5 Things to Consider in a Potential Lottery Software Provider

Choosing the right Lottery Software provider, for a prospective Lottery Operator who chooses to go the online route, it is imperative that his exploratory forays into seeking the right lottery software provider meet with sure success. Taking on a lottery software partner to design, develop, deploy and support could very well be the most important step that the Operator would be taking, in his efforts to set out on a successful venture!

Some of the key points that need to be kept in mind are as follows:

Capabilities and focus on business:

The very first thing that someone scouting for a potential lottery software partner should do is to evaluate the supplier’s website and other available collaterals. The objective is to at least get a broad overview that the supplier does indeed possess the required technological know-how to build and deploy an online lottery solution. It may be prudent to give more weight to those suppliers whose key focus is on technology solutions revolving around lottery and possibly other allied gaming solutions and products and not be someone who “also” provides lottery solutions as part of a much larger array of software products and solutions. The stress of having a focused vendor cannot be lost on a serious player, because not only does it have immediate benefits, but also long-term ramifications. A supplier who is not majorly dependent on lottery-related business for his revenue generation could very well shred that business line if it does not meet with his own long-term goals. This could put the support mechanism available to the Lottery Operator during the contract tenure, in serious doubt.

Flexible business models:

A new lottery operator would soon realize that his chosen market presents him with more challenges than he had anticipated, and that building the sales volumes and business thereof depends a lot on being flexible and agile. To be able to truly adapt quickly to the changing market scenarios and business realities, the Operator, in turn, needs to be tied up with a lottery software provider who can be flexible in his business terms and ride out any storm along with him, almost as if the supplier himself is a stakeholder in the business! An agreed revenue share model and minimum monthly expected revenues by a lottery software provider are sacrosanct, but it would be best to partner with a technology provider who could give some leeway in payment terms when the situation is really rough. Very few lottery software partners would want to go that way, having once negotiated contract terms and signed on the dotted line. Negotiating for a staggered upfront payment, seeking a relaxation of minimum monthly payment clauses for a temporary period, etc., would go a long way in helping the Lottery Operator manage his cash flows.

Brings more to the table:

Over a period of time, the lottery technology providers are also evolving and the concept of deliverables is maturing too. So can an Operator expect and demand more from a lottery software provider? It would be best to seek out those technology providers, who can bring in investments either through equity (maybe non-participative), rent/hire-purchase of terminals/other hardware, consultancy on marketing and operations, evaluate and advise on cloud service providers, help in manpower planning and recruitments.

Pathological fondness for support:

Whilst it may sound difficult, it would be ideal to smell out those lottery software providers, for whom providing support to a project is part of their DNA and a calling in life! A supplier whose team is patient in its dealings, especially with an Operator’s Team that is a novice at this business and is shadowing along to offer support whenever required, during the project’s planning, design, deployment, training, and post-launch phases will be the critical element in ensuring the success of the business. A well-matured process of providing on-site, on call, email, chat, and any other available channel-based support have to be investigated, prior to shortlisting a supplier. Considering that the lottery Operator’s business may be in a different time zone, the Supplier must demonstrate available infrastructure and teams to provide 24x7x52 support.

Planning, foresight and implementation capabilities:

Needless to say, one of the most critical selection parameters has to be related to the supplier’s planning, strengths, experience, and foresight in terms of identifying the Operator’s current state of preparation and scoping the lottery software and hardware to be infused into the solution accordingly and lastly, demonstration of robust and agile implementation capabilities. It would not be wrong to say at this point, that the Operator should seek demonstrations, project planning draft documents and customer references to vouch for the above points.

What would be critical to this evaluation phase, would be the timely and correct steps that the Operator takes in enabling due diligence to what all claims and offers of service/support made by the lottery software provider and freeze on a mutually acceptable formal scope of work document that outlines the roles and responsibilities of both the teams. This would avoid last-minute surprises and also help in structuring the work plans to fit a reasonably acceptable timeline, to conclude the project deployment.

In the end, one can safely say that to offer gambling options, an Operator should not gamble on the future of his own business! He must place a safe bet, in choosing a lottery software provider.

About Dusane Gaming

We are expert in technology solutions for the Online Gaming Industry with more than 12 years experience and turnkey implementation of gaming solutions in 25 countries across 4 continents. We provide comprehensive, robust and integrated consultancy services to our clients for lottery operational setup and roll out. Recognising the potential of Africa, we have a specialization in this area having worked in almost all the countries where gambling is prevalent like Chad, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, South Africa, Swaziland, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. Dusane’s Online Keno System is built on its proprietary BATS Betting System and has been successfully implemented for several satisfied clients.

For further information on a robust and scalable Online Lottery Solution, please reach out to us at [email protected] or visit www.dusanegaming.com