Responsible Marketing and Advertisement in Gambling

Gambling has become an accepted form of entertainment in the society. Perhaps the biggest indicators of this are the frequent gambling commercials we see while we watch television programs, billboards that are placed at strategic locations in cities, several betting shops, and the involvement of beloved personalities with gambling organizations.

These advertisements are placed in several forms such as pop-up ads “jumping in your face” as you surf the internet, embedded promotions which includes TV commercials featuring celebrities or playing out a script that is perceived to resonate with the audience, and several skits on social media platforms.

These marketing strategies aim to create engagement for the organizations and increasing the client base. However, the question about how these marketing schemes promote responsible gambling remains. Often, gambling commercials and skits promote the grass to grace narrative. Many illustrate the “opportunity of a lifetime” bettors may achieve with their gaming plans, painting a picture of sure wins.

Responsible gambling not only emphasizes gambling as a source of entertainment but also stresses that it should not be considered a source of income or a means to end poverty. These ideals do not support a “rags to riches” story or get rich soon scheme. With the level of poverty in the country, it is logical to believe citizens will jump at the opportunity to make money even if it is through unreasonable means. When advertisement is made painting unrealistic opportunities, they encourage viewers to take their chances even if they cannot exactly afford it.

Gambling companies should be socially responsible and strive to checkmate the public health disaster that could spring up due to problem gambling. An effective method is by ensuring that the public fully understand how to watch out for themselves appropriately while engaging in gaming activities.

To promote responsible gambling, marketing and advertorials should:

1. Emphasize the need to take breaks after a period of gambling. There could be attention grabbing themes or names given to the break period that would encourage bettors to take occasional breathers after placing a certain number of bets.
2. Illustrate the meaning of responsible gambling in commercials and other marketing strategies. Engaging advertisement with scripts pointing out how to gamble responsibly and when to reach out for help should be a priority to betting companies.
3. Direct bettors to help channels. It is unrealistic to assume all bettors will gamble responsibly. To assist problem gamblers, every marketing channel should include links and information about organizations dedicated to helping them back on their feet. An organization like GambleAlert, for instance, would not only offer counselling services to bettors but also provide links to medical help.
4. Host social media campaigns to instruct bettors how to gamble using their platforms to ensure maximum enjoyment while keeping their mental health at its optimum. These campaigns may feature influencers and social media personalities with huge following. This would not only generate traffic for the organization but would ensure bettors are enlightened about the pros of responsible gambling.

To protect the gambling community, what is being consumed per time in terms of adverts and information passed across should be top priority. There should be policies that govern and oversee marketing and advertisement made by gambling companies. The aim of these policies should be the protection of gambler’s health and ensuring that companies adhere to rules that protect gamblers.