From Reliable App to Industry-First Innovation: South Dakota Lottery's Partnership with fjorge

How a trusted technical partnership helped SD Lottery launch a first-of-its-kind mobile prize redemption feature -- and gave players across rural South Dakota something to talk about.

Snapshot

• Client: South Dakota Lottery
• Industry: Government / Gaming
• Partnership Type: Ongoing Managed Services
• What We Did: Became the development partner their players needed -- assessing, stabilizing, and evolving their mobile app into an industry-leading platform

What Changed:

• Players can now claim prizes up to $5,000 directly through their phone -- a first for any state lottery
• App reliability improved dramatically, with a significant drop in player support calls
• A rural player who once drove four hours to claim a $100 prize can now do it in minutes
• SD Lottery is now positioned at the forefront of lottery technology nationally

The Situation

South Dakota Lottery runs an important dual mission: deliver entertaining gaming options to players across the state while generating revenue for South Dakota. Like many government agencies managing a public-facing digital product, they reached a point where their mobile app -- the primary touchpoint for thousands of players -- wasn't keeping up.

During the pandemic, the stakes got higher. Players needed a contactless way to check tickets. The app they had wasn't delivering that reliably, and the support calls kept coming.

But here's what really mattered: SD Lottery didn't just need a technical fix. They needed a development partner they could trust to keep things running, explain what was happening in terms that made sense, and -- when the time was right -- help them build something that had never been done before.

That's where fjorge came in.

What Wasn't Working -- and Why It Mattered

The app had a few visible symptoms: slow ticket scanning, reliability issues that frustrated players, and difficulty keeping pace with updates to iPhone camera technology. Each problem on its own was manageable. Together, they were eroding something harder to measure: player trust.

For players in rural South Dakota, the app wasn't a convenience -- it was the only practical option. Driving hours to a lottery office to claim a modest prize isn't realistic. If the app doesn't work, those players are simply left out.

SD Lottery knew they needed more than a patch job. They needed a partner who could assess what they had, stabilize it properly, and then help them think about what was possible next.

How the Partnership Began

After a competitive RFP process, SD Lottery selected fjorge -- in part because of a trusted recommendation from Lawrence & Schiller, a long-standing advertising partner who had already seen fjorge's work firsthand. That referral wasn't incidental. It meant the relationship started with a foundation of trust, not just a contract.

fjorge began by doing something simple but important: listening. Before writing a single line of code, the team invested time in understanding how SD Lottery's app was being used, where players were running into problems, and what the lottery's team needed to feel confident in a technical partner.

The goal from the start wasn't just to fix what was broken. It was to become the development team SD Lottery didn't have internally -- one that knows their system inside and out, communicates in plain language, and is there for the long haul.

Making It Reliable First

The early work focused on what fjorge calls stabilization: making sure nothing breaks, and making sure the team can respond fast when something unexpected happens.

That meant rebuilding the app's core scanning functionality so it worked the way players expected -- fast, accurate, and consistent. It meant setting up automated data integration with SD Lottery's gaming vendor, so the app always had accurate, up-to-date information without manual intervention. And it meant building a foundation flexible enough to grow.

The results were immediate. Support calls related to app issues dropped significantly. Players stopped calling because the app stopped failing them.

But stabilization was never the end goal -- it was the starting point.

Building What Hadn't Been Done Before

Once the foundation was solid, the conversation shifted. fjorge and SD Lottery's team began mapping out what was actually possible now that the platform could support it.

The answer: mobile prize redemption. The ability for players to claim prizes up to $5,000 directly through their phone -- no office visit, no waiting, no four-hour round trip across the state.

This wasn't a feature that existed anywhere else in the country. Building it required careful coordination with SD Lottery's gaming system vendor, rigorous attention to security, and a shared commitment to getting it right before it went live.

When it launched, the response from players was unlike anything SD Lottery had seen on their communications channels. People were excited -- genuinely excited -- about a government agency's mobile app.

For players in remote areas of South Dakota, the feature wasn't just convenient. It was transformative.

What the Partnership Looks Like Today

SD Lottery and fjorge continue to work together through an ongoing managed services partnership. That means fjorge isn't just available when something breaks -- they're proactively monitoring the platform, keeping it updated, and working alongside SD Lottery's team to think through what comes next.

The value of having a partner who knows your system -- really knows it -- shows up in the small moments as much as the big ones. When SD Lottery has a question, fjorge can give a real answer. When a new iOS update rolls out, the team is already on it. When a new feature idea comes up, there's no ramp-up time, no re-explaining context, no starting from scratch.

That's what a long-term development partnership is supposed to feel like.

Looking Forward

SD Lottery's digital platform is now one of the most capable in the country. The mobile redemption feature is just one example of what becomes possible when the foundation is right and the partner relationship is built on trust.

The work continues -- improving the player experience, exploring new features, and making sure SD Lottery stays ahead of where the industry is going.