Gaming America

Gaming royalty: Goddess of Slots

[as originally published on gamingamerica.com]

The 'Goddess of Slots' Lorraine Ziff spends time with Gaming America, to explain how acting and producing helped prepare her for a life of content creation in the gaming space. 

Were there parts of your upbringing that inspired this career path?

It’s actually very funny, I grew up in the Bronx and in Yonkers, New York, so I was literally down the block from the Yonkers Racetrack. We never had casinos or anything like that, though, and gambling was never a big deal for me. We did know about the horse races and would get to walk around the racetrack at times due to friendships with some of the people who worked there. I always thought the thoroughbreds were magnificent.

Casinos were not something I was exposed to. It’s ironic that I’ve had a number of different careers and now am in the gaming world.

How did the name Goddess of Slots come about? Is that something you came up with?

I was sitting with a couple of very dear friends, and we were kicking around different names. One of them had said, ‘you have to call yourself something’ but I just didn’t know.

I do enjoy fancy outfits and the like, so he said, ‘Well, I call you goddess because you’re always dressing up and you’re a girly-girl when it comes to that.’ He had also pointed out how goddess had a double connotation to mean dominating, so it worked as in I am “dominating” the slots in a way!

I noticed you had done work in acting, as well as directing and producing. How did that part of your career prepare you for working on social media?

When I was doing movies and television, I had to memorize lines, something I despise, and now I’ve found something where I can move away from that. This whole thing started because I was in between acting jobs, and I was in a casino and somebody happened to film me. I hit a jackpot, and we posted it to social media as a goof but then it went really viral. My friend said to me, ‘There’s a whole segment of people who like to watch that.’ Compared to acting though, this is a bit easier for me. In both instances, I have to be “on” and I still have to bring the energy, but as an influencer, I’m able to ad-lib and be silly, while still being creative. I enjoy performing and I’m not nervous in front of a camera – it comes very naturally to me, so my acting training and the social media I’m doing now all ties in nicely.

You mentioned the “viral” moment you had with the jackpot; was that the first breakout moment of your career, per se?

It really was. And again it started as a joke, so the fact that it even happened was crazy. I got over a million views and was like, ‘This is nuts!’

Is your content suited for both experienced and new players in casinos?

I would say it’s suited for both. The reason for that is, a lot of times, I will describe the game and I will say, ‘Okay, this is what the denomination is, this is what we’re looking for.’

Like a Dragon Link, for example, if it’s Autumn Moon, I’ll say ‘we need three of the moons to land.’ I’ll explain the game as I go through, which I’ve had people write to me and say, ‘we never saw that game and so we appreciate that you’re doing that.’ I just did a roll out for the newest Rakin’ Bacon in Nevada and so, when I got there, the games were described to me. Then, as I played them and we were filming, I was able to describe them to the audience.

Are there similarities to how you film now versus for television and film?

It’s interesting because, first of all, television and movies are two very, very different things in that, for television, they try not to make a lot of edits. They try not to take a lot of cuts, whereas, for movies, they’ll do a scene and

then they’ll cut it, stop it and then they’ll have you take some from a different angle and continuously reshoot. Usually there are four or five cameras going at once, and a scene will be looked at, edited and possibly redone hundreds of times like you can’t even imagine. I was a producer as well as an actress on a movie called Six Gun Saviour, which was a supernatural western. Being both behind the scenes and in front, it just took forever.

It was crazy, whereas in social media, it’s really cool, because I don’t really have to edit my stuff, it’s mainly just one-and-done. What you see is what you get, because I’m not memorizing lines or anything. It’s here I am, and I’m either going to win or I’m going to lose – and the audience is going to see that.

I was just at a photoshoot yesterday and I was posing, doing all these things, but then at one point, I misstepped and I almost broke my neck. I tripped, so an editor said, ‘Well, should we cut that? Do we want to put this

behind-the-scenes stuff on social media? Should we cut that out?’ And I said no, because that’s me. Sometimes I can be clumsy and that’s okay. It’s not about conveying an image – it’s about taking the viewer on a fun journey with me."

Absolutely, and what different types of content have you found can be created within the gaming space?

What I enjoy doing is almost a bit more than just gambling. Sometimes, you’ll get gambling stuff, or you could get the casino itself, whether it be the food and restaurants or entertainment space.

It could also be a peek into my life for viewers. I enjoy classic cars so if I’m invited to a show or auction, my audience will come along for that as well. I’ve been to charity events and posted those. My content is really about what I enjoy doing and, in the gaming space, there’s so many avenues to choose from, including the slot reviews; which is what you’ll often see me film with casinos.

Do you typically work directly with casinos, or independently find games of interest and connect with properties from there?

Most of the time it’s independent, but I do have casinos that will fly me out. The Peppermill in Reno, Nevada just had me out recently for the unveiling of the newest Rakin’ Bacon games. In Atlantic City, a few months ago, they held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the release and the fact that you could also gamble online, which I had the pleasure of being invited to. It’s a combination of the two really. I’m going on a cruise next month with Virgin with the chance to be part of opening the newest high-limit slot room on the cruise. If I’m invited, I go out and play, if not, you can find me in a casino looking for games that seem fun for myself and the viewers.

How do you stay engaged with your fans?

I have meet and greets and I really try to respond to people, as well. When they write to me, and if they’re respectful, and I can roll with the punches, I’ll write back to them and try to form a nice connection. I try not to engage with trolls – the rude or disrespectful ones – on social media; I do have some great laughs over how clever some people think they are and the jokes they’ll make, it’s all in good fun really.

If casinos see your content and that of other creators, does it push them to be more open with their consumer bases?

Some casinos didn’t allow people to film, which was really missing the boat. Now I believe many casinos have really jumped on the bandwagon and see influencers for what we are: which is advertising for you. We’re

bringing bodies in the door because the consumer is often excited to meet us and share in the same experiences we are having in the casino. They want to play the games we show on our social media. There's an excitement and an energy there, and social media is the newest way to show the casino or the new game in a thrilling way. This is one more way to help get players in the door, so it’s really a win-win for all involved. Hard Rock has been very receptive to this new way of doing things for a while. The Peppermill in Reno has held big influencer events and public turnout has been incredible for them. Other casinos have been slower to recognize the value. MGM recently gave me permission to film and at G2E in Vegas, this year, I certainly took advantage of being allowed to do that.

How do you see your brand evolving from here?

I’m hoping it will get bigger and bigger. My end game would be to do a travel-type casino review show where I’m going from casino to casino, either by myself or with “my merry band of gamblers” playing games, checking the casinos and providing tips. Something similar to American Pickers on a network like Netflix, Hulu, Discovery, History or Travel Channels.