Prettylittlething has had an Instagram advert banned after it was posted by the Love Island star and social media influencer Molly-Mae Hague, who failed to include any indication that it was an ad.
An Instagram story, published on 31 October 2021, showed Hague modelling a dress for Prettylittlething, with text stating: “You can actually shop it now on PLT – Couldn’t not make it available for you guys too”.
This was also followed with a direct link to the online fashion retailer’s website, where Hague is a creative director.
The complainant told the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that, while they understood Hague’s position with the retailer, the lack of clarity regarding the post’s advert status meant its commercial intent was unclear.
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In response, Prettylittlething confirmed that Hague is creative director for the brand.
It also said that the contractual agreement expressly stated the need to “comply with applicable laws and regulations relating to marketing and advertising” – this included using the #ad in posts for the avoidance of doubt.
Prettylittlething said the #ad disclosure had been omitted by mistake and said it had reminded Hague of the requirement to prevent any similar mistakes in future.
A spokeswoman for Hague also said the #ad disclosure had been left off by mistake and would be used in future.
The advertising watchdog said it considered that both parties were “jointly responsible for ensuring that marketing activity conducted on Molly-Mae Hague’s account and which promoted Prettylittlething was compliant with the CAP Code”.
It continued: “We noted that the story had appeared in Molly-Mae Hague’s own account and did not contain any indication that it was a marketing communication.
“We considered that, while some of her followers may have known that she was a creative director at Prettylittlething, it was not immediately clear to all consumers that she had a commercial interest in Prettylittlething from the post itself.
“We therefore concluded that the commercial intent behind the story was not made clear upfront and it was not obviously identifiable as a marketing communication.
“We welcomed the assurances from both Prettylittlething and Molly-Mae Hague that similar posts would include a label such as #ad in future.”
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