Advertising standards and the level of complaints received in 2012

This year the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI) and the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) received a record number of complaints. Over 2000 complaints were received in the 12 month period. 

This represents an increase from the average 1500 complaints received yearly.

The highly controversial Paddy Power advertisement ‘Ladies Day at Cheltenham’, topped the pole. This advertisement posed a question to its viewers to spot whether the women in the advertisement were born female or were transgendered. The catch line for this advertisement was “Separate the stallions from the mares”.  This video was withdrawn prior to determination of the case, however it’s still available on Youtube.

Other advertisements that encountered complaints were a nightclub’s Facebook campaign and billboards opposing abortion.

As these boards have limited scope to deal with areas such as political and religious advertising there is likely to be reform in advertising standards this year with investigations already in place.

This poses the question:  Is the value of creating a non-traditional “controversial advertising campaign” outweighing the traditional medium of advertising. It certainly appears so!

Giants such as Paddy Power revel at the idea of media attention and controversy. Power said himself that he “makes no apology for pulling all the stops and building the brand around gimmicks and ads to amuse people and earn media attention”.

The success attached to such controversial campaigns is likely to increase the amount of complaints received year on year which leaves with the question: Will advertising standards solve this or drive further media attention?

Stephen King (Marketing Advisor) 07/01/13

Gun Control in America

Recent events have re-opened the debate for stricter restrictions on gun control in America. The Government has constantly in battles with the biggest pro-gun rallying organisation, the NRA in attempts to tighten gun control. The second amendment of the constitution gives Americans the right to bear arms. However, following the recent shooting in the Sandy Hook Elementary school in Connecticut has led to protests at the NRA headquarters near Washington DC. On top of this the White house has also spoken out against guns. Vice President Joseph Biden is considering measures that would require universal background checks for gun buyers and track the movement and sale of weapons through a national database.

While the shootings in Sandy Hook has been the catalyst for these talks mass shootings is not a new problem in America. In reality the problem stems much deeper. Thirty-four Americans are killed every day by firearms. Each year, on average, 100,000 Americans are shot with a gun. Of these, over 31,000 are fatalities, 11,000 of them murders and 18,000 suicides. While the Sandy Hook shootings was the worst of the mass shootings this year, there was 15 more mass shootings in America in 2012. They are:

1. February 22, 2012—Five people were killed in at a Korean health spa in Norcross, Georgia, when a man opened fire inside the facility in an act suspected to be related to domestic violence.
2. February 26, 2012—Multiple gunmen began firing into a nightclub crown in Jackson, Tennessee, killing one person and injuring 20 others.
3. February 27, 2012—Three students at Chardon High School in rural Ohio were killed when a classmate opened fire.
4. March 8, 2012—Two people were killed and seven wounded at a psychiatric hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, when a gunman entered the hospital with two semiautomatic handguns and began firing.
5. March 31, 2012—A gunman opened fire on a crowd of mourners at a North Miami, Florida, funeral home, killing two people and injuring 12 others.
6. April 2, 2012—A 43-year-old former student at Oikos University in Oakland, California, walked into his former school and killed seven people, “execution-style.” Three people were wounded.
7. April 6, 2012—Two men went on a deadly shooting spree in Tulsa, Oklahoma, shooting black men at random in an apparently racially motivated attack. Three men died and two were wounded.
8. May 29, 2012—A man in Seattle, Washington, opened fire in a coffee shop and killed five people and then himself.
9. July 9, 2012—At a soccer tournament in Wilmington, Delaware, three people were killed, including a 16-year-old player and the event organizer, when multiple gunmen began firing shots, apparently targeting the organizer.
10. July 20, 2012—James Holmes enters a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises and opens fire with a semi-automatic weapon; twelve people are killed and fifty-eight are wounded.
11.  August 5, 2012—A white supremacist and former Army veteran shot six people to death inside a Sikh temple in suburban Milwaukee, Wisconsin, before killing himself.
12. August 14, 2012—Three people were killed at Texas A&M University when a 35-year-old man went on a shooting rampage; one of the dead was a police officer.
13. September 27, 2012—A 36-year-old man who had just been laid off from Accent Signage Systems in Minneapolis, Minnesota, entered his former workplace and shot five people to death, and wounded three others before killing himself.
14.  October 21, 2012—45-year-old Radcliffe Frankin Haughton shot three women to death, including his wife, Zina Haughton, and injured four others at a spa in Brookfield, Wisconsin, before killing himself
15. December 11, 2012—A 22-year-old began shooting at random at a mall near Portland, Oregon, killing two people and then himself.
16.  December 14, 2012—Adam Lanza murders a reported twenty-six people at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, including twenty children, before killing himself.

