Overview:
NAD puts a damper on claims made by diaper makers about drier skin. How might claim substantiation surveys have lightened the advertising load?
Absorbing The Competition: Case Facts
Coterie Baby, Inc. makes and sells The Diaper, which is advertised and sold as a hypoallergenic, clean, and high-performing diaper up to 12 hours of leak protection. (The Diaper’s tagline is Finally a Diaper You Won’t Lose Sleep Over.) Procter & Gamble (P&G), manufacturer of popular lines of diapers including Luvs, Pampers, and Huggies, brought a challenge to the absorbency, drier skin, and performance claims in the National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB National Programs.
P&G challenged both express and implied claims that it said Coterie made, including claims that The Diaper is up to four times more absorbent, and keeps skin up to three times drier, compared to leading brands. P&G also challenged influencer marketing for The Diaper, which it said did not make advertising disclosures properly on social media. Rather, P&G alleged, a Facebook ad failed to disclose that the relationship was paid before the user clicked through to a blog post that made the disclosure. P&G argued that the Facebook post appears to be an objective review before the user clicks through and sees the disclosure. (The Federal Trade Commission closely regulates endorsements, reviews, and influencer marketing.)
The Decision
The NAD found that the evidence Coterie submitted on the diaper claims, scientific studies, was insufficient to demonstrate superiority over Pampers, a brand that falls within the “leading brands” category. It recommended that the claim be amended. The NAD also noted that the studies P&G offered as evidence were more reliable and methodologically sound than the Coterie studies, and that the phrase “up to” is too broad, leading reasonable consumers to believe that The Diaper is four times more absorbent than leading diapers.
In addition, the NAD found that the endorsements did not clearly show the relationship between the brand and the endorser. With this decision, the NAD continues to emphasize the importance of upfront disclosures of relationships between advertisers and the influencers who endorse their products. Disclosures must be made before a consumer clicks through to the main content, as per the FTC Influencer Disclosure Guidelines. During the proceeding, Coterie agreed to permanently discontinue certain challenged claims that were not reviewed by the NAD, but agreed to the NAD’s recommendations.
Claim Substantiation Research Absorbs Challenges
In this challenge, the NAD relied partly on research submitted by P&G to decide the challenge, and rejected research from Coterie. That research was likely scientific in nature, but reliable consumer research can also help with some advertising disputes. If a false advertising claim arises, a false or deceptive advertising survey can assess whether consumers believe the diapers performed as advertised, or how consumers perceive claims like ‘Up To 4x Absorbency,” as well as whether consumers understood the endorsement relationship on the disclosure before clicking through.
MMR Strategy Group, an IMS Legal Strategies company, designs, conducts, and delivers reliable claim substantiation research. Whether you are preparing for a campaign or defending against a challenge, our claim substantiation research can help you make evidence-based decisions with confidence. We often work on cases before the NAD, NARB, and FTC. Contact us today for reliable advertising substantiation research.