Public Gaming International November/December 2021

13 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 Digital Partner for Lotteries www.bedegaming.com P. McDonald: The silver-lining of the pandemic, if there is one, is that we’ve seen how our employees can thrive while working from home. I’ve reviewed long-term plans with my senior management team which will include a hybrid work environment for most departments. How is the game portfolio likely to evolve? Which game categories do you expect to trend up over the next couple years? P. McDonald: Given that our lottery is 47 years old, we have an expansive game portfolio. However, I’ve challenged my sales team to increase the penetration of our $20 and $30 games and work towards adding a $50 scratch-off ticket by the time we turn 50. Keno/monitor games are continuing to grow. We’ve seen double-digit gains the past few years, and as the world gets back to normal, I anticipate continued growth in that category. Additionally, we’re seeing growth in the fast-play games. This past year we added a $40 EZPlay® progressive that is doing quite well. Lastly, we’ve found that there are more cross-promotional opportunities across product lines (i.e. scratch-offs and EZPlay) that expose players to different play opportunities. Tying cross-promotions to known licensed properties, like PAC-MAN, helped us engage with the wider player community last year. The pandemic has caused consumer lifestyles and shopping behaviors to change, which in turn has caused changes to the way we do business. Some of these changes may revert back to a pre-pandem- ic “normal”, while others may not. What do you think the post-pandemic world will look like – how will it be different from two years ago? P. McDonald: With over 10,000 retailers, we’ve seen the impact of the pandemic across the board. For example, it seems like the pandemic accelerated the modernization of customer services in the grocery store environments. We’ve seen increased use of their curbside and delivery services, which can be challenging when lottery games are primarily sold in-store. On the other hand, the bars and restaurant businesses are returning to a pre-pandemic world but are certainly looking to make up for the revenue losses the pandemic brought. This has provided an opportunity to recruit new retailers and we’ve been able to expand the number of lottery games offered within these establishments as well. How have the changes instigated by the pandemic changed the way business is done going forward, and the way the Ohio Lottery will serve its retailers and lottery players going forward into the post- pandemic era? P. McDonald: We’ve instituted many enhancements for our players during the pandemic. While many of these programs were in our plans, the pandemic accelerated some, based on need. For example, when While many of these programs were in our plans, the pandemic accelerated some, based on need. Continued on page 37