October 3, 2016

A tweet from AJ Odudu’s Twitter account stated “FAVE summer snack vibes @Alpro_UK … #Alpro #GoOn”, and included a close-up photo of a blackcurrant Alpro Go On pot in AJ Odudu’s hand.

The ASA noted that Alpro’s agency would provide Ms Odudu with key messaging and that it was to have sight of the posts before publication.  This, along with the stipulation that Ms Odudu was not to participate in the marketing or sales for competitor products, represented editorial control of the content by the advertiser.

The ASA added that the ad was presented in a similar “voice” to Ms Odudu’s other tweets and did not include any clear identifier, such as “#ad”, to demarcate it from her own content.

Despite the presence of the advertiser Twitter handle and campaign hashtags, the ASA did not consider that these would make clear to consumers the commercial intent of the tweet’s content or the editorial control exercised by the advertiser.  It therefore considered that the tweet would not have been obviously identifiable as a marketing communication to Ms Odudu’s Twitter followers and other visitors to her Twitter feed.  As such, the ASA found the tweet breached the CAP Code rules 2.1 and 2.4 (Recognition of marketing communications).  To read ASA Ruling on Alpro (UK) Ltd (21 September 2016), click here.