Complaints were laid against social media influencer Simone Anderson for her promotion of rapid antigen tests and alcohol. Photo / Supplied
Complaints were laid against social media influencer Simone Anderson for her promotion of rapid antigen tests and alcohol. Photo / Supplied
Influencer Simone Anderson has escaped censure from the Advertising Standards Authority after she included pictures of her baby in Instagram posts that promoted alcohol.
And two other complaints about Anderson's promotion of a rapid antigen test brand were also settled after she voluntarily removed the offending posts.
One complainant against Anderson raised concerns about posts that promoted alcohol brands, including Lighthouse Gin, Te Kairanga Estate and Te Whare Ra wines.
Those posts both included pictures of Anderson's baby son, including a picture of her feeding him a bottle while holding a glass of wine.
The person also complained about a post promoting a restaurant which included pictures of her son staring at cocktails. Under the Alcohol Advertising and Promotion Code, minors must not appear in any alcohol advertising or promotion.
Earlier this month, two complaints were also laid with the Advertising Standards Authority after Anderson posted Instagram stories about using Clinitest RATs, from the company Advance Diagnostics.
She claimed they were high quality and "detect a much lower viral load" than other RATs, which meant people could protect themselves and their loved ones earlier. All the stories contained a link to purchase the product.
One complainant said her posts were misleading as all RATs had to meet a certain standard to be sold in New Zealand, while a second complainant said it was inappropriate for someone without a medical background to be promoting RATs or making claims about their effectiveness.
A still from one of Anderson's Instagram stories promoting the Clinitest rapid antigen test (RAT) home-testing kit.
The ASA accepted both sets of complaints but ruled they were settled because Anderson had removed the posts.
Anderson has 320,000 followers on Instagram, and regularly endorses companies' products or services on her social media, often in exchange for payment or freebies.
Such posts are considered advertising and are subject to the Advertising Standards Code.
The Herald has attempted to contact Anderson for comment.
ASA chief executive Hilary Souter said Anderson had been responsive in her past dealings with the regulatory body.
While she acknowledged the series of complaints made about Anderson, Souter was sympathetic to how complicated advertising regulations were for social media influencers.
"I think there's a massive challenge for anyone in the influencer space where people have to upskill."
Souter said companies wanting to advertise through influencers also had a responsibility to ensure those promoting their products were aware of the rules.
Souter said the ASA's new guidance on rapid antigen test advertising was not solely due to Anderson's complaint, but was in response to the growing number of businesses advertising the product.
