With Halloween and Bonfire Night on the horizon, ‘tis the season for advertisers to brew up some spellbinding ads that are sure to attract attention! However, with these spooktacular celebrations come a few regulatory ghosts of which to be wary. To ensure your campaigns are both hauntingly effective and scarily compliant, please review this guide filled with bewitching tips and advice.
Creep It Real… But Not too Real
As Halloween casts its spell on advertisers, it’s crucial to ensure that the chills and thrills in your ads don’t cross the line into excessive fear or distress. To avoid conjuring up nightmares, consider the levels of realism and gore in your ads.
In 2023, a poster ad for a horror-themed Halloween event featured graphic imagery of a decomposing zombie with severe facial wounds and recognisably human features. Despite the advertiser’s efforts to place the ad away from schools, the ASA found the graphic and realistic depiction to be inappropriate for an untargeted medium, proving that even the scariest ads must be thoughtfully considered to avoid sending shivers down the wrong spines.
Grave Costume Mistakes
Halloween is the perfect time to dress up and let your costume weave a spine-chilling tale. Whilst there are many classic Halloween costumes, with the bedsheet ghost being a reliable favourite, it’s vital that ads promoting haunting attire avoid crossing into the realm of harmful stereotypes. For instance, the ASA previously ruled that an online clothing retailer’s Halloween ad had unnecessarily sexualised models in lingerie, and promoted harmful gender stereotypes.
Care must also be taken with the depiction of religion in marketing communications which have the capacity to cause serious offence to followers of the faiths concerned.
Don’t Sugar Coat it
When it comes to treats, we all have a sweet spot, but advertising HFSS (High in Fat, Salt, and Sugar) foods to children is a no-go zone. There are clear rules in place to prevent such ads from reaching young audiences, so please review the guidance to avoid any rulings against your products, ensuring we can let the ghoul times roll!
No AI Frights
The idea of Generative AI conjuring ad campaigns might seem like the stuff of science fiction, but the ASA is on hand to ensure that your AI-generated content remains compliant. Regardless of whether an ad is crafted by AI or traditional means, the ASA’s rules apply based on how consumers will interpret the content.
Fear not - if AI-generated content features ghoulish imagery, misleading claims, or eerie biases, it’s still under our watchful regulatory eye. Rest easy knowing we’ll keep your campaigns from becoming a horror show.
Let’s Pumpkin Spice Things Up Together!
As always, our Copy Advice team are on hand and will be happy to guide you whilst providing fast, free bespoke advice on non-broadcast ads. So, embrace the festivities, keep the scares in check, and enjoy a spine-chillingly successful campaign.
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