22 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • JULY/AUGUST 2026 Who are the players lotteries may be overlooking today, and why do they matter? Karri Paavilainen: As much as 60% of the active app audience is made up of anonymous users in some cases. Anonymous users represent a major untapped growth opportunity in lottery websites and mobile apps. They visit regularly, check winning numbers, browse games and promo information, yet they remain outside of traditional CRM programs because they have not registered or shared contact details. Operators miss valuable opportunities to increase conversion and drive incremental revenue growth if they ignore the potential from this audience. What is the core challenge with relying on traditional CRM strategies? Traditional CRM strategies depend heavily on email and SMS. But as email opt-in rates sit between 50-60% among registered players, and registered players make up only 40% of all digital visitors, lotteries are effectively only reaching 25% of their digital audience potential. The rest remain active, interested, and largely non-addressable with a traditional CRM approach. How should lotteries rethink anonymous players within the player lifecycle? Lotteries should view anonymous users as the first stage, as a prospect instead of a non-addressable audience. That shift opens the door to engaging players earlier, building trust over time, and guiding them toward registration through relevance rather than pressure. It means lifecycle strategy should begin before identity capture. When lotteries engage anonymous players with relevant, behavior-based personalized CRM messaging, they create a smoother path from visit to registration, then onward to deeper engagement and monetization. If players are anonymous, what can lotteries still learn about them, and how can they segment them? Even without personally identifiable information, lotteries can see meaningful behavioral signals, such as which screens players visit, how often they return, which games they explore, and how their activity changes over time. Those patterns provide a solid foundation for segmentation. Lotteries can segment by behavior. For example, a player who checks Powerball numbers several times a month shows different intent than someone who occasionally browses scratch games. That difference can shape messaging, content, and timing, even before registration. Which channels are most effective for engaging anonymous players, and why? Mobile-first channels are especially effective. In-app messaging can reach active users in the moments that Rethinking the Player Lifecycle: Starting with the Anonymous User Karri Paavilainen, Vice President of Player Marketing Services, Brightstar Lottery, discusses anonymous players, a meaningful starting point for future growth for lotteries.
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