20 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • MAY/JUNE 2024 Lottery and other major consumer brand managers have long understood the value of collaboration to reinforce the value of the brands and connect with new consumer groups. In recent years, though, Team Lottery has come to appreciate, and learn how to leverage, the relative value of Brand Lottery to increase the ROI and effectiveness of these collaborations. Moderated by David Barden, CEO of the New Mexico Lottery and President of MUSL, the panel discussed a broad range of new gaming, branding, and promotional initiatives. They focused on how state lotteries working together nationally has enabled collaborations with brands like Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve, NASCAR, and others. The panel also shared details of an exciting partnership that’s coming soon with another world-leading brand—the NFL—and highlighted a potential new national game. In addition to David, the panel consisted of: Stephen Durrell, Executive Director, Kansas Lottery Jay Finks, Executive Director, Oklahoma Lottery Norm Lingle, Executive Director, South Dakota Lottery Bret Toyne, Executive Director, MUSL Introducing the panel, David thanked each member for their contributions to MUSL and for helping to develop the Lottery’s collaborations with big brands nationally. Responding, Stephen Durrell praised MUSL’s work and David specifically. “Leading MUSL is a very important position,” he said, “and David has done a really great job. He’s relentlessly focused on expanding the brand and exploring new opportunities. And the successes we’ve enjoyed building the brand are a credit to David and his leadership.” David opened the discussion by asking how the impact of partnerships with mega-brands should be assessed. “When the Lottery collaborates with a megabrand is return on investment the sole, or even the primary, priority? Or is it just as much about brand development and connecting with new consumer groups as part of a long-term growth strategy?” Illustrating how nation-wide promotional collaborations can build the lottery brand, David mentioned the research showing how they had contributed to the strength of Powerball. Bret Toyne explained how New Year’s Rockin’ Eve’s “First Millionaire of the Year,” which started five years ago, was one of the earliest examples of a national Powerball promotion. MUSL’s multistate marketing budget enables that promotion, and David made clear that it P A N E L D I S C U S S I O N The following article is based on a panel discussion held at the PGRI Smart-Tech Conference on March 14 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Leveraging the power of Brand Lottery L to R: Bret Toyne, Jay Finks, Norm Lingle, Stephen Durrell, David Barden “Let’s work with other leading brands to really leverage our power to connect with other consumer groups and bring in new players.”
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