Big Brother we are watching you!
20 December 2006
Prize draws are a great way to promote your business. As well as increasing awareness of your product or brand, you can treat your customers with exciting prizes. But when it comes to promotions, for all their best intentions, advertisers sometimes leave out important information that can get them into hot water with the ASA. Advertisers should be careful to avoid misleading consumers and should not forget to include conditions that are likely to affect a consumer’s decision to enter the promotion such as:
- How to participate
- Start dates
- Closing dates
- Age restrictions
- Number and nature of prizes
- Purchase needed?
- Geographical restrictions
The ASA recently upheld a complaint about a Big Brother promotion conducted by Channel 4 and Nestle (click here for the adjudication). The ASA concluded that the advertisers should have made clear that claimants of the Golden Tickets must be more than 18 years old. Furthermore, posters for the promotion should have included a clear closing date because the posters stayed up two days after the promotion had finished.
It’s not just golden tickets that can cause confusion. Earlier this year, the ASA ruled that a leaflet for the Pool.com was misleading. The leaflet claimed “Your first bet is free! Join ThePool.com, place a bet, and if you lose we’ll give you a refund”. But consumers could get the refund only after betting the same amount another five times! And a charge was made for withdrawing the refund, too. Because it did not give significant prominence to those important conditions, the ASA found the leaflet to be misleading.
Not stating clear terms and conditions also caused trouble for Estee Lauder and John Lewis earlier this year. Their joint promotion for a free makeup pack in “You and your wedding magazine” did not include a closing date and other important conditions. The ASA told the promoters to ensure they gave consumers accurate information in future.
So, the message is clear: when you are advertising promotions, ensure you comply with the Code by stating clear terms and conditions. Do that and everyone’s a winner! The AdviceOnline section of the CAP webiste information about ensuring your promotions comply with the Code: click here for our Sales Promotion checklist and click here for our Promotions with Prizes Help Note.