Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries (MBLL) wants gamblers to be more mindful about their choices.
The first campaign under the provincial Crown corporation’s Informed Gambling program presents consumers with resources to recognize when they’re being swept away by betting. The spots, by Informed Gambling AOR Humanity, insert idiosyncratic rituals into everyday activities to show how the logic of gamblers can become skewed.
“We know players want to be in the driver’s seat, but this sometimes leads them to rely on myths about being able to control outcomes,” says Carin Davidson, social responsibility consultant at MBLL. “Through this campaign, we wanted to bust myths in a fun way and then connect players to trusted ways they can control their play.”
“Humour is an often-overlooked human emotion,” says Humanity CCO Carolyn Shaw, adding that the agency had a mandate to educate rather than finger wave. The videos, she says, are “designed to help bring back self-awareness and disrupt the flow state” of gamblers. MBLL also asked for the creative to be specific to Manitoba.
“Before we started working with them, they were licensing a responsible gaming brand,” Shaw says. “The big drawback for them was that it was generic and didn’t speak specifically to Manitoba. They stopped licensing that brand and, together, we’ve built Informed Gambling as their brand.”
Players are directed to the brand’s website for further safe-gambling strategies. Casino-goers can also visit Informed Gambling Centres inside Winnipeg’s two casinos to access resources or take a break from play.
The work targets a broad demographic ranging from those who see gambling as entertainment to those who are experiencing the negative effects of betting in multiple areas of their lives.
The campaign features three 30-second hero videos running on Meta and YouTube, a digital 30-second audio spot on Spotify and programmatic audio platforms and in-casino signage and digital displays.
Humanity led creative, Mast Creative worked on production and Media Propulsion Laboratory handled the media planning and buying.
