Can Your Ads Pass the Hand Over The Logo Test?

The Moment of Truth

If you took the logo off your latest casino ad and replaced it with a competitor’s, would anyone notice?

If the answer is “no,” you do not just have a marketing problem. You have a branding problem.

It is a challenge I have repeatedly seen in casino marketing. This reality hit home recently when we provided an estimate for a brand guide to a casino property, and the recipient responded, “This price seems excessive. The design resources are usually too busy to refer to a style guide.” I was speechless and mildly insulted, but I realized these terms are (unfortunately) often used interchangeably in our industry. I discussed this common misunderstanding in my previous article on the importance of brand consistency.”

Let’s set the record straight: a brand is more than just a logo. Your casino’s brand is how and what your players and target audiences think and feel when they see or hear your name, communications, and stories. It comes across in your tone, manner, images, and interactions—from property signage to digital campaigns, host communications, and slot signage.

Jules Rules #2: A brand is built from the bottom up, and your brand standards guide is at the bottom.

The Interchangeable Casino Marketing Epidemic

Look at the casino ads in a market other than yours. What do you see?

Gold accents and dramatic lighting
Smiling people winning at slot machines
Generic phrases like “More Winners!” or “The Place to Play!”

Promotion-driven messaging focused on giveaways and drawings

Now try this exercise: Cover up the logos with your hand. Can you tell which property is which?

Now, try this very same thing in your market.

For most casino marketers, this simple test reveals an uncomfortable truth: there’s nothing distinctive about their brand beyond the logo itself.

The Cost of Casino Brand Inconsistency

The reality of casino marketing is that your brand exists within a complex ecosystem where gaming, hospitality, entertainment, and food & beverage intersect. Each area needs to feel connected while sometimes maintaining its own identity. Without a comprehensive brand standards guide, achieving this balance becomes nearly impossible.

Consider what happens when:

Your digital team uses different colors than your direct mail team (and sometimes blames the inconsistency on “web-safe colors”
Your player’s club materials do not match the look and feel of your advertising
Your restaurant promotions seem disconnected from your casino’s overall brand
Your competitors’ ads look remarkably similar to yours

Casino marketers risk brand dilution, confusing messaging, and inconsistency that can erode player trust over time without a clear brand standards guide.

Why Casino Ads Look the Same (And Why It Matters)

Casino marketing tends to fall into predictable patterns because:

We focus on short-term promotions rather than long-term brand building
We assume players only care about winning (they do not—they care about experience)
We copy what seems to work for others instead of finding our unique voice
We lack a comprehensive brand standards guide that goes beyond basic printed visual elements

When every casino looks and sounds the same, players make decisions based solely on convenience or offers—not loyalty or emotional connection. You become a commodity, not a destination.

Beyond the Logo: Building a Casino Brand That Stands Out

What makes a casino brand truly distinctive goes far beyond a recognizable logo. While a logo style guide is absolutely essential to creating a robust framework and starting point for your casino’s visual identity, it is only ONE critical part of building a brand that will create awareness over time.

Brand standards guides (BSGs) support your initiatives by ensuring actions are relevant to the brand’s goals and vision. Programs based on the BSG will help separate your casino from competitors in a way only you can own. When adequately leveraged across the business, your BSG will influence your player-facing messages and determine how you speak to employees, the investment community, and the community at large.

What to Include in Your Casino’s Brand Style Guide

As my previous guide on brand standards outlined, every practical brand style guide starts with fundamental elements. However, to truly stand out in the competitive casino landscape, your BSG must go beyond these basics and address industry-specific challenges unique to gaming and hospitality.

The Foundation: Essential Elements

These components form the backbone of any brand style guide and are the absolute minimum you should have in place:

Brand mission, vision, and values that define your purpose and guiding principles
Brand essence and positioning statement that clearly articulates how your casino differs from competitors
Brand history, highlighting your property’s unique story and heritage
Brand architecture, especially important for properties with multiple venues, restaurants, or entertainment offerings
Logo specifications, including colors for print and web, as well as any secondary logos, wordmarks, or monograms
Color specifications across all applications:
- Primary, secondary, and tertiary colors
- Limited and single color versions of the logo (critical for promotional items)
- Pantone, CMYK, RGB and hex colors
Logo placement and size specifications, with examples showing both correct usage and what to avoid
Taglines and their usage across different marketing channels

