The Advertising Standards Authority banned five advertisements deemed irresponsible and which had been published by Hubbly Bubbly“, A company specializing in e-cigarettes.
Ads on social media sites and Hubbly Bubbly featured Zayn Malik, from the old boy band " one direction And the singer Cheryl Fernandez-Versini. Another on Twitter showed two young women using e-cigarettes and the third ad was a tweet showing two young people vaping in front of a row of alcohol bottles. A text read: "The end of a very productive week at the Hubbly Bubbly, we are ready for the weekend". Finally, the last announcement was a video on Youtube with scenes in bars, discos and at a concert where people were introduced using e-cigarettes Hubbly Bubbly"
The Medicines and Health Products Regulatory Authority complained that the first two advertisements did not specify that the product contains nicotine, and that it seemed to them that the protagonists in them were under 25 years old. ASA inquired whether those present were under 25. For them, the fifth announcement was simply irresponsible because it could appeal to those under 18.
Following multiple complaints, Hubbly Bubbly removed all of the ads. The company said there was no need to mention nicotine content because the ads weren't there to promote a particular product. They also added that the celebrities mentioned in the ads were adults and it was mandatory to be at least 18 years old to follow the Twitter page. The ASA still considered that the female models in the ads did not appear to be over 25 years old. As a result, Hubbly Bubbly can not resubmit their ads without making some changes.
Source : Marketingmagazine.co.uk
