Arizona Lottery Hits Record Results Arizona Lottery sales for fiscal year 2005 hit an all-time high of $397.5 million, $31 million more than last year's record-breaking $366.5 million.
As a result, the state will receive $116.4 million in net profits, the highest in the Lottery's history. Arizona Lottery Executive Director Katie Pushor noted that the 8.5 percent increase in total sales out-performed all but one of the five western Lottery states. Only California, with an increase of 12.6 percent, exceeded Arizona's growth rate. Pushor said the Lottery's success was due to superior results in two product lines: The Pick and Scratchers. "Our strategic plan identified The Pick and Scratchers as products with the most growth potential in '05. We then focused on product improvement, placement and promotion and hit a home run." To improve The Pick sales, the Lottery added a new feature called EXTRA, which for an additional $1 per play gave players an instant-win opportunity. The game was supported by an advertising campaign and heavily promoted at events such as the State Fair. "And then we got lucky," Pushor added, "in that we also had two unusually high jackpots for The Pick, one at $11.3 million and one at $8.5 million." Sales of The Pick product were up 61 percent over last year, helping offset a decrease of almost 20 percent in the multi-state game, Powerball. The same strategies proved equally successful with Scratchers. The number of bins in on-counter displays and instant ticket vending machines (ITVMs) was increased by 6,000. Additionally, market shares of $5 games increased from 10 to 17.5 percent and $10 games from 9.4 to 12.3 percent. The introduction of innovative $3 and $5 licensed property games, such as The Price Is Right and Pac-Man Cash, tapped into a new audience, while "second-chance drawings" and one-of-kind prizes provided additional incentives for players. The Scratchers strategy also included a consistent advertising message in the media and at the point of sale. "Results in this product category speak for themselves with record-high Scratchers sales of almost $219.6 million, over $36 million more than last year's $183.2 million," said Pushor. "While this is a remarkable achievement, the real news is what these sales mean for the state," noted Pushor. "The $116.4 million in profit will provide funds for projects and programs throughout Arizona, many of which might not otherwise be possible."
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