ether you’re running a blog, affiliate site, or social media campaign for a gambling brand, marketing in this space demands responsibility. Marketers must tread carefully to stay onside. With these six tips you won’t have to leave it all to Lady Luck!
Social responsibility is non-negotiable
All marketing communications promoting gambling must be socially responsible, paying particular care to protect children, young people and other vulnerable groups. That means content shouldn’t glamorise loss chasing, depict gambling as a solution to financial woes, or suggest enhanced personal qualities like confidence or success through betting.
An ad for Mecca Bingo featured two images with the captions ‘Before playing…’ and ‘vs after playing…’. The addition of a raised champagne glass and brighter, more exuberant clothes, in the form of a sequinned outfit with matching jewellery, presented that person as having a higher level of confidence and an enhanced self-image in comparison to the same person in the image on the left. The ASA considered that the ad was irresponsible as it suggested gambling could enhance a person’s self-image or self-esteem.
No “strong appeal” to under 18s
Ads must not have strong appeal to children or young people, whether through visuals, themes, characters, or youth culture references. Marketers should also be careful in using images of football players, athletes or sports team logos that might have strong appeal to children.
The ASA considered a Kwiff X post featuring an image of Sir Lewis Hamilton to be in breach of the Code. Based on his public profile, commercial partnerships, media appearances and UK under-18 social media following, they concluded that he had strong appeal to under 18s and the post was therefore irresponsible.
Age-sensitive casting and roles
You can’t feature someone who is (or appears to be) under 25 years old in a gambling ad, unless the ad is on a platform where users can bet directly.
Even then, they shouldn’t be depicted behaving in a juvenile or loutish way.
As above, individuals under the age of 25 may be featured in media where a bet can be placed directly e.g. a gambling operator’s own website, but only where they are the subject of the bet being offered.
In October 2015, the ASA ruled that a tweet (X post) featuring an image of the golfer Jordan Spieth holding a trophy breached the Code as it featured someone under the age of 25.
The ASA ruled that, because the tweet featured a golfer who was under the age of 25 playing a significant role, and the ad had not appeared in a place where a bet could be placed directly through a transactional facility, the tweet breached the Code.
Transparency on offers and terms
Promotions like “free bet” or “bonus” must clearly disclose significant conditions (e.g. wagering requirements, eligibility, withdrawal restrictions). Omitting or burying those terms can mislead.
The ASA considered the claim “Enjoy £40 on us! When you opt in and stake £20” to be misleading in a ruling against William Hill. The claim did not reflect the actual terms and conditions of the promotion, even though the small print referred to the correct staking value (£40 stake) necessary to participate. The ASA concluded that, by introducing a higher staking requirement as a qualifying condition, the qualification contradicted rather than clarified the headline claim.
Be clear and accurate
Ads including promotions should ensure offers are clear and accurate to avoid misleading consumers. Marketers should not describe an offer as “free” if the customer must risk their own money to qualify. Ambiguous terms like “risk-free” should also be avoided, unless the customer genuinely cannot lose their own funds.
Affiliate and targeting diligence
If your content marketing works through affiliates or third parties, you remain accountable. You must show that ads are not targeted at under 18s (for instance, via social media channels whose audience is majority minors).
In short, to make your content win big, you should avoid using youth culture tropes that might skew appeal, place significant terms prominently and take care with your targeting.
If in doubt, the CAP Copy Advice Team are always on hand to make sure your content is on to a winning streak.
More on
-
Keep up to date
Sign up to our rulings, newsletters and emargoed access for Press. Subscribe now.
