Lottery players are always on the lookout for new ways to have fun along with a chance to win. Lotteries, likewise, need fresh and entertaining experiences to offer in order to attract new demographics. IGT innovation and product teams continually work to apply insights on players’ evolving needs, what and how they want to win, how they feel as they play a game, and which small changes or improvements to a game would surprise and delight them.

Here are some of the latest player-driven experiences from IGT to fuel engagement and responsible growth, informed by insights from IGT’s substantial investments in player-focused research and testing.

Draw Game Innovation: Cash Pop™

Cash Pop™ is a draw game that gives players the ability to create their own experience each time they play. The game is easy to understand—players wager on a single number from 1 to 15—and the prize they’re playing for is randomly selected and printed on the ticket.

The New Jersey Lottery launched the game on Sept. 30. “Cash Pop players have said there’s something exciting about not knowing exactly how much they’re playing for as they place their wager. It adds to the fun,” says Vince Smart, Senior Director of Marketing, Northstar New Jersey.

With Cash Pop, IGT’s FutureGame team expanded on the idea of one winning number per draw to provide multiple ways for players to strategize and customize their play experience. Players can wager multiple numbers for each draw to improve overall odds. They can also choose the amount to play on each number knowing that larger wagers will provide higher payouts, similar to what happens with instant games.

With so many ways to play Cash Pop, players can strategize their wager.

To create a memorable launch campaign, the New Jersey Lottery licensed the 1979 dance song “Pop Music,” tweaking the lyrics to incorporate the name and features of the game. The same fun, upbeat spirit carries over into the look of the launch campaign and the monitor show, incorporating the bright colors and visual cues of Pop art and vintage comic books. During each draw, numbers pop up and get knocked off the monitor screen with phrases like “Pow!” and “Ka-bam!” The television spot is set in a social environment with a DJ playing music for a range of patrons. “As the game pops up on the monitor, it comes to life with the song playing and people dancing,” says Smart.

The campaign, geared to a 21-to-34-year-old demographic, will run for 8 weeks and includes radio, out-of-home media, digital, social, and retail point of sale. “New Jersey has a competitive gaming environment, including sports betting and online casinos. Innovation is very important to us, making it ideal ground for launching an innovative game like Cash Pop,” says Adam Perlow, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Northstar New Jersey. In addition to offering multiple player experiences in one game, Cash Pop fills a gap in lottery portfolios as the odds and prizes complement other games offered today.

What’s New in Second Chance?

Winner’s Choice™

Another new, customizable player experience available to lotteries is Winner’s Choice™, a second chance instants promotion with a twist. As the name suggests, the program gives players the flexibility to select their own prizes. It also offers a high degree of flexibility to lotteries, as the promotion can be tied to any price point and any game in a lottery’s portfolio, at the lottery’s preference.

Participating players build their own list of prize options online, via a customized microsite from IGT. Each non-winning ticket lets players select one item to build their list, with options broken out by category and each category tiered by value.

At the lower end of a category, for example, players could select a spa experience, a cooking class, or a night out at one of Vegas’s hottest clubs from among themed packages determined by the lottery. At the top tier, players might choose a weeklong spa-, culinary-, or nightlife-themed adventure with multiple experiences throughout.

Winners of the second chance drawing then select the prize of their choice from among their own dream lists. A play-for-fun option gives players the chance to multiply their number of entries, and a group-play option allows players to invite friends and family to enter with them.

IGT’s Winner’s Choice promotion can support any game in a lottery’s portfolio: a single instant game, licensed property or non-licensed, a Family of Games, a single price point, multiple price points —or it can even be used across an entire portfolio. For lotteries and players alike, the flexibility in the program design and the choice of personalized prizes is a win.