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Bollywood actors Ranveer Singh and Jacqueline Fernandez along with about 20 other influencers were found in violation of guidelines of influencer advertising by Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). These influencers continued to remain non-compliant failing to list disclosure labels on the first instance as well as on subsequent routine checks, ASCI said.
While Singh’s post promoting brand Manyavar was in violation of the ASCI guidelines, Fernandez post promoting Colorbar Cosmetics did not carry the disclosure label.
Other influencers that were found in breach of the guidelines included Urvashi Rautela, Karishma Sakhrani, Sonam Babani, Shlok Srivastav, Tashveen Sehgal and Shereen among others. Brands promoted in these posts by influencers included Nykaa Retail, Blissclub Fitness, Cutis Skin, Elysiann Glory, FAE Beauty, Fugazee, Kama Ayurveda, Malabar Gold , Myntra, Realme Mobile, Vivo Mobile and Trell among others.
Guideline violations
The self-regulatory body’s guidelines came into effect from June 14, 2021 and it screened about 5,000 social media posts between July-December, 2021.
Manisha Kapoor, Secretary General, ASCI said, “With the suo motu monitoring that we have been doing, over the past six months, we have screened about 5,000 posts/stories/ feeds from influencer handles and processed 746 posts that were considered to be prima facie violations. But overall compliance for ASCI guidelines is over 95 per cent and we believe we will reach similar numbers on the influencer guidelines as well. We will continue to educate influencers and brands about the need for transparency and honest representation on digital platforms.”
Complaints
As per ASCI report, out of the total complaints processed, 21 per cent originated from end consumers, the rest were picked up suo motu through its AI based surveillance. Most complaints from end consumers were from Instagram feeds and stories.
“Out of the 719 posts processed, 577 (80 per cent) influencers voluntarily amended/ withdrew their posts, which is very encouraging. Out of the remaining 142 complaints, 121 were upheld by ASCI’s Consumer Complaints Council and influencers were asked to withdraw or modify their posts. In all, ASCI recommendations received 86 per cent compliance from Influencers,” the report added
The four segments where maximum violations were seen were fashion and lifestyle, cosmetics, food & bevege and personal care.
ASCI found either these posts lacked disclosure labels or had incorrect disclosure placement and was not visible easily to viewers. In addition, it was found that posts in violation of the guidelines had inconsistencies in displaying disclosure labels .“The realm of Influencer Marketing in India is vast, hence constant education and outreach efforts are required to ensure that the industry comes together to create a robust and responsible digital ecosystem,” added Sharma.
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