[Closed] Lings Cars vs the Advertising Standards Authority

I remember reading this on PH a few weeks ago. It's all got a bit silly hasn't it.

Ling will undoubtedly do very well out of it (unfortunately).

love it, and respect to business owners who reserve the right to have a sense of humour in their business. Its a shame the government didn't sort the ASA out when they [s]merged[/s] quashed most of the quango's....

Although my wife would probably believe me if I said I was buying a new DeLorean, I still think Ling is right.
I love her attitude and if I were in the market for a lease car I'd be straight on her web site!

ASA have no place to go. Ling is clearly contravening advertising rules but is successfully making light of it by claiming it's obviously a joke. My Mrs certainly wouldn't know it's a joke and I'm sure possibly more than 50% of the population could also concievably believe it true.

Her marketing strategy is very impressive though.

Jesus I hate people who publish email correspondence publicly. Sorry thats a bloody own-goal there. with lesser detail she could have added a simple paragraph explaining whats going on to win her attention. Sorry, I'm out Ling.

the ASA would eventually publish it all anyway in their ruling?

I suspect she's had no sales enquiries as a result of that page so clearly people looking for a new car either a) don't want a DeLorean or b) know it's not a real offer?

dooosuk - Member
ASA have no place to go. Ling is clearly contravening advertising rules but is successfully making light of it by claiming it's obviously a joke. My Mrs certainly wouldn't know it's a joke and I'm sure possibly more than 50% of the population could also concievably believe it true.

Her marketing strategy is very impressive though.

Agree with this really.

Why is email any different to other correspondence?

She's about to put something from the information commissioner about her cookie policy online...

She could just put a little footnote on the website saying 'NB This car doesn not exist and this is just a fictional example' or something.

Whole thing is a storm in a tea cup.

Why is email any different to other correspondence?

Its a discussion, an interaction between two businesses. Would it be right and proper for the ASA to publish another parties correspondence on their site and saying 'look!' 'See'! (essentially?).

Its not professional. Theres being a character and theres good practice. I think shes crossed a line. Its unprofessional.

Its not professional.

Neither is her website.

Its floss/borders/fonts around the exact same product/price/details that almost every single one of her competitor uses.

Whats unprofessional is her response to critism. Why waste a legