No matter our age, we all remember wishing for that perfect gift for the holidays. For me, it was a Merlin handheld "computer" game and a Shawn Cassidy record. Just this week, the Children's Advertising Review Unit (CARU) reminds advertisers that ads for dream toys aimed at kids should not overpromise what the toys can do. Many of CARU's cases in the past year have focused on the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and privacy, but the case is an excellent reminder to brands of advertising side requirements in the CARU guidelines. The Wish Me Puppy ad showed an adorable stuffed dog whose bow about the ears lights up with a kiss or other touch to the nose. It also showed kids in the ads making wishes, including Grandma arriving for a visit or rain clearing up, and showed the wishes coming true. CARU was concerned a child audience might think their wishes really would come true with the puppy. The advertiser believed the use of fantasy and hyperbole are understandable even to a young audience, who would not literally believe a stuffed dog could affect the weather or transport a beloved relative to the door. CARU was concerned that at least very young children might believe that their wishes would really come true with the purchase of the toy. The advertiser noted that such young children likely cannot make a purchase decision on their own; however, CARU reiterated that it "has consistently held that because a commercial is the first point of contact that a child has with a product, it is imperative that it is truthful and accurate."
The Takeaway
While children's products evolve and the means to reach them with ads also evolve, the basics of the self-regulatory guidelines still apply, and when ads are intended for children, it is important to take a step back and consider the ad through the lens of that younger, more impressionable audience.
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