A recent case that saw a beauty company approached by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has highlighted the importance of beauty bloggers making the commercial intent of their posts as clear as possible.
The case was brought to the ASA’s attention by an unidentified blogger, who believed the video in which vlogger Ruth Crilly discusses Max Factor products (among other P&G brands) did not make it clear it was sponsored.
While P&G had the text “sponsored by” and “brought to you by” at the top of its channel, the ASA ruled that consumers would not know the Easy Lip Makeup Tutorials for Winter Time video was an ad rather than an impartial review.
As a beauty blogger and vlogger, it is essential to clearly outline whenever a post is sponsored to ensure you are not biting the hand that feeds you (and that you don’t get into any trouble yourself).
Of the recent case, a P&G spokeswoman says: “We are disappointed following this ruling by the ASA as we believed the vlogs on our Beauty Recommended channel were clearly identifiable as marketing communications and in any event clearer than many of our competitors’ channels.
“We have however, as a result of the ruling, made further changes to ensure we are even more transparent going forward and welcome any further guidance from the ASA to ensure there are clear industry standards in place for all in this area.”
