Review of advertising, promotions and influencer campaigns

Two yardsticks at once

Advertising in this sector is measured against two criteria that do not always align: the health one, on what may be said about a product given what it is and what was authorised, and the consumer one, on what is promised to the buyer. Under Law 1480 of 2011 advertising binds whoever issues it, so a promise written for a three-week campaign can remain enforceable long after the campaign has ended.

What we review

• Creative and scripts. Commercials, digital pieces, point-of-sale material, promotional packaging and product pages on your own store or on delivery apps.
• Claims about the product. Benefits, comparisons with other products, references to studies and third-party endorsements.
• Nutrition and health claims. What can be said given what the product is, and what evidence must exist before saying it.
• Promotions and offers. Conditions, duration, available stock and small print, which is where most complaints begin.
• Sensitive audiences. Rules for campaigns that reach children and adolescents and for the school environment, within the framework of Law 2120 of 2021.
• Alcoholic beverages. The restrictions specific to the category in media, messaging and warnings.

Content creators and third-party messaging

Much of what is said about a brand today is not written by the brand: it is said by a content creator, a partner or a distributor, and the company still answers for the message it sponsors. The point is not to ban the channel but to organise it before the first post.

• Clauses for contracts with agencies, creators and partners: what may be claimed, what is expressly prohibited and who approves before publication.
• Rules on disclosing paid content, so the audience knows it is looking at advertising.
• Responsibility for what the creator says off-script, and an agreed route for requesting correction or removal.
• Handling of user-generated content when the brand decides to reuse it on its own channels.
• Rules for the institutional customer and the distributor who builds their own material around the brand.

The menu and the point of sale are advertising too

In restaurants and food service chains the discussion is rarely about a television spot: it is about the menu, the digital menu and the sign in the window. The name of the dish, the description of an ingredient, a reference to an origin or a preparation method, and allergen warnings commit whoever publishes them exactly as a paid piece would. We review that copy against the same standard, and we set who signs it off before it is printed.

Evidence: what must exist before the claim

The question that settles most of these discussions is simple and rarely asked in time: if the authority or a consumer asks tomorrow for proof of that line, what gets handed over? We help build the evidence file behind each claim, with laboratory analyses, studies, certifications and manufacturer documents. Without that file, a true claim is as hard to defend as a false one.

How we work with the marketing team

1. We review the campaign at concept stage, while changing an idea still costs less than a production.
2. We return comments on the creative, with alternative wording, at the speed a campaign calendar requires.
3. We build a list of approved claims for the brand that serves every campaign afterwards.
4. We set which cases require checking with us before publication and which the team can resolve alone.

What the client receives

• The reviewed creative with concrete comments and alternative wording.
• A document listing the approved claims for the brand and the evidence supporting each.
• The clauses for contracts with agencies, content creators and commercial partners.
• Short approval rules for the marketing team, naming the cases that require legal review before publishing.

Typical situations we handle

• A campaign is ready to launch and nobody has checked whether the claims hold up.
• The brand is about to work with content creators for the first time and needs rules and contracts.
• A competitor or a consumer challenges an advertising claim and a response is required.
• The company wants to settle once and for all what it can say about its products instead of arguing campaign by campaign.