Advertisment
A post on the advertisers’ Instagram page featured an image that included the following words:
“Wrinkles? Botox. Sweating? Botox. Migraines? Botox. Bad Day? Botox. Boyfriend Trouble? Botox.
The wording accompanying the image stated:
“Anti-wrinkle injections available at Eden Medical Clinic”
Complaint
The complainant objected to the use of the term ‘Botox’, a prescription medicine, in an advertisement.
Response
The advertisers stated that they had a new marketing employee commence working with them in the middle of December who had not been fully versed at the time regarding the use of the term ‘Botox’. They said that unfortunately the post had slipped through their review net, however, since then, they had run through all advertising code standards in great detail with the employee and they were conscious of all requirements going forward.
The advertisers said that they had deleted the post from their post archive and confirmed that it was a one-time error and would not reoccur and have apologised for any inconvenience this oversight has caused.
Conclusion
Complaint Upheld.
The Complaints Committee considered the detail of the complaint and the advertisers’ response.
The Complaints Committee noted that the reference to Botox had been made in error. They also noted the steps taken by the advertisers in removing the post from their archives and acknowledged the training they had put in place.”
However, Botox was a prescription only medicine that was not permitted under the Code to be advertised to the public. As the advertisement had used the term ‘Botox’ the Committee considered that the advertising was in breach of Section 11.16 of the Code.
ACTION REQUIRED:
The advertisement must not appear in its current form again.