Forty-one percent of the average hourlong prime-time TV show in 2009 was commercials, according to TNS Media Intelligence. Tune in to your favorite radio station and it’s tough to escape the stream of commercials. Pick up a magazine or newspaper and the thickness (and success) of the publication is dependent on the quantity of advertising.
Wherever we turn, we’re being bombarded by advertisements. Some are humorous, others are informative. And there is always one or two that test boundaries.
Most of us, however, don’t think about what goes into creating an ad or commercial other than whether it provides the information we want at the time we want to buy the product or service. And most of us don’t spend a lot of time wondering if the ad is truthful, if the product is being overhyped, or if the product being touted really is “the best.”
We consumers take a lot for granted.
But the Better Business Bureau doesn’t.
Truth in advertising is one of several high standards to which BBB Accredited Businesses must adhere. This means if a business states that it’s “the best” at doing what it does, then it must substantiate this with hard data. If a business boasts that it’s “number one in customer service,” it must have facts to back this up. And if a business declares it has “the lowest prices,” it must indeed have the lowest prices and be able to substantiate it.
The Council of Better Business Bureaus however, goes even further in ensuring truth in advertising. As a partner in the National Advertising Review Council — along with the Association of National Advertisers, American Association of Advertising Agencies, American Advertising Federation, Direct Marketing Association, electronic Retailing Association and Interactive Advertising Bureau — it works to foster truth and accuracy in national advertising through voluntary self-regulation. To ensure credibility and impartiality among all of the advertising associations, the CBBB administers the program.
Under NAD’s oversized umbrella is the National Advertising Division of the CBBB, Children’s Advertising Review Unit, National Advertising Review Board and the Electronic Retailing Self-Regulation Program.
And the self-regulatory system focuses on three goals:
• minimize governmental involvement in the advertising business;
• maintain a level playing field for settling disputes among competing advertisers, and;
• foster brand loyalty by increasing public trust in the credibility of advertising.
If you have questions about the advertising review programs, or if you have questions about ads you see or hear in your community, contact us at
wynco.bbb.org. We’re here to help.
About the BBB
The Better Business Bureau, founded in 1912, is a champion for ethics and trust in the marketplace. Only businesses that meet the high BBB standards are invited to become BBB Accredited Businesses. Today, 128 BBBs across the United States and Canada rate more than 3 million local and national businesses and charities with scores ranging from A to F. Only a BBB Accredited Business may elect to participate in BBBOnLine, one of the most trusted and recognized Internet seal programs in the world.
The BBB serving northern Colorado and Wyoming reported nearly 1 million instances of service to consumers and businesses in 2009. These services include reliability reports on local companies and charities, access to companies that can be trusted by industry, help with dispute resolution, and trustworthy information on consumer and business topics.
Luanne Kadlub, BBB Media Specialist, 970-686-9307, lkadlub@aol.com