Mailing banned for irresponsibly tempting teens to spend

by Alex Donohue, Brand Republic 09-Jan-08, 12:00

LONDON - The ASA has upheld a complaint that a direct mailing from a division of mail order clothing company Littlewoods irresponsibly encouraged young female shoppers to spend excessively.

The campaign for Shop Direct Financial Services' Direct Plus Account targeted 75,000 people.

It included a cartoon strip featuring a young woman who had bought designer clothes using the company's credit card, under the strapline: "Why let money come between you and a good time?"

Other text used to illustrate the mailings included: "Hot dates won't wait till payday, by the time you can afford the sexy new outfit, Mr Right could be long gone".

Shop Direct Financial Services said the majority of mailing recipients were in their 20s and 30s, and defended the campaign by claiming the cartoon ads depicted an "element of fantasy" and were "not meant to be a serious lifestyle endorsement".

The Advertising Standards Authority upheld a single complaint for breaching its codes on responsible advertising, and asked Shop Direct Financial Services' to cease using the campaign.

In its ruling, the ASA noted that although card holders were given a credit limit, the ad was directed at particularly young women and would likely encourage "care-free, impulsive spending on credit".

The watchdog said: "By portraying an aspirational lifestyle purchased impulsively on credit, the ad was likely to be seen as encouraging young women to spend excessively on a credit account, and as such was irresponsible."