First there were flowers and dinners. Then came the humor.
The UK National Lottery—like a man trying to make a great first date impression—is showing its comic side in order to encourage customers to play its instant-win games online.
The new “No Chance” campaign involves six online short films, targeting not only frequent online lottery players but also those whose online behavior and profiles are similar to people who play Lotto or EuroMillions online.
All six ads shows a person in a “no chance” situation, which was then juxtaposed with the National Lottery’s promise that its players will have a “one in four” chance of winning a prize on the GameStore portfolio. All films finish with the characters either instant win scratch cards or mobile games, and a “click-to-play” call-to-action, which takes customers to the National Lottery’s GameStore website.
GameStore was launched last year as the UK National Lottery’s sub-brand, and its portfolio includes all online instant win games and offline instant win scratch cards. According to Marketing Magazine UK, GameStore products represents about £2.6 billion of lottery operator Camelot’s overall £7.3 billion sales in the first quarter of 2015, but its advertising wasn’t given much thought until now because scratch card sales were supported by retail marketing.
GameStore head Hayley Stringfellow told the advertising news outlet that times are changing, thanks to the strong growth in customers playing games online.
The news of the new campaign came in the heels of reports that the UK National Lottery is trying to woo back punters who have threatened to boycott its games after it added 10 more balls to its set of 49, effectively reducing the odds of winning from one in 14 million to one in 45 million.
Several media outlets recently reported that the Camelot Group, which operates the National Lottery, has been offering Britons flowers, discounted dinners and even a two-day pass for two at a fitness center as “a little thank you for playing Lotto.” The operator also reportedly sent out leaflets that tell customers they will receive a gift right after they enter their ticket’s serial number online.
