Beyond the Hotlines
Along with the rise of the gambling advertisement across the USA has been the rise in exposure for the problem gambling hotlines. Yes, that’s a plural “hotlines” as we still don’t have a universal hotline to use. Can someone please fix this?
And while I’m on the topic of hotlines, I’ll never pass up an opportunity to point out that while they are a great resource, they aren’t necessarily the best starting point to offer folks that are struggling.
Why? Because the shame and embarrassment are often so high that people won’t pick up the phone to make the call. It’s simply too large of an ask.
A few decades ago, hotlines represented the easiest way to deliver information to people in a discreet manner. Now, the Internet offers a number of delivery tools that almost completely remove any shame or stigma.
A-List Responsible Gambling
Over the past few years, gambling operators have raced to sign A-list celebrities from showbiz and sport. And they’ve done a hell of a job in talent acquisition with many undisputed GOATs repping the various brands. While these celebs were quickly used to pump stock prices through press releases and for customer acquisition through promotional pieces, until recently they weren’t utilized in responsible gambling ads.
Now, that is beginning to change. While I’ve been underwhelmed at their use and skeptical of their impact to this point, I’m hopeful that one or two with personal gambling stories or struggles might break through the “everyone is saying the same thing” to really deliver an authentic and meaningful message. I have my eye on a few good candidates and hope they take on the challenge.
A Little Polish Goes a Long Way
Only two days into #PGAM2022 and one thing I’ve noticed is a bit more refinement to the images posted across social media. In the past, these were too often pretty weak from a design point of view. This always frustrated me as good graphic design is easily attainable at affordable prices and even without a budget, tools like Canva give such great starting points that it’s not overly difficult to make something look nice.
A great measuring stick is to compare your prevention and awareness campaigns to the campaigns from the gambling industry. After all, you are targeting the same audience. Borrow their design elements and styles to increase the effectiveness of your posts.
