Deceptive Advertisement Research Paper

Advertisement plays a crucial role in the supply chain and marketing of a product. It is worth noting that advertisement has various effects in society depending on the type of advisement. A deceptive advertisement entails the omission, representation and practice that tend to mislead a reasonable consumer. There is the difference between making false claims and pushing the truth. There are various deceptive advertisements in the world today. One of the products that hit the headlines is Activia (Mcmullen, 2010). Activia helps in preventing cold and flu. These products asserted that there were many health benefits that were associated with consumption of Activia. The product stated that it assisted in preventing cold and flu and slows intestinal transit time.
The advertisement was deceptive in the sense that it was misleading and false. Those who used the products reported that they felt no changes after consuming it. FTC launched a complain about Activia, which led to Dannon paying $45 million for the damages caused (Mcmullen, 2010). Activia advertisement was deceptive because the ingredients of the product were the same with other products of the same kind. In addition, the health claim that was carried by the advertisement was not real (Blakeman, 2011). The stated health benefits stated could not be satisfied by the product.
The advertisement campaign could be changed to make it more compliant. One of the ways is by certifying that the healthy claims associated with the product are realistic to the exact health benefits achieved (Adweek, 2003). The companies have to limit the health benefits claimed and streamlined them to be factual. Another change is to ensure that the advertisement campaign inform the customers exactly what they expect in consuming the product. The description that is on the advertisement campaign should align with the production process of the product.

References

Adweek. (2003). New York, NY: VNU Business Publications.
Blakeman, R. (2011). Advertising campaign design: Just the essentials. Armonk, N.Y: M.E . Sharpe.
Mcmullen, T. (2010). Dannon to Pay $45M to Settle Yogurt Lawsuit. ABC News