Nike To Appeal Sponsored Tweets Ban

Sportswear manufacturer Nike has been in a bit of trouble lately, after its sponsored tweets were banned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for tweets posted by brand ambassadors Wayne Rooney and Jack Wilshere.

The ASA ruled that the brand did not specifically make it clear that the two England internationals were taking part in a marketing campaign, thus misleading users. However, Nike has announced that it has decided to appeal against the decision to have the two footballers´ social media activity banned. The brand is planning to ask for an independent review of the ASA´s ruling and says that the tweets will not be removed until the appeal process is over.

Commenting on the ban, Ryan Greenwood, head of PR and communications for Nike UK & Ireland, says that Nike is “disappointed” with the decision, and claims that Twitter users were not being deceived by the messages. In fact, he insists it was clear that the tweets were written as part of a marketing campaign.

However, a spokeswoman for the ASA says that even if an independent review finds that the ruling is flawed, the final decision will still be taken by the watchdog, Marketing Week reports. She adds that the ASA is yet to develop more comprehensive guidance on Twitter advertising to make sure brands know what content is acceptable and how to introduce it to users.