest waiting lines and immediately immerses players in the casino’s action. Conveniently located just inside the new northwest area of the casino, the Player’s Club is the very first of its kind in the United States and is expected to completely change the guest service experience as the casino industry knows it today. The upscale High-Limit action area with its own bar/lounge is located in the center of the greatly-enlarged casino, containing 12 high-limit table games and more than 60 high-limit slot machines. Adjacent to the High-Limit, there is an attractive new casino promotions staging area.

As part of the expansion project, The Site casino sprung structure building was converted into an intimate, new 1,200-seat show venue. Seminole Casino Coconut Creek development plans are being coordinated with, and incorporated in, the city of Coconut Creek’s MainStreet development.

Named the “Best Place to Gamble” by Broward-Palm Beach New Times, Seminole Casino Coconut Creek currently offers more than 2,300 of the latest and greatest slot machines including Las Vegas-style slots. Two of the most popular games are The Hangover and Leprechaun Gold. Some of the most popular progressive slot machine titles are Ghost Busters, Diamond Jackpots, Vegas Paradise, Monopoly Big Event, Wizard of Oz and Slingo Bonus. Denominations range from one cent to $100. The casino now offers 65 table games including live blackjack, baccarat, and popular novelty games such as pai gow poker. It features 24/7 high stakes no-limit action in its Stax Poker Lounge, with a wide array of tournaments for all types of players. Live poker games include Texas Hold ’em, 7-Card Stud, and Omaha tournaments with buy-ins from $85 to more than $1,000.

In 2007, Seminole Casino Coconut Creek underwent its first major expansion of approximately $32 million, which added the marketplace-style Fresh Harvest restaurant, named “Best Buffet By Far” in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel; as well as the Nectar lounge and outdoor Sunset Grill, both with live nightly

entertainment. Fresh Harvest is open 7 a.m. – 10 p.m. daily (closes only at 8 p.m. on Sunday). Sunset Grill is open 24/7 365 days a year. The Sushi Bar, in Nectar Lounge, is open 8 p.m. – 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday.

Seminole Casino Coconut Creek is located just east of State Road 7 (U.S. 441) and north of Sample Road at 5550 NW 40th Street. For more information call 954-977-6700, visit online at http://www.seminolecasinococonutcreek.com. Follow on Twitter: @SCCoconutCreek, #funyou, or #CocoGO2012 or on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/seminolecasinococonutcreek.