Advertising Claims

An advertising claim is any statement in an ad about a product’s or service’s features, composition, effects, performance, superiority, origin or price. A claim may be made not only in words but through images, graphics, sound effects or the way the product is presented. For example, showing an expert in a white coat next to a product may imply scientific endorsement even if this is not stated.

The Overall Impression Test

Whether an ad is misleading is assessed by the overall impression it creates on the average consumer. The average consumer is reasonably well informed, observant and circumspect, and does not study ads in detail. An ad that creates a misleading impression as a whole therefore breaches commercial advertising rules even if each statement is accurate.

Footnotes and Small Print

A footnote may clarify or limit the main claim but cannot contradict it. Footnotes that effectively negate the main message, such as limiting an “unlimited internet” claim to a quota in small print, do not make the ad non-misleading. Footnotes that are hard to read or shown on screen only briefly are not sufficient.

Puffery

Obvious exaggerations that consumers would not take seriously (“a taste that will make you fly”) are generally not claims and need no proof. By contrast, statements creating a measurable or comparative impression are claims and must be proven.

High-Risk Claim Types

• Superiority claims and first-place claims,
• Comparative advertising,
• Absolute expressions such as “100% natural” or “clinically proven”,
• Environmental claims,
• Nutrition and health claims,
• Price and discount claims.

Identifying before publication which documents each of these claims requires is the most effective way to prevent an Advertising Board investigation.