The casino is a place of flashy lights and upbeat music. It’s where champagne glasses clink, tourists and locals mingle, and people try their luck at games of chance like poker and blackjack. But the true draw of casinos is the atmosphere. The energy is palpable, and it is almost as exciting to watch other people win as it is to play yourself.

As with any business, a casino’s main goal is to encourage gamblers to spend money repeatedly for the chance of winning. But it’s also important for the casino to make sure that its guests are enjoying themselves and having a good time. That’s why casinos invest a lot of time and money into security.

Security starts on the casino floor, where employees keep their eyes peeled for blatant cheating or scams. Dealers watch for crooked bettors, and pit bosses and table managers look out for suspicious betting patterns. Then there are the cameras, which offer a high-tech eye-in-the-sky view of every table, slot machine, and window. All of these systems are watched by security workers in a room filled with banks of monitors.

But the real security threat is from within, and it’s hard to stop a casino from being ripped off by criminals who are looking for the big score. The best defense is a strong offense, which means investing in the right marketing strategies.