48 / 76
48
// PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL // July/August 2016
do not need to refrigerate? Or compare the cost of managing Lot-
tery to the cost of storing bulky CPG’s and tying up their money
with cost of inventory? And as others have said, we need to build
strong partner relationships with retailers. And not just with the
largest retailers but also with the smaller independents who are
still so vital to making Lottery available to everyone everywhere.
Tom Delacenserie:
I couldn’t agree more, and the best way
to build that relationship is to make sure you have data neces-
sary to reinforce your position. Building trust through business
recommendation that works not only enhances your credibility
but also leads to a more productive, long term relationship with
the retailer.
Tom Shaheen:
Right now is the best time to really address
the POS situation with the retailers. They appreciate how im-
portant Lottery is to their business and are more receptive than
ever to new ways to leverage Lottery to drive store traffic and
sales of all their products. As Tom says, the timing is right for the
industry to tell our story to the retailers, to inform them of the
facts and how and why Lottery can be a valuable component to
their success. And it’s all about product awareness. For instance,
we found that the display of the jackpot amounts at the Pump
actually drives an increase of in-store sales. Providing the op-
tion of buying the ticket at the Pump increases product aware-
ness, promotes the jackpot, and ends up causing the consumer
to come into the store. Store traffic increases anywhere from 4%
to as high as 10%. This phenomenon is even more pronounced
during times of jackpot fever.
Jeff Sinacori:
We need that retailer commitment, buy-in, and
partnership between the vendor, the lottery, and the sales rep.
We learned years ago, with instant ticket dispensers, how impor-
tant that is, and how damaging it can be when it is not there.
Dispensers started out front and center in the store. In-counter
dispensers, and counters in Zone Five away from the register, do
not work well. Getting Zone One on the front counter is key.
A sales rep has about three minutes with a manager to get our
story across. So we need to be very clear on how to communicate
and make our case. As we build a trust relationship, the retailers
invite more input and support. That’s what our SalesMaker™
program is really all about. Gaining retailer confidence by pro-
ducing results.
In Georgia, we trained retailers and re-merchandize their
stores. We generated about $35 million in incremental sales in
Georgia store locations where we were allowed to re-merchan-
dize their stores. Merchandizing is so important, and that doesn’t
happen without education and buy-in of the retailer.
Signage placement is also vital. We know that the bottom half
of front doors is key. Everyone else knows that too. So we need to
convince the retailer why the best use of that space is to promote
Lottery. We have 200 stores in Georgia with front-door signage
and the impact is significant. Favorable merchandizing and sig-
nage placement is so important, and that doesn’t happen without
education and buy-in from the retailer.
Wendy Montgomery:
It is our job to understand the path
to purchase and the trigger points and messaging that creates
product awareness and leads to a buying decision. Our research
indicates that a key issue, especially with new and infrequent
players, is that they find our category to be very confusing, and
that alone becomes a barrier to purchase. So we work hard to
de-clutter, make the displays more appealing and inviting, and
make sure the messaging and POS helps them to know how to
play the games.
Lottery is not used to paying for some of these things. We
think that the only way to get the kind of innovative, atten-
tion-getting, and effective merchandising, POS, and signage
Retail Optimization:
The Outside-the-Store Consumer Experience…
continued from page 29
Continued on page 53We don’t need to worry about getting
the 22 year-olds to play right now,
but we do need to make sure that they’re
going to play when they’re 35.
—Tom Shaheen
The timing is right for the industry
to tell our story to the retailers,
to inform them of the facts and how
and why Lottery can be a valuable
component to their success.
—Tom Shaheen