This is a new low MNHQ

[thestudio]

I know you've got to make a living, but the language in the promoted post below is unethical.

The clear implication is that 'Mumsnet-the-site' - which draws all its authority from us, your users, the Mumsnet 'hivemind' - believes that all young children NEED Equazen.

The only question is which age that it should be given.

I'm quite shocked by this. I've worked in a similar area so I know the score and I'm a commercial realist.

I don't think the ASA will be thrilled.

@JellyIegs I did the exact same thing 😂

I agree. I noticed the title and also thought it implied that all children should have it. Poorly worded.

Me too!!

Ahhh, yes. Magic Kingdom does make more sense.... Shame, really.

Was that Gazebo Gate?

I think if I remember right they used a quote/review from an MN er about something else, and applied it to a new ad for a completely different one. The quoted poster saw it and started a thread to query it. Then MN went all “ it was a generic quote about all the gazebos in this category” or something and ended up they had to email everyone to apologise for misleading, I think.

That's the one. They also claimed it only happened in a tiny minority of cases, but users kept finding examples where they had altered quotes to make it look like they were recommending different products. Mnhq then went on an editing spree and changed the wording in two thirds of their ads. Hardly a tiny minority!

I hadn't seen/noticed that promoted post or even heard of this medication before I read this thread, so well done for giving them more publicity.

Another person here, mourning the loss of a non-existent Milton Keynes monorail. Oh great, I thought, some much needed infrastructure for a fast growing area. And the fact I haven't really seen it in the news means it mustn't be horrendously over budget, like HS2 or every other transport project. Never actually clicked on the thread though...

I too had been thinking, maybe I need a trip to Milton Keynes, if they've got a monorail.

I am disappointed. And not planning to go to Milton Keynes.

It does say 'when' though.

Its hard to say, there is a legal age for everything these days though.

Its hard to say, there is a legal age for everything these days though.

'when should I start giving' is different from 'when should I give'. The latter is still a bit dodgy imv and I don't think the ASA would be happy. But the latter asks the question 'what is the correct age to start this supplement', much like 'what is the correct age to start weaning'. And that is definitely wrong.

Loads of these. I mentally zone them out, which is admittedly easier done when your youngest child is over 20.

respectfully, that is idiotic. By that measure, no one could ever complain about any ad.

Still very much enjoying @BCBird‘s Molten Keynes.

Hell on earth I hear.

Ohhhhhh! I still thought it was Milton Keynes.

I saw the ad. Not a mum and not in the UK but I did think it odd and presumptuous.

I said to my DH they have a monorail in Milton Keynes not far from us and I would love to have gone on it, and he said so they have trams in Croydon.we used to live near Croydon at one time .

Doesn't everyone just ignore the promoted by MN threads as they are just ads?

I agree with you OP.

I think I'm a bit out there, I thought Mount Kilimanjaro. Although thinking about it that wasn't very likely.

I didn't click on the thread, but at the time I thought - does Milton Keynes really have a monorail? 🤦

Not meaning to derail (no pun intended), but I agree with the OP. Maybe the phrase could be, should I give my child the aforementioned supplement? But the sponsored threads are tiresome and I never click on them. At least MN flags them.

I also thought it was Milton Keynes till I read this thread. The draw of Disney must not be as strong as MN thought.

I was vaguely curious about the Milton Keynes monorail but not curious enough to open the thread. I've never read one of those sponsored threads. Does anybody actually click on them? Why would you?

I presume the wording of the full advert post is a bit more nuanced than the headline and would also presume regulations allow you to be snappier in headlines than full content.

Yes - probably most people do, in the same way as many ignore ads on TV and elsewhere. But if adverts didn't work anywhere, nobody would ever advertise. Adverts and promotions send messages we might not even be conscious of and the name of the product lodges in your brain. It's especially bad when it relates to something like products for children because parents (as in Mumsnet) are quite vulnerable to being made to feel guilty that they're not doing the right thing for their offspring.