ABOUT

Set For Life (SFL) is relatively new to The National Lottery’s range of games. It was launched in 2019 with the ambition of providing something completely new and meeting a different set of consumer needs, particularly among younger people. But what should’ve been a killer differentiator - the potential to win £10,000 per month for 30 years - hadn’t cut through. Sales were flat, player growth had stalled and key brand metrics such as consideration weren’t growing either. The competition only made things tougher. New entrants like People’s Postcode Lottery’s “An Unforgettable Year” (£12,000/month for a year) added noise to an already crowded market.

With a tiny budget in comparison to the rest of the category and a proposition that was failing to gain traction, SFL needed to find a way to revitalise interest from both new & lapsed players. We are all used to seeing lottery messaging that focuses on the promise of significant financial windfalls but, to demonstrate the appeal of SFL - namely how its unique monthly prize payout enables you to live a carefree life - we would have to speak to a different set of motivations.
To make it more attractive to play, the audience had to see what winning would mean through a much more emotionally engaging context, to demonstrate what £10k a month would really feel like, in comparison to more easily understood jackpot prizes.

Whatever you’re into, there’s usually someone you follow, admire (or even envy) who has committed to the cause and taken it to the next level - spending a month on a Balinese Bikram yoga retreat, touring the world’s biggest soccer derby matches, perfecting a 15-hour brisket in their new Big Green Egg - sharing the results for all to see on Insta.

‘Passions taken to the next level’ fuel some of the most-watched entertainment shows around right now - Sewing Bee, Great British Bake Off, Masterchef, The Great Pottery Throwdown - as a nation, we love watching people like us pursuing and perfecting their pastimes.

So, to get players daydreaming about what winning SFL would mean for them, we created ‘Lucky Days’ a brand new, comedy entertainment format where the nation could experience exactly how it feels to live a care-free, passion-fuelled lifestyle. Across three 10’ episodes, we gave 3 popular comedians the opportunity to win £10,000, available to spend as they please on a bespoke Set For Life silver card. The only restriction? They had to use the cash to pursue one of their personal passions. Mirroring a lottery draw, in each episode a ‘lucky ball’ was chosen and the winning comedian set off on a series of hilarious life-changing experiences. From taking up laughter yoga, to recording the first track of their new pop-star diva life, to joining the Parisian chapter of the Congolese Sapeurs movement, our social-first episodic content gave the audience a first-hand view of how it feels to win. On. Repeat.
Produced & distributed in partnership with Channel 4 - the UK’s foremost comedy broadcaster - the content aired across the network’s social and on-demand platforms, with 30” promo trails running on broadcast channels.

Lucky Days (Season 1) was a surefire winner! Over the series, the three episodes had a total of 15.1m views, with a combined viewing time of 13.5m minutes - over 25 years’ worth of viewing. Not just watched, but loved by the audience, receiving a 71% net positive response to the campaign. Brand awareness of SFL was up 8ppts, rising to +11ppts for first time players with a +7ppts shift on those agreeing the game was ‘for people like me’. The message struck home, too with 6 in 10 of the audience correctly recalling the previously complex prize mechanic. Crucially, when they got the unique offering of SLF, intent to play increased dramatically with a +6ppts increase in those who had never played, helping the brand deliver an overall sales uplift of +5% YonY.

Who knows where Season 2 might take our comedy talent… Luchador training, dog-grooming, a quest for the world’s finest guac? Watch this space!