The festivities might be over, but you can keep your sales merry and bright as you welcome the New Year.
Price Right Like a Diamond
Price statements must not mislead by omission, undue emphasis or distortion. If there are non-optional charges you can calculate, in addition to the cost of the product (e.g. booking fees), this must be included in the advertised price. If there are non-optional charges, but you can’t calculate them yet, you should make clear that the charge is excluded and state how it will be calculated.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), an auld (and present) acquaintance of CAP and the ASA, has produced guidance on price transparency to help you keep prices clear in the New Year.
Tonight We’re Gonna Party Like it WAS £20.25, NOW £19.99
If you want to draw consumers’ attention to a price by claiming that is has been reduced, you must have evidence to show that this is a genuine saving. This means that the “was” price must be the product’s usual selling price when there is no sale on. The ASA may ask for evidence to determine a product’s usual selling price, such as pricing history and sales data.
While we might not know what the future holds, our advice on promotional savings claims makes a great starting point for reference pricing.
“Five… Four… Three… Two… Done!”
The final countdown should be just that – final.
Closing dates are significant conditions so they must be stated in your marketing and must not be changed unless unavoidable circumstances beyond the control of the promoter make it necessary and not to change the date would be unfair to those who sought to participate within the original terms, (or those who sought to participate within the original terms will not be disadvantaged by the change).
For more on closing dates, see here.
Start the year on the right footnote
If there is anything you want to clarify about your offer, adding legible small print to your ad may be a good option. However, you can’t use that space to rewrite your ad.
If you suggest that a promotional offer applies to “everything” or “all” items, then a qualification that excludes certain items is likely to contradict this headline claim and be considered misleading and to break the advertising rules. You can get information on qualifications here.
As ever, if you need help and guidance on your non-broadcast promotions, contact the CAP Copy Advice team via the website.
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