Truth in Advertising Is an Oxymoron

Truth in Advertising is an Oxymoron

Advertising can be an effective way for any business to market their products and services. Businesses dedicate large sums of money from their corporate budget for advertising companies to devise an advertising campaign. Some businesses would do almost anything to boost their sales and their revenue, because face it that is why they are in business. They put so much emphasis on marketing and increasing sales that some would go as far as being untruthful or make an exaggerated claim. There are businesses in the world that would cunningly misrepresent their product and services through the use of very alluring advertising.

The business of selling has never more competitive than it is today. For any company to be truly competitive in the marketplace it has to have an effective marketing plan. Marketing and promotion are crucial for successfully unlocking the potential of any business; none or too little marketing leads to poor sales resulting in low revenue. For a company to succeed and prosper all depends on how effective the marketing campaign is. Effective marketing demands a lot of thought and careful planning to be successful.

The 2013 projected global advertising spending is $517.7 billion dollars with the United States accounting for $171.7 billion (plunked). As an industry it employs thousands and reaches out to every part of society through television, radio, movies, music, professional sports, billboards, direct mail, newspapers, magazines, cell phones, and hundreds of thousands of websites (Richard, 2013).

Federal and state laws concerning truth-in-advertising are in place to protect consumers from false or misleading advertising. As required by law, advertisers must tell the truth about their products and must produce evidence to back up their claims. The judicial hurdles put in place can prevent an individual from bring a suit against a company for deceptive advertising and would seem to be beyond the realistic...