The disruption of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused most, if not all, lottery companies to change their ways and evolve, placing particular emphasis on their digital strategies.
That’s the view of Alistair Boston-Smith, Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) of B2B supplier Bede Gaming, who spoke to SBC about how the Gauselmann Group subsidiary has responded to the numerous challenges presented in recent years.
“We’ve seen in the Gauselmann Group that retail has bounced back very strongly in a number of core markets,” said Boston-Smith.
“I think the reality is that all of us changed our habits entirely. Everyday, we’re doing things using digital or mobile, whilst even a few years ago we would be doing a greater proportion of these things in a retail context.
‘Lotteries are having to adapt. There were a good significant number of lotteries who perhaps had a mobile app that was simply a result service, or they might’ve had two apps, one that was transactional, and one that was a results service, and you were cutting out your audience and you weren’t tracking them and so forth.
“COVID has shone a very strong light on these things. It ensured that a significant amount of focus was put into digital capabilities, digital teams, digital expertise, choosing the right partners, etc.”
Developing an efficient digital strategy has been crucial to the success of Bede Gaming, something also noted by Boston-Smith when discussing his company’s partnership with the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG).