Lauren Averill, Director of Marketing
For FY 2026, we have focused on optimizing the Illinois Lottery’s product offering and back-end operations, and we are excited to see how players respond. We are building on the momentum and expansion of our higher price point categories, which deliver the highest profit per bin and fastest-growing player engagement. We have also refined our launch cadence, expanded Blowout-style game offerings, and integrated top-tested prize structures and print features that appeal to our players.
Our marketing creative will continue to use our Scratch Away campaign, which encourages players to take a break in their day and have a moment to themselves to escape. We will support our messaging with optimizations to the tickets, driving relevance and excitement among our players.
FY 2026 marketing will emphasize layered engagement across multiple channels:
- Family of Games and Second Chance: Two to three core families and select standalone games will be paired with promotional overlays to boost retention and repeat play.
- Callout Testing and POS Optimization: Ongoing research into insert messaging (e.g., “Over X prizes of $X”) ensures we lead with the most compelling value statements at retail.
- CRM Personalization: Lifecycle-based messaging and urgency-driven reactivation campaigns will help re-engage lapsed players.
- Holiday Pulse Strategy: A robust seasonal mix with tiered price points, gift-friendly formats, and bonus features will anchor engagement during key periods.
- Retail Execution: Vending enhancements, planogram optimization, and priority bin facings will ensure visibility and availability at launch.
For FY 2026, we are focused on disciplined growth, committing to proven formats like Blowout-style games while introducing fresh concepts through targeted research, deeper player insights, and data-backed innovation.
Our strategy emphasizes balanced growth across revenue, GGR, and engagement, supported by an optimized launch cadence and retail execution that keeps the portfolio visible, reinvested, and player-centric.
Our creative campaign will continue to leverage our Scratch Away campaign, supporting our various ticket families and second-chance details with tested messaging to drive engagement and purchase.