Beyond the Basics: Creating True Differentiation

To build a brand that passes the hand-over-the-logo test, your BSG must include these deeper elements:

Target audience profiles and player personas that guide all marketing decisions
Visual elements integral to your casino’s identity, such as icons, calls to action, and unique treatments
Photography style and composition that reflects your casino’s atmosphere and target demographic
Typography guidelines, including fonts, weights, usage, and alternative web-safe options
Digital specifications for your website, mobile app, and social media presence
Voice and tone of writing that captures your casino’s personality, including keywords and phrases to use (and avoid)
Standardization of dates, times, and how to refer to gaming terms
Asset libraries, such as approved images and trademarks
Examples of correct and incorrect usage for each element
Implementation guidelines and governance that outline who enforces standards and how

Casino-Specific Considerations: What Makes Gaming Different

The gaming industry presents unique branding challenges that are not found in other sectors. Your BSG should specifically address the following:

Player touchpoint guidelines for player’s club materials, kiosk messaging, and gaming floor communications
Brand standards for promotional items that maintain integrity even with production limitations
Cross-department application guides that help non-marketing teams (like F&B or hotel) maintain brand consistency

Real-World Examples of Strong Casino Branding

Consider these examples of casinos that have nailed their distinctive brand identity:

Casino A uses a consistent photography style with real players rather than stock photos, instantly identifiable color treatments, and a friendly, conversational tone that creates a sense of community.
Casino B has built its brand around local heritage, using consistent storytelling elements in all marketing to connect its property to the region’s history and culture.
Casino C maintains a luxury positioning with a distinctive typography system, sophisticated color palette, and an editorial approach to copy that elevates their communications beyond typical casino marketing.

None of these properties would fail the hand-over-the-logo test because their brand identity extends far beyond their logo.

Creating and Implementing Your Brand Standards: A Framework

A brand style guide is only effective if it is used. The development and implementation process should follow these key phases:

Phase 1: Audit and Assess

Before creating or updating your BSG, start with a thorough evaluation:

Conduct a brand audit: Collect all your marketing materials from the past 6 months. Remove the logos and ask team members from different departments if they can identify which pieces belong together.
Analyze competitor positioning: Create a simple matrix that maps where competitors position themselves (luxury vs. value, entertainment-focused vs. gaming-focused) to find your unique space.
Assess departmental alignment: Meet with department heads to understand how they interpret and apply your brand standards in their areas.

Phase 2: Develop and Document

With insights from your audit, create a comprehensive BSG addressing all the above elements. The most effective casino brand style guides are not static documents on a shelf—they are living resources that evolve as your property and players change.

Phase 3: Implement and Govern

Once your BSG is developed, implementation becomes critical:

Create a governance strategy that clearly outlines who is responsible for maintaining brand standards
Train all departments, not just marketing, on the importance of brand consistency
Establish a review process for new materials to ensure compliance before production
Develop a competitive review schedule to assess how your brand stands out in the marketplace regularly
Create actionable plans to address any gaps identified in ongoing audits

Your Next Steps: Taking Action

Ready to strengthen your casino’s brand identity? Here are three immediate actions you can take:

Try the hand-over-the-logo test on your recent marketing materials. If they fail the test, you have identified a critical branding issue.
Schedule a mini-audit with representatives from different departments to gauge how they perceive and apply your brand.
Evaluate your current BSG against the comprehensive checklist above to identify gaps that need addressing.

From Generic to Memorable: Your Path Forward

A comprehensive brand standards guide defines your casino’s language and visual image to ensure a consistent communication tone. Additionally, it drives a cohesive guest experience to nurture trust and loyalty over time for current and future players.

Ready to go deeper? The Casino Brand Standards Masterclass will help you create a comprehensive guide that ensures every ad, email, and player interaction feels uniquely YOU.

The program includes:

Frameworks for defining brand mission, vision, and values
Exercises to identify your authentic brand voice
Tools for conducting competitive brand analyses
Strategies for implementing and governing brand standards across departments

Early access starts March 17—sign up today to learn how to develop a brand style guide that will transform your casino marketing from generic to unforgettable!

The Hand-Over-The-Logo Test: Why Your Casino Needs a Comprehensive Brand Standards