CREATING THE EXPERIENCE AT HYDE BELLAGIO WITH SR. MARKETING MANAGER RICK ONSUREZ

CREATING THE EXPERIENCE AT HYDE BELLAGIO WITH SR. MARKETING MANAGER RICK ONSUREZ

This year we have seen Hyde Bellagio grow from being known as the open format venue to a celebrity driven performance and appearance type club.  We had the opportunity to sit down with Rick Onsurez, Sr. Marketing Manager for SBE to find out more about where these amazing events come from.  Rick started at HYDE Bellagio back in 2012 when the venue first opened.  He has since moved his way up to the top of the marketing ladder.

The Vegas marketing director is different than what you typically see in other cities. You and your team choose the events, not the promoters. What does it take to come up with a solid event?

The difference between Las Vegas is that Las Vegas is always evolving. It’s never the same thing from year to year. You always got to take into consideration the trends. What’s going on? People that come to Vegas are expecting to come to Vegas for the newest, hottest thing that’s going on, so you constantly got to keep ahead of the trends and constantly redeveloping yourself to make sure that you’re staying relevant in what’s going on in entertainment. People come to Las Vegas, and they’re coming to Las Vegas to experience something that they don’t get to experience at home. It’s constantly being able to create an experience that your guests are going to walk away with and go home and talk about.

I think the most important thing is being overseen in marketing division, especially on the nightlife side here in Las Vegas is constantly evolving yourself, constantly reinventing what you’re doing in the venue and keeping it relevant. Then, also, I’ll say this til the day I die that the most important thing is creating that experience and the level of hospitality and service that is above all other venues. It’s really keeping focus on making sure that your guests are coming in, getting the best service possible, getting the best experience possible, and walking away with the memory that they’re not going to forget.

Through your events, how have you managed to cultivate a loyal clientele?

We stay consistent in what we do. We don’t have the big DJs that a lot of the other venues have to drive the traffic into the venue. The route that Hyde has taken is the route of consistency. Again, it goes back to creating that experience, creating that level of customer service that they’re not going to get from a larger club. It’s the more one on one experience that’s going to leave an everlasting memory in their mind when they leave Hyde. Again, the most important thing with Hyde is that we’re always staying consistent. That level of hospitality and the level of service, it’s the same every time you come in. If you come in on a Tuesday night or if you come in on a Saturday night, that’s our main focus is creating that experience.

Who are the celebrity frequent flyers at Hyde Bellagio?

Hyde’s really built its name as being the celebrity hotspot. We get a lot of the repeat, I guess, celebrity clients. Jamie Foxx is in here all the time. We’ve had Jamie Foxx a couple of times this year, Nick Jonas, Joe Jonas, the Jonas Brothers. A lot of the young Hollywood celebrities love to come to Hyde Bellaggio. The reason why they come to Hyde is because we offer them that level of exclusivity, and it’s an intimate venue, so they feel like they can come here, have a good time. We’ve found that that’s been the key to driving a lot of the celebrities back in here. Again, repeat celebrities are Jamie Foxx, you’ve got Nick Jonas, Joe Jonas, Brody Jenner. The Kardashians are here once or twice a year. It’s basically the pop icons that are trending right now and Travis Barker, of course. We’ve got the residency with Travis Barker, so he’s been here a couple times this year, and he’ll continue to be here through 2016.

As a marketing director, you’re always seen with these celebrities, what’s your relationship with them? 

I think the key to running a successful venue, especially when you’re working with the number of celebrities that we have that come into our venue, it’s really creating a relationship that’s a personal relationship, creating a friendship, making sure that when the celebrities come into our venue that they feel comfortable, that they feel at home. A lot of these celebrities want to come out, and they don’t want to be hassled or bothered. They don’t want to feel like they’re treated differently. At the end of the day, our goal here is to make sure that every celebrity comes in here and feels like they’re just another person here having a good time. Obviously, we take into consideration that they are celebrities, making sure that they’re comfortable, making sure that we meet their needs, but at the end of the day, we want them to feel like Hyde’s their home. We’ve really cultivated those relationship to make those celebrities come back and want to work with us more based on their level of comfort with us and the type of intimate relationships that we have with them.

What has been your most memorable moment over the past 3 years at Hyde Bellagio?

I was just having this conversation with somebody the other day. I think one of the most memorable moments at Hyde is always New Year’s Eve. There’s something magical about being inside of Hyde on New Year’s Eve. Hyde opened on New Year’s Eve almost 4 years ago. To sit inside Hyde on New Year’s Eve and watch the water fountains go off, we’re sitting on one of the most iconic things in Vegas, one of the most iconic landmarks in Las Vegas, and to have the privilege to be in our venue and every New Year’s, you know that you’ve made it another year in Las Vegas, and that’s a big accomplishment in itself. I think being in the venue New Year’s Eve, watching the water fountains go off, watching people still enjoy the venue and still have that level of excitement and people still wanting to be here, it’s a really rewarding feeling.

What direction do you see Hyde going in 2016?

For 2016 and through the rest of 2015, you’re going to start seeing us booking a lot more celebrities here in Hyde. We’re going in the route of getting a lot of celebrities to come in, really creating Hyde and making it that exclusive venue that the brand is known for. You’ll see a lot of that in 2016, a lot more bookings. We’ve got a couple other exciting things that are coming down the pipeline. Again, 2016, you’re going to see us staying true to what the brand is that’s exclusive, high end, and a place that’s a celebrity hotspot.