Welcome to the very first edition of the Wyoming Lottery’s Corporate e-newsletter.
With so much going on here at the Lottery since our launch back in August, we thought it would be a good time to stop, step back and reflect on the news and issues that are important to you and the other stakeholders who are so critical to the Lottery’s continuing success.
In this and future issues, we’ll feature Wyoming Lottery updates, frequently asked questions, introduce you to the Lottery corporate team members and board members, highlight upcoming events, and more. I hope you’ll find this periodic newsletter useful.
The rest of the WyoLotto staff and I thank you for your support. We encourage you to share your comments with us so we can make sure that we provide the kind of Lottery news and information that’s most important to you.
Sincerely,
Jon Clontz, CEO
Wyoming Lottery Corporation & Wyoming Statute
The Wyoming Lottery Corporation is committed to upholding the statutory mandates establishing it as a self-sustaining, financially secure, entrepreneurial enterprise. These mandates, as well as the Wyoming Lottery Corporation’s complete statutory structure, can be found in Wyoming Statutes Annotated 9-17-101 et seq.
One of the statutory mandates is that the Wyoming Lottery Corporation be governed by a Board of Directors appointed by the governor. The nine-member Board of Directors come from a variety of business, entrepreneurial and governmental backgrounds and are well equipped to provide oversight of the Lottery. These men and women provide unique perspectives on a variety of issues facing the lottery and collectively are empowered to make the decisions necessary to achieve success.
“The Board of Directors take our statutes and the fiscal management of the Lottery very seriously,” said Board Chairman Brian Gamroth. “We have operated as a corporation since day one, making solid business decisions in order to offer fun games, grow revenue and contribute to the state’s economy.”
Additionally, the Lottery has followed the statutory reporting requirements by providing copies of the audit, quarterly and annual reports to the Governor and required state agencies to include, the Wyoming Department of Audit, State Auditor’s Office and the Joint Revenue Interim Committee.” The Lottery will as it has in the past, provide the Governor’s office, and various state offices, with its fiscal year budget that includes information pertaining to lottery revenues, cost of goods sold, operating expenses and more. The Lottery is also mandated to provide to the Governor its proposed operating budget for the corporation for the succeeding fiscal year.
If you are interested in talking with a Lottery Board Member or the CEO of the Lottery call: 307-432-9300 and request an appointment time. Another way to become familiar with Lottery operations is to attend quarterly Board meetings. Go to wyolotto.com for information regarding the next meeting.
New Products Coming Soon!
Cowboy Draw, the Wyoming Lottery’s newest game launches March 15, 2015!
Expecting the sales of our current games to plateau, we are investing in additional statutorily sanctioned games to stimulate sales in 2015 and beyond. Adding more products will not only contribute to revenues, but also allow us to pay back the loan and begin transferring revenue to the state.
We conducted player research in August of 2014. Players and non-players from around Wyoming participated and this is what they want:
- An in-state draw game
- A game that is unique
- A game that is easy to play
We will launch our first in-state draw game, Cowboy Draw®, on March 15. The big attraction for the game, offered only in Wyoming, is that more WyoLotto players have the potential to win larger prizes. The minimum jackpot will be $250,000, and it will grow until someone wins it. The jackpot could realistically hit $1 million or more! Additionally, because Cowboy Draw is not a national game, all proceeds are retained in Wyoming. The Cowboy Draw game is expected to bring in an additional $3.7 million in sales in FY 2015.
We hope to add two more games later in 2015.
Lottery conducts research as an integral part of operations
In order to determine which products to launch or how our players and retailers perceive the Lottery, we conduct research activities. Research begins with a list of questions we want answered and then we determine the best methodology to get the answers. Understanding our marketplace, including the attitudes and behaviors of our players and non-players, allows us to learn about the preferences of those who purchase our products and those that don’t.
We have recently conducted our first Bi-Annual Tracker study to measure player attitudes and favorability of the the Lottery, its brand and products.
Read a summary of the study results.