Sainsbury’s has been rapped by the Advertising Standards Authority over what it deemed a misleading promotion for Häagen-Dazs ice cream.
The advertising watchdog said this week that Sainsbury’s pricing history since 19 March 2017 showed it sold the ice cream at £4 base price and £3 promotional price every 21 days. It judged that this cycle could lead customers to believe the product has two distinct prices.
The online offer had accompanying text that said the product was £3 and offered a £1 saving. The ASA considered that this would cause consumers to understand that the lower price represented a genuine saving against the usual selling price.
The watchdog ordered Sainsbury’s to stop advertising the deal in its current form because it was not a meaningful saving. It also advised the retailer to ensure future savings claims did not imply savings against the usual selling price of the product.
“This is not just a ruling for Sainsbury’s as it sets a precedent for all retailers. We weren’t satisfied that Sainsbury’s was giving customers genuine savings,” an ASA spokesman said.
He added that the ASA was encouraging “best practice” among retailers broadly.
Sainsbury’s argued the promotion was based on a genuine saving and said its data showed the offer represented a promotional price that was not available for longer than the higher price preceding the £3 promotion.
“We are disappointed by the ASA’s decision as we believe the advert showed customers the genuine saving that could be made on the product. We note the ruling,” said a Sainsbury’s spokesman.
Colin Harper, CEO of promotional marketing analyst Storecheck said the promotion sounded “misleading” and “bad practice” on Sainsbury’s part, warning that customers may be reluctant to buy the ice cream at full price if they think they’re being over-charged. “That’s the downside of running tonnes of price promotions.”
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