This highlights that the problem is bigger than any one event. There must be some action taken to try to help prevent such atrocities happening in the future. The NRA feels that the guns aren’t the problem and that the problem lies with the mentally unstable using them. But the guns ended up in their hands due the general availability of guns. You can go into Walmart and buy assault rifles along with your weekly grocery shop. There seems to be something wrong with that picture. But even some members of the NRA are finally identifying with this as Virginia Senator Mark Warner who has been awarded the NRA's highest member rating, has said “enough is enough.  We all need to come to the table and end up with appropriate restriction.” A Gallup poll released recently showed that 58 per cent of Americans now support new gun-control laws, up from 43 per cent in 2011. It’s good to see such a jump but these restrictions need to be put in place soon to help prevent such events happening in the future.

The NRA has to realise that their proposed solution of people carrying more firearms for protection is not the way forward. However, this just doesn’t make sense to me you don’t combat an addiction with more heroin, Alcoholism with more drink so why would you try to combat shootings with more guns? They propose that there should be armed guards in all schools. Really what needs to be done is to impose stricter regulations on the purchasing of guns. An in-depth background check for each potential buyer including a mental health evaluation should be imposed. As proposed by the vice president there should be more diligent tracking on the movement and sale of weapons through a national database. These restrictions along with others could help to prevent the guns falling into the wrong hands. Hopefully some good can come from the Sandy Hook shootings in the form of new gun laws to help to prevent such mass shootings from happening again in the future. The time for change is now.

Cian Kiely – Marketing Advisor

Daily Mail Launches Fashion Sharing Website and App

The group behind the popular newspaper The Daily Mail, have this month launched a fashion wearing website and mobile app called 'Today I'm Wearing.' 

The new site allows followers to upload pictures of themselves wearing their favourite items of clothing. They can then tag these items, allowing viewers to see where they got them and how much they cost. The website has also been partnered with fashion search engine 'ShopStyle' to allow users to then shop online and make a purchase based on other people's uploads.

Users can 'follow' certain profiles much like Twitter in order to keep up to date with their favourite profile's latest outfits. Registered users can also post comments underneath pictures to give uploaders feedback on their clothes.

It is thought that the Daily Mail group are looking to build on their strong 18 - 35 year old following that it has developed largely thanks to its popular entertainment website. The latest website and app combination was launched before Christmas in an attempt to gain a user base and identify teething problems before a full  advertising and promotional campaign begins for the service in the new year. However, signs are promising for the newspaper group, as 3,000 people have already downloaded the newly available app.

There is a wider issue that must be examined in light of this new service however. In the wake of recent cyber-bullying tragedies in this country, offering a platform for young adults to post comments about people's styles and looks may prove an unpopular venture among parents. The newspaper group will have to monitor content carefully or what initially started as a clever brand extension may prove to be more of a hindrance rather than a help. 

Luke Jordan - Marketing Advisor

Australian Cigarette Packaging

Over the past decade there has been enormous changes in legislation relating to the sale and promotion of Tobacco. On 1^st December 2012, Australia implemented new legislation that has set the bar even higher in terms of how cigarette brands are sold.

Now, all brands of cigarettes in Australia must be sold in the same brown package. These packages carry graphic images and health warnings. The Australian government aim to remove the glamour from smoking, they intend to reduce the level of smokers from 15% to below 10% by 2018. The initiative is particularly focused on the prevention of teenagers taking up smoking in the fist place. However, the move is also set to reduce the number of those smoking also. Research found that when a particular brand was given to a sample of 640 people from the branded packaging and from plain label packets the branded packet scored higher in terms of taste, flavour and aroma.

Cigarette companies did take this new legislation to the high court on the grounds that in infringed on their intellectual property, however the courts ruled against their case.

The hope is that now other countries will follow suit, in particular the EU have shown signs of adopting similar legislation surrounding the sale of cigarettes.

Is this initiative something that should be introduced into Ireland and would it have the desired affect, ie reducing the number of smokers and preventing teenagers from starting in the first place? 

‘Happiness’ drives another new business venture for Coca-Cola

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The notion of Happiness is something Coca-Cola has long been incorporating into its brand DNA. With an estimated brand equity of $72 billion, Coca-Cola has well and truly hit a soft spot with consumers. Now, the company is seeking to expand this joy into the realms of social media, through the launch of a new photo app, ‘Happy Places’. 

 The free mobile app is aimed at encouraged people to share their happy moments with friends.

“Your day, your friends, your trips, your music… your life is full of happy moments worth storing and sharing. 
Happy Places by Coca-Cola is that place where you can upload photos of your happy moments, share them, and remember them any time you want” - Coca-Cola

Users will be able to view and comment on friends’ pictures just as with the likes of Instagram. There is also the option to follow hashtags, such as #music #festivals and #dogslife. This will allow users to keep up to date with friends’ photos that fit prioritised "moments."

Versions of the Happy Places mobile app for both Android and Windows phone are currently not available for download, but the app is available for iOS users through the iTunes store, which was released on November 1^st 2012. The website www.happyplaces.com, registered in June, is currently still inactive.

The absence of Instagram-esque filters on Happy Places might mean it is at a disadvantage when compared to its competitors. There are circulating rumors that Twitter is launching their own photo filter, cementing the trend that customers want an artistic component offered in their photo apps. 

It will be interesting to see how far a global company such as Coca-Cola can push this app. The fact that the company has such an international presence means there is potential to reach out to a whole new audience that most photo-sharing services have never dreamed of. 

Once the website is launched, we will have more details on the service. For now, I don’t think that the Happy Place photo app will make as big a dent in social media as the likes of Instagram, as the service offering seems limited in comparison. In my opinion, the availability of editing options is the key to the success of photo apps. Everyone wants to an artist, to make a statement in ‘vintage fade’ or ‘colour shock’, and the likes of Instagram’s filters have made this possible at the touch of a button.

 

Sharon Donnelly - Marketing Advisor

Ms Halappanavar died at the Galway hospital on October 28th of septicemia seven days after she presented with back pain. She had been 17 weeks pregnant and her husband says she asked repeatedly for a termination over a three-day period but was refused, as there was a  heartbeat present.

The inquiry team has seven members. Its chairman, Prof Sir Sabaratnam Arulkumaran, head of obstetrics and gynaecology at St George’s Hospital, University of London, said it was important to have representatives from Galway University Hospital on it to allow the panel to compare the guidelines in use there with the national and international guidelines.

The investigation into the death of Savita Halappanavar will now be “utterly independent’’ of Galway University Hospital, Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said.

The husband of the late Savita Halappanavar wants employees of Galway University Hospital removed from the inquiry established by the Health Service Executive into her death.

Mr Higgins said the investigation into Ms Halappanavar’s death must ensure “above all else” that women will be safer and get the medical services during pregnancy to which they are entitled. He was responding to questions from local journalists during an official visit to Liverpool and Manchester.

The inquiry to come into the tragic death of the young Indian woman must meet “the needs of the public’s concern, the need of the family and meet the need of the State”.

The HSE  published the terms of reference of its inquiry and named three new members, two Irish and one from England, of the inquiry team. These replaced the Galway-based consultants who stepped aside in an unsuccessful attempt to meet the objections of Mr Halappanavar.

The report to be compiled by the team will not identify staff members involved in the treatment of Ms Halappanavar or any other names, according to the terms of reference.

The death sparked off a heated debate and protests in Ireland for a change in the country's abortion laws. Around 10,000 people marched through Dublin on November 18 during one such protest.

Niamh Cusack- Marketing Advisor 

Paddy Power Obama Campaign - An Intelligent Publicity Stunt or A Step Too Far?

The U.S. Presidential Campaigns of both Barack Obama and Mitt Romney have been the centrepiece of international news across the globe over the past few weeks. However, last week the spectacle came to an end as the American people took to the poll's to choose the next leader of their country. Although the U.S. polling day was set for the 6th November, Paddy Power were so sure of themselves and confident in the success of an Obama win that they declared they would begin paying out to all punters who backed Obama to win from Sunday the 4th of November.

A spokesman for Paddy Power explained how the company felt that Obama's win was a "nailed on certainty" making the possibility of losing the €500,000 associated cost of an Obama loss extremely irrelevant to the company:

Romney gave it a good shot and is doing well in the popular vote, but we suspect he’s had his moment in the sun and is likely to be remembered more for his legendary gaffes than Presidential potential.  

The overall betting trend has shown one-way traffic for Obama and punters seemed to have called it 100 per cent correct.  

Despite Romney appealing to the large evangelical and senior vote, America’s sticking with black and cool.

So this may all seem like a bit of harmless fun and an intelligent risk worth taking for the betting company that is known for its wild marketing and advertising campaigns. However, many have criticised the company for its print media campaign that was launched in support of the Obama payout:

The Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland stated on Monday the 5th November that they would be launching a full investigation into the matter after receiving a public complaint in relation to the advert. Ken Robertson, a spokesman for Paddy Power defended the half-page advert stating the company did not create an ad that was meant to be racist or stereotypical. He added that in keeping with previous campaigns developed by the international company, it was "edgy, if not a little bit provocative but always funny".

So how would you rate the overall marketing campaign engaged by Paddy Power? Personally, I think its another example of the smart marketing that the company is consistently famed for using. It has caught international headlines across the world, has got people talking about the brand yet again and all for a feeble cost of a 1/2 page print advert in a local Irish newspaper. A single complaint to launch an investigation seems unrealistic, I might go as far as saying it may have been Paddy Power themselves who issued the complaint - more media attention, more hype - more brand awareness.

Overall the campaign has had one question resonating in my mind - what's next Paddy??

 Jennifer Beirne - Marketing Advisor