Advertisment
A sponsored post for Full Body Workhouse appeared on Facebook stated:
Free 6 week challenge
I’m looking for 40 ladies who are looking to transform their bodies and lives in 6 weeks for FREE.”
A link to a website was provided and also included was a video of a member of the gym and a ‘sign up’ button.
“Why? Simple – I am looking to market my facility and use the testimonials from this program to get more clients. AND – because when I have done this program in the past most people stay on afterwards to become members because they love our facility so much. Consider yourself warned!!
What you get:
Personal custom meal plan to eliminate guesswork
Personal grocery list to save time and money and make it crazy easy
Personal food prep instructions so easy my 12 year old can do it in under 2 hours/wk
42 Done-For-You recipes to follow for the 6 weeks so you never have to ask yourself “what am I going to make tonight?”
Personal accountability coach so it feels like you have a motivated speaker waking you up every morning to get your behind in the gym
3 cutting edge workouts PER WEEK WITH ME AT MY GYM designed to tone your body and jump start your metabolism and give you an explosion of energy.
World class online support group with 24hrs accountability
And much much more….
That being said, this is for MOTIVATED…..”
Complaint
The complainant viewed the advertisement and signed up for their assessment. When visiting the gym she was advised that she would have to pay €499 to avail of the challenge and lose 4lbs a week for the 6 weeks, i.e. 25lbs in total. As none of this information was contained within the sponsored post she considered it was misleading.
Response
The advertiser said that they run a 6 week challenge from their gym that was launched on Facebook by video and word content. They said that after viewing the video and reading all the content, people are asked if they want to find out more. If they do then they need to click the link within the advert and they then arrive at a landing page where they are told they can register for free.
They said that when consumers register they are brought through a booking service in order to set up a time and day for a free private consultation at their gym. They said that the private consultation consists of an explanation for approximately 25 – 30 minutes about the program, including details of the nutrition plan, recipes, accountability, training, weekly measurements, targets of 25lbs or 6% body fat and cost etc. They said that therefore everyone was in no doubt of what the programme entailed in every aspect before starting.
They said that the challenge itself was based on the individual and if someone had more weight to lose they set them a target of 25lbs or if they have not, then their target was 6% body fat as they have to be realistic for them to achieve their goal in the 6 weeks. They also said that as they really want to motivate them, they offered their money back when they hit their target. They said that they currently had 20 people taking part in the challenge and they would be refunding some members who had achieved their goal.
Conclusion
Complaint Upheld.
The Complaints Committee considered the detail of the complaint and the advertisers’ response. The Committee noted that the sponsored post on Facebook had specifically referred to the 6 week challenge as being ‘Free’, explaining that it would generate testimonials for the gym The noted however that it was actually a ‘money-back’ offer dependent on achieving a goal, rather than an unconditional ‘free’ offer. They noted that this was not clear from the advertising, with the complainant only being made aware of the terms when attending the initial consultation at the gym. In the circumstances the Committee considered that the advertising was likely to mislead and in breach of Sections 4.1 and 4.4 of the Code.
ACTION REQUIRED:
The advertising must not reappear in its current form.
