Fuel Ads Face Off–a big Shell booboo? (part 2)

Last week, you had a sneak preview into the controversy involving these two oil giants. As promised, this second part unveils the details in this seething brew.

First, the chronology of events leading to Shell’s eco run as heard from unimpeachable sources.

The Shell Better Mileage Road Challenge was held on March 6, 2005. Invited by the oil company’s media agency, two young writers from C! Magazine joined the Media Category which was open to all makers and models of varying displacements. The awarding was held on the same day where the writers, Iñigo Roces and Chris Van Hoven, were proclaimed winners in the Media Category. The source claims, however, that there was no mention at that time that Shell had any plans of publishing the results of the eco run.

A month later, or June 7 to be exact, the media agency in charge of the eco run "invited" these two writers to "participate" in Shell’s Better Mileage Media Campaign and were told that they "simply wanted to publish the results of the contest held last March 6, 2005". A photo shoot was going to be scheduled that would require their presence, and from this photo shoot the media agency was going to produce "collateral ad material", tarpaulins which would be placed in "selected" Shell stations. This photo shoot took place on June 13, 2005, a Monday. By the end of that week, one of the writers, Iñigo, was requested to record a radio commercial scheduled for June 23, and the script was delivered to him by June 18. By that weekend, these same writers were invited to lunch with representatives from the oil company and the media agency. The boys "were made to understand" that the lunch was in gratitude for their help.

On schedule, the young guys went to the studio to record the radio commercial, after which they proceeded to the Peninsula Manila Hotel for the "gratitude lunch". According to the same unimpeachable source, it was only after the sumptuous lunch that "the boys were presented with the contracts and subsequently informed that this was an endorsement and that they were in fact planning to release four billboards, to be displayed in major thoroughfares around Metro Manila". I myself have seen these humongous billboards which attest to Shell Better Mileage Gasoline’s claim of achieving 35 km per liter and 1,491 kms on a full tank. The sad part is, these writers reportedly have not received any payment for their endorsements or the "collateral ad material". For winning first place in the eco run, they shared the prize of P30,000.00 worth of gasoline coupons. Apart from this, they claim that they have not received advertising or endorsement fees and have not received any advice if indeed any is forthcoming. What’s worse, as our sources lament, is that it appears that they were asked to sign contracts that would prohibit them from making similar endorsements for competing brands. Boy, were their hands cuffed for a measly sum of P30,000.00 worth of gas coupons, which was their prize to begin with for winning their category?

Now Petron enters the muddled picture. They reportedly filed a petition with the Ad Board citing Shell’s glaring violations, to wit:

1. "The claim of achieving 35 kms per liter and 1,491 kms in a full tank are misleading and exaggerated", for the following reasons:

a. "The copy failed to qualify to the public that these results were achieved using only one Shell gasoline, the Shell Super Premium. Hearing the copy, motorists may conclude that all shell gasoline brands such as Shell Super Unleaded and Velocity will give them the same mileage results, creating a perception of fuel efficiency for the entire gasoline line.

b. The results of 35 kms per liter and 1,491 kms in a full tank are mere extrapolations and not based on an actual road test. No actual travel was done covering the entire length of 1,491 kms.

c. Inigo Roces’ results were determined via the ff mechanics:

•The Honda Jazz was emptied of fuel at the starting point of the race, and then loaded a full tank of Shell Super Premium.

•At the end of the challenge, the Honda Jazz was again filled up with Shell Super Premium.

•The number of kilometers (estimated at 120 kms) between the start and end of the challenge was divided by the volume of gasoline needed to fill one full tank of the Honda Jazz.

•The winner was determined via measuring which vehicle had the highest quotient."

Petron now howls about the supposedly " unfair and unethical" advertising practice of its rival oil company, citing that "Shell Better Mileage gasoline made an unqualified and sweeping claim with the copy "Talagang malayo ang nararating ng Shell Super Premium, Super Unleaded and Velocity". The results of the Road Challenge contest achieved by the endorser are true only for Shell Super premium as this was the only fuel used in the Shell Road Challenge. The radio commercial makes it seem that the results stated are also true for Super Unleaded and Velocity. Shell’s claims as presented in the testimonial of Inigo Roces make it seem that these results are consistent with product performance across all Shell gasoline brands — not only Shell Super premium but also Super Unleaded and Velocity.

The twist to the knife, howls Petron, is with that part of the copy that says "Hanep! With Shell Better Mileage talagang hindi pa-extra extra ang tira. Bida talaga!" If you’re familiar with the Petron commercials, you will understand why. They cite Article IV, section 2.1 which states that advertisements should not directly or indirectly disparage, ridicule or unfairly attack competitors or non-competitors, competing or non-competing products and services, including distinguishing features of their advertising campaigns such as specific layout, copy, slogan, visual presentation, music, jingle or sound effects. Comparison advertising, therefore, should not use slogans, statements or symbols that are clearly identified or directly associated with a competing brand.

What is more interesting to me is the disturbing report I heard that, while loading up at the end of the Shell Better Mileage Road Challenge, the pump meter was supposedly covered so that participants were not privy to the numbers registering on the meter. This was attested to by Auto Review TV show producer/host Ron delos Reyes, a veteran of several "eco runs" and a consistent winner too. He couldn’t understand why the organizers were not transparent in running the contest. That was something that he never experienced in the past half a dozen or more similar competitions that he had participated in. What gives? Were they already eyeing who were supposed to win? Those who would probably don’t know any better about what comes with making direct endorsements?

As of this writing, I really don’t know if anything concrete has been resolved in this issue. Surely you must have noticed that Shell’s humongous billboards with the young writers’ "testimonials" have been pulled out post-haste without having run its usual course.

Perhaps we have seen the end of this? Or have we? Abangan.

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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