A large building with a fountain in front of it.

"When you're working in a competitive market in one of the smallest casinos in that market, the budget is so important. New Level Radio provided a very competitive price that kept us under budget. We didn't have to spend extra to get them in the door.


- James LaBrada, General Manager at Prairie Moon Casino



Small Casino, Big Sound:

How Prairie Moon Competes in Oklahoma

The Challenge:

Being the Smallest Room in a Market Full of Casino Properties


Drive through Miami, Oklahoma, and you'll pass more casinos in 10 minutes than most people see in a year. For Prairie Moon, that means every guest who walks through the door had other options and picked this one.


James LaBrada knows the market better than anyone. He got into gaming in his early 20s, right out of college, and worked his way up from floor supervisor to slot manager to slot director, then into operations. He has been General Manager at Prairie Moon for over two years.


"We are a slots casino, but we're a welcoming, very local vibe casino," LaBrada says. "We've also changed the look and upgraded everything inside and out. We wanted to entice the new player who's never been here."



Everything got an upgrade except what was coming through the speakers


"We were just doing regular satellite radio through the speakers," he says. "We had no input at all. They just provided the service, and we paid a monthly bill."



A man with a beard is smiling in front of a white brick wall.

"A small property can't outspend the big room down the road. What it can do is out-feel it. Sound is one of the few things a 250-slot casino can do just as well as a 2,000-slot casino, and if you're paying attention, better."


- New Level Radio CEO and

Co-founder Nathan Green

The Solution:

Music That Moves and Messaging That Works


Instead of a generic satellite feed, New Level Radio built Prairie Moon a fully customized program: curated music that shifts with the floor, with professionally produced promotional messaging woven between songs.


"We didn't want the normal radio play you hear at any casino," LaBrada says. "We wanted to be a little different and give the brand more exposure in the long run."


According to New Level Radio CEO and Co-Founder Nathan Green, that starts with knowing the room.


"Our approach always begins with the same questions," Green says. "Who's in the building, why are they here, and how long do they stay? Then we build the music and messaging around these responses. What you never want is a soundtrack that could just as easily be playing elsewhere.


Prairie Moon now runs monthly promotions, daily promotions, and everything in between through the system.


The transition itself was one of LaBrada's first pleasant surprises.


"The onboarding was very clear about everything." We walked through every step, and it wasn't complicated," says LaBrada. "The challenge for me personally was our IT department, because they had never dealt with anything like this whatsoever. 


“New Level Radio communicated back and forth about the issues that needed to be resolved, sent instructions for everything that needed to be installed, and stayed available until the system was running. Sometimes IT is the challenge. They were super reliable and helpful in that situation.



A large building with a lot of windows is lit up at night.

"We all have moving parts and gears turning every single day, and we're busy, but New Level Radio is reliable. They communicate, they answer questions, and they keep this partnership. I really appreciate that, especially coming from a small casino."


- James LaBrada, General Manager at Prairie Moon Casino








The Result: 

The Difference Guests Can Feel


Ask LaBrada what he noticed first, and he doesn't reach for a number.


"It's the feel, to be honest," he says. "And that's so important, because nobody really talks about it. People take it for granted. New Level Radio is altering the feel and the experience of the customer walking through the casino."


Not only do guests not comment on it, but employees do, too.


"More than one of them has said, ' Oh my gosh, this music is so much better than what we had before; we really appreciate it,' LaBrada says. "And they think it's super neat that we have the advertising on the radio too."


This reaction is familiar to Green.


"Your staff is on that floor eight to 10 hours a day," he says. "If they're hearing the same songs on a loop, that wears on them, and guests pick up on it. When the room sounds good, everybody's in a better mood, and that's part of the product whether you're measuring it or not."


The messaging side has changed how Prairie Moon reaches the people already in the building.


Green says that's the part most operators leave on the table.


"You have a guest who is already on your floor, already engaged, already spending time with your brand," he says. "That is the most valuable audience you will ever have, and most properties do almost nothing with it. A message between songs, produced well and timed right, doesn't interrupt the experience. It becomes part of it."


Prairie Moon has averaged roughly 300 new player signups a month over the past two years. LaBrada credits the property's upgrades, its people, and its programming, and he puts New Level Radio in that mix.


"I appreciate the relationship we have," LaBrada continues. "We all have moving parts and gears turning every single day, and we're busy, but New Level Radio is reliable. They communicate, they answer questions, and they keep this partnership. I really appreciate that, especially coming from a small casino."