The Georgia Lottery Corporation (GLC) became one of the first U.S. lotteries to offer eInstant games in 2014 when it launched its successful Diggi Games supported by a team of four IGT marketing services professionals. The IGT dedicated digital specialists are an extension of GLC and work collaboratively on achieving program goals.
The Lottery has since introduced its Diggi Games-branded eInstants and realized a more than 60% year-over-year average annual growth rate consistently over the last five years. Given the recent success, the iLottery dedicated marketing team doubled in size during 2021, to further support the growing operation.
“Each year we discover more about Georgia’s iLottery player segments and how to best deliver entertaining play value. Great play experience is what keeps players engaged with the Diggi Games brand,” said Andrea Williams, IGT Senior Manager, PlayLottery, one of the first assigned to GLC’s iLottery marketing services team.
Co-located with customer lotteries prior to the pandemic, IGT’s Marketing Services team assists U.S. and international lotteries with their iLottery marketing needs, working in concert with lotteries to provide players with the best digital experience and to grow revenues in support of each lottery’s mission.
“Our team assists with a multitude of marketing and consulting functions, including player acquisition, retention, and game promotions,” said Karri Paavilainen, Senior Director PlayLottery Marketing. “In addition, IGT’s PlayInstantWin product team consults with lotteries on best practices, game analytics, and structured roadmaps to achieve their iLottery goals.”
In the seven years since The Georgia Lottery Corporation launched its eInstant Diggi Games, the Lottery and IGT teams have continuously monitored and refreshed the roadmap to enhance game play to include exciting graphics, animations, new mechanics and bonus rounds to appeal to a variety of players.
Georgia’s Diggi Game Evolution
Back in 2014, GLC launched four eInstant games with casual play styles, a single price point and a $5,000 top cash prize. Over the past seven years, GLC and IGT adopted a thoughtful and measured approach to designing, selecting, and launching games that have player appeal.
The IGT product and marketing teams continuously analyze game data to understand game performance and player behaviors. Based on this analysis, GLC has introduced new and expanded game features, play styles, and adjustments to payouts and launch cadence. Today, games feature multiple price points, a wide variety of play styles, higher RTPs, and $400,000 top cash prizes.
“A benefit of our collaborative partnership with IGT is the ability to gather insights regarding player expectations,” said J.B. Landroche, GLC Senior Vice President of Corporate Affairs. “We implement countless enhancements, features and play styles that surface from the analysis. Today’s games reflect how rapidly the industry is evolving and have quite different characteristics from the original games launched in 2014.” For example, IGT’s recent library games Triple Platinum and VIP Gold Grand are especially gaining player attention in Georgia, as both are top performers in average revenue per paying player.
In 2017, GLC added retail into the digital mix and launched its first omnichannel eInstant game, 50X the Money. The retail instant ticket is one of the best-sellers and is still on sale today. “The Lottery worked in tandem with IGT to create a bespoke eInstant game that appealed to both retail and digital players,” said Williams. “With its success, we’ve been creating omnichannel games on an annual basis ever since. In fact, all omnichannel games have been top 15 performers.”
The game schedule also evolved. GLC was on a monthly game-launch cadence until early 2020. Shifting to bi-monthly game launches added an extra level of consideration. IGT and GLC ensure the two scheduled games have different play styles and audience appeal. “The second game launch in the month keeps the player base more engaged,” said Paavilainen. “It goes back to giving players variety and a reason to check-in more consistently. We continue to work together with GLC to find new ways to generate responsible growth.”