Happy's marketing news - 05.01.18
A very Happy New Year from the Happies! It’s our first round-up of the year so let’s look what’s making headlines in the marketing world early doors!
Diageo has pulled its advertising from Snapchat after an ad for its Captain Morgan brand was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority. The campaign, which ran in June last year, included a Snapchat lens for Captain Morgan. The lens made the user’s face look like Captain Morgan and featured two glasses of a mixed alcoholic drink clinking together on screen. The ad was investigated by the ASA after it questioned whether the lens could appeal to people under 18, and was directed at people under the legal drinking age. The ASA’s main concern surrounded the possibility of users lying about their age to get onto the Snapchat platform – the minimum age is 13 – and therefore might have inadvertently come across the ad. In light of this, it decided to ban the ad.
Last year was a watershed year for digital advertising. Most recently, in December, we saw even more brands pull spend after it was revealed pre-roll ads were appearing next to questionable content. Senior brand leaders are now taking this very seriously. In fact, in Teads’ research of UK CMOs at large brands, 83% say they’ve become more concerned about brand safety in the past year. In response, 95% say they have overhauled their digital strategies in the past 12 months. Many are demanding greater transparency from suppliers and agencies, with nearly half (44%) questioning their supplier relationships and 43% scrutinising agency relationships.
Public Health England (PHE) is looking to encourage parents to help their children eat healthier snacks and snack less often as part of its annual New Year health campaign. The £4.5m Change4Life campaign is focusing on snacking for the first time. It aims to encourage parents to help their children eat healthier snacks by following the mantra “Look for 100 calorie snacks, two a day max”. PHE research shows that half of UK children’s sugar intake comes from unhealthy snacks and sugary drinks. On average, children are consuming at least three unhealthy snacks and sugary drinks a day, with around a third consuming four or more.
Apple has said that all iPhones, iPads and Mac computers are affected by two major flaws in computer chips. It emerged this week that tech companies have been racing to fix the Meltdown and Spectre bugs, that could allow hackers to steal data. Apple said it had already released some patches but there was no evidence that the vulnerability had been exploited. But it advised downloading software only from trusted sources to avoid “malicious” apps. Mac users have often believed that their devices and operating systems are less vulnerable to security issues than, for example Android phones or computers running Microsoft systems.
A dating website’s claim that it used a “scientifically proven matching system” to pair up those looking for love, has been banned. An advert for eHarmony on the London Underground in July read: “It’s time science had a go at love.” The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) called the claim “misleading”. The online matchmaker said while it “respectfully disagrees” with the ruling, it will make its advertising “as clear as possible”. The website was unable to offer the ASA any evidence that customers had a greater chance of finding love, despite claiming that its “scientifically proven matching system decodes the mystery of compatibility and chemistry”.
