Safer Gambling Week, hashtag #SGWeek20, is a cross-industry initiative to promote safer gambling, chiefly in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
From last Thursday, November 19th, and through today, approximately 100,000 employees within the gaming sector are participating by communicating what it means to be a responsible gambler.
Led by Betting and Gaming Council, Bingo Association, and the British Amusement Catering Trade Association, the goal is to trigger a national conversation on the topic. And more than 200 organizations worldwide are helping promote the campaign this year – the first since changing its name from “Responsible Gambling Week.”
“We want to take the message about safer gambling even further this year and are hoping that this will be our biggest campaign yet. The continued engagement and support of football clubs is enormously helpful in highlighting the week and triggering conversations about what it means to gamble safely throughout the year,” a Safer Gambling Week spokesperson said.
A major part of the campaign consists of the following 5 key ways to manage gambling habits, both online and offline:
- Only spend what you can afford
- Set your limits for time and money
- Gambling is not the answer to any problem
- Gambling when angry or sad is never a good idea
- Gambling shouldn’t interfere with your personal life
Gaming Operators Who Support the Campaign
Some of the world’s leading gaming platforms have joined forces to support players who experience gambling problems by providing them with free materials combined with specialist knowledge, insight, and research.
New initiatives to promote Safer Gambling Week from William Hill include releasing a series of mini-clips and customized messages from its sports ambassadors and sponsorship partners.
While 888 is launching an innovative customer-centric interface called Control Centre, which will be featured across the operators’ numerous gaming brands to further increase the prominence of 888’s safer gambling tools.
“As part of our wider Safer Gambling Week initiatives, we are delighted to announce the phased roll-out of our latest safe gambling innovation, the Control Centre, initially launching to our customers in the UK this November,” Itai Pazner, CEO of 888, explained.
“The first phase of the Control Centre will focus on making safe gambling tools more accessible and visible to customers, with several additional safe gambling product features due to be integrated over the coming months.”
What will Phase 2 include?
GGPoker is highlighting the tools that players have at their disposal this week by sending out messages that strongly promote Safer Gambling Week.
Another big player participating in the campaign is Sky Bet: “We’ve got some great awareness which is going on over the weekend. Every football club that’s part of the EFL – sponsored by Sky Bet – are going to have Safer Gambling Week branding at all their matches,” says Brigid Simmonds, chair of the Betting and Gaming Council.
BetVictor replaced their names on the teams’ shirts with Safer Gambling Week, on Sunday’s match between Everton and Fulham.
EFL, PokerStars, GGPoker, and more will dedicate advertising space on their websites, marketing materials, big screens, and across social media channels. While other operators have created comprehensive gaming programs, training academies, promotional resources. Operators will also provide 24/7 expert advice and support.
Gambling Help Lines:
- In GB call 0808 8020 133 Free call
- In IRL call 1800 936 725 Freephone
- In NI call 08000 886 725 Freephone
From PostFunnel Editor-in-Chief:
This week is not only Thanksgiving week but also the final stretch before BlackFridayCyberMonday. It also happens to be Safer Gambling Week (since changing its name from “Responsible GW”), where the industry gives gamblers at risk top priority.
But doing so by mostly talking to the players themselves could kinda feel like operators and regulators are rolling the task of improving gambling habits away from them and on to the customers.
If there’s one thing 2020 has taught brands, responsibility is something they must embrace and lead. They have the footprint to drive significant change faster. Some customers will never forgive brands that do not get it. In other cases, customers’ families won’t.
(first appeared on the PostFunnel B2CRm News newsletter from November 24th)
Further Reading on Responsible Gaming, from Optimove:
“Responsible Gaming Should Be Front and Center”
https://www.optimove.com/blog/responsible-gaming-should-be-front-and-center
6 Marketing Methods for Socially Responsible Gaming
https://www.optimove.com/blog/6-marketing-methods-for-socially-responsible-gaming
Guide: Building a Predictive Model for At-Risk Players
https://www.optimove.com/blog/guide-building-a-predictive-model-for-at-risk-players