Telescopic mascara comes under the microscope
13 September 2007
Some people might not bat an eyelid when it comes to telling a few falsies about their beauty secrets. But the ASA batted away the excuse of a so-called standard industry practice and cast cosmetic giants, L’Oreal, into the media spotlight over “astronomical” claims about the latest line in mascara.
Hollywood beauty, Penelope Cruz, caught the eye of national media for all the wrong reasons. Famed for her natural, Mediterranean good looks, an ASA investigation revealed that a nationwide ad campaign – featuring Penelope as the face, or rather eyes, of L’Oreal’s new telescopic mascara – had employed the apparently age-old Hollywood trick of embellishing her eyelids with false lashes.
No matter if the actress is being asked to flutter her eyes seductively at her leading man as part of a close-up shot but, if the photo is focusing on the lengthening benefits of an aptly named telescopic mascara, with a supposed ability to make eyelashes “up to 60 per cent longer”, it’s little wonder that some of our more eagle-eyed consumers started to take a closer look.
The ASA decided the ad campaign was in breach of advertising rules, despite L’Oreal’s claims that she was wearing only a “few” cosmetic lashes to fill the gaps in her natural ones. Although tests suggested that it could make most eye lashes look up to 60% longer, the mascara made no difference to the length of lashes. The ASA adjudicated that the press and TV ads, which featured a fluttering Ms Cruz uttering the words that the effects were no less than “astronomical”, had exaggerated the claimed benefits and were therefore misleading. Click here to read the adjudication.
That, of course, is not the first time that the cosmetics industry has tried to enhance the magic of either age-defying or image-improving products – especially when employing tricks of the trade that make-up artists and, indeed, women world-wide have got away with for years. The ASA adjudication has highlighted the need to watch out for the temptation to over-claim. Advertisers of cosmetics products, especially, should take heed.
We recommend you to consult the CAP Copy Advice team, which can give you free advice on whether your campaign risks getting your company (or client) into trouble with the ASA. Our team of advisers know the CAP Code inside out. They have in-depth knowledge of the latest ASA adjudications and so are well-qualified to spot potential problems with your campaigns and advise you on the changes you should make.
You can do that by calling us on 020 7492 2100, e-mailing enquiries to advice@cap.org.uk or accessing our AdviceOnline database on the CAP website, www.cap.org.uk. Our advisers cannot predict all problems but we encourage you to check with them whether subtle touch-ups are helping to create a stunning image or are in fact creating a false impression.