Background

Summary of Council decision:

Three issues were investigated, all of which were Upheld.

Ad description

Claims on the "Publish With GSP" page on www.greenshorepublishing.com stated "HIGH QUALITY PRODUCTION ... Not only will your book be comprehensively edited, formatted and designed, but it will be printed and distributed with the highest standards of quality in mind. Below we've included some of the high quality covers from several of our recent releases". Underneath were pictures of three book covers. Further text stated "INNOVATIVE PROMOTION ... Not only will be [sic] pushing our retail partners to feature your book, but we'll introduce your book to potential readers in other ways. We offer radio ads ... Below are two examples of ads that have recently aired". Underneath were links to two audio files labelled "The Last Stand" and "The Heart Grows". Claims on the "Reviews" page stated "REVIEWS From Authors We've included a few video testimonials from UK authors ...". The page included video files headed "Jack", "Clive" and "Richard" in which they spoke about the service they received from Green Shore Publishing.

Issue

An internet user challenged whether:

1. the claim "Below we've included some of the high quality covers from several of our recent releases" and the pictures of the book covers, were misleading and could be substantiated, because they understood the book titles did not exist;

2. the claim "Below are two examples of [radio] ads that have recently aired" was misleading and could be substantiated, because they believed the ads had not been broadcast; and

3. the testimonials by "Jack", "Clive" and "Richard" were genuine and could be substantiated.

Response

1. Green Shore Publishing did not respond to this point.

2. Green Shore Publishing said the radio ads were simply examples of the type of work they could produce for their clients. They said they could add text to the page to make that clear.

3. Green Shore Publishing said they were unable to disclose information about their authors for reasons of privacy. However, if there was an issue with the testimonials, they would remove them from the website.

Assessment

1. Upheld

The ASA noted we had not seen evidence to show that the book titles and covers were genuine or that the books had been published. We considered that the claim "Below we've included some of the high quality covers from several of our recent releases" and the pictures of the book covers, had not been substantiated and were therefore misleading and breached the Code.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules  3.1 3.1 Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.  (Misleading advertising) and  3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.  (Substantiation).

2. Upheld

We understood that the radio ads on the website were intended to show the kind of advertising Green Shore Publishing believed they were capable of creating for clients, rather than actual examples of work already produced for their authors. However, the claim stated that the ads had "recently aired", which gave the impression that they were authentic radio ads that had been broadcast. Because that was not the case, we considered that the claim "Below are two examples of [radio] ads that have recently aired" was misleading.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules  3.1 3.1 Marketing communications must not materially mislead or be likely to do so.  (Misleading advertising) and  3.7 3.7 Before distributing or submitting a marketing communication for publication, marketers must hold documentary evidence to prove claims that consumers are likely to regard as objective and that are capable of objective substantiation. The ASA may regard claims as misleading in the absence of adequate substantiation.  (Substantiation).

3. Upheld

The CAP Code requires marketers to hold documentary evidence to show that testimonials used in their advertising are genuine. The Code also requires advertisers to hold contact details for the person who gave the testimonial in order, if necessary, for the ASA to check their validity. Green Shore Publishing did not provide that information, which we considered was a breach of the Code, and because we saw no evidence to support the video testimonials of "Jack", "Clive" and "Richard", we considered the testimonials had not been substantiated and were therefore misleading.

On this point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules  3.45 3.45 Marketers must hold documentary evidence that a testimonial or endorsement used in a marketing communication is genuine, unless it is obviously fictitious, and hold contact details for the person who, or organisation that, gives it.  and  3.47 3.47 Claims that are likely to be interpreted as factual and appear in a testimonial must not mislead or be likely to mislead the consumer.  (Endorsements and testimonials).

Action

The claims and pictures must not appear again in their current form. We told Green Shore Publishing to ensure that they hold robust evidence to support claims in their advertising.

CAP Code (Edition 12)

3.1     3.45     3.47     3.7    


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