How Covid-19 has presented lotteries with a digital opportunity

Having an online presence is now vital for staying in business for many operators as coronavirus has caused an acceleration of the adoption of digital services across many industries.

While we’re still unsure about the future implications global lockdowns will bring, we can start thinking about how businesses like lotteries in North America can future-proof their operations by expanding their services online.

Online or mobile lotteries are on the rise, and we’ve seen that it’s been a successful venture for the UK National Lottery to bring in an additional stream of revenue through its lottery app. North American lotteries could use this as an example to start working on something similar for their jurisdictions where online gambling is permitted.

Modernizing traditional products

Having a lottery app brings its own advantages for the operator. It allows it to reach a wider demographic and enables customers to engage with the lottery remotely. Younger generations will likely prefer to interact with digital services more, so being able to meet their expectations is part of future-proofing the business.

Moreover, a lottery app can also offer an opportunity to expand the entire gaming experience. The operator could cross-sell instant win games, sports betting and casino services if the customer wants to engage with more than just one product.

App as an extension of the brand

If the state regulation doesn’t permit online gambling, creating a lottery app can still be a great extension of the brand. Some lotteries offer customers to check draw results from their apps, and this experience can be exciting and engaging to expand the relationship with the customer.

The New York Lottery is a great example of this. While the customer needs to buy tickets from a retailer, the app offers gamified pickers to generate numbers if the customer wants some ideas. The app also lists results of the recent draws and displays the nearest stores to purchase tickets from.

The results app doesn’t need to be dull, and using the right tone of voice, branding and fun features could bring it to life.

Lotteries are also associated with their local communities, often playing a key role in their development. Sharing all the great stories of how the operator has helped different organizations carries a lot of weight with customers.

Sharing past winners, charity activities and adding value to customers can go a long way in creating engagement and building a relationship with them.

Onboarding customers with a great UX

So how can this be achieved?

Lotteries will need to work with their customers to onboard them to the new product. Buying a lottery ticket from a local store can be a very different experience to purchasing it through an app. Therefore, a lottery app needs to be intuitive and engaging for customers to quickly get used to it and enjoy it.

Meeting both regulatory and Apple or Google design standards is equally important. The current situation has shown how important digital services are when customers are unable to physically visit businesses.

For lotteries, this could also be an extension of their brand and an opportunity to reach a wider audience. Creating an app for gaming or simply checking draw results can be a great way to engage with customers. It’s important to focus on the usability and design of the product, as well as meeting all regulatory requirements.

But providing exciting features like games or relevant content can build the relationship and trust with the brand.

Richard Wagstaff – Degree 53

[Bio] Richard Wagstaff is the managing director at Degree 53, a UX, design and software development company specializing in online gambling products. Wagstaff previously worked as the operations director at Degree 53, supporting the project team. He has also worked across many different industries as a project manager at Betfred, Amaze and IGT. He has been specializing in digital projects for close to 10 years and as managing director is responsible for leading the Degree 53 team and managing client relationships.