‘Path to Play’ – the consumer journey from the gambler’s perspective

Following earlier work seeking to understand why people gamble, and its wider Consumer Voice research, the Gambling Commission has now published research findings that focus on building understanding of “what the typical consumer journey looks like, from the beginning of a gambling interaction to the end”.

Entitled ‘Understanding Consumer Journeys: Introducing the Path to Play’, the intention and aim of the new research findings are described by the Commission as follows:

The intention is to explore this journey specifically from the gambler’s perspective, which may be different to an operator or regulator’s perspective. This will allow us to better understand how consumers experience gambling, what factors influence them, where there may be greater risks for some gamblers, and identify opportunities for intervention.

The aim was to create a framework of the ‘path to play’ indicating the key milestones and stages gamblers go through when they gamble. This is not a ‘one size fits all’ model, as gamblers are not homogenous, and everyone’s experience will be slightly different. It is a framework that encompasses the moments typically experienced by consumers, but that also shows how gambling experiences can differ for different people, or in different contexts.

You can read more about these fascinating and revealing findings by following these links to the constituent parts of the Commission’s report on ‘The Path to Play’: