ASA Dismisses Complaint Against Baileys™ Christmas Ad

The U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has dismissed a
complaint alleging that Diageo Great Britain Ltd.’s holiday commercials
for Baileys™ liqueur “implied that the success of a social occasion
depended on the presence or consumption of alcohol.” Despite Alcohol
Concern’s claim that the tagline “IT’S NOT CHRISTMAS WITHOUT
YOU… BAILEYS” was “irresponsible,” the agency agreed with Diageo
Great Britain and Clearcast that consumers were likely to understand
“Christmas” as a reference to the entire holiday season as opposed to a
specific social occasion.

“We considered that consumers would interpret the claim “IT’S NOT
CHRISTMAS WITHOUT YOU” as a play on words referring to getting
together with friends over the festive period, as well as referring to the
fact that the drink had been traditionally associated with the Christmas
period,” ASA said. “We noted that the ad showed the women enjoying
one drink together, and there was no suggestion that the individual social
occasions were dependent on Baileys in order to be successful. Rather,
the women appeared to be laughing and enjoying each other’s company
from the beginning of the ad before they had arrived at the bars or had
been served any Baileys.”

Issue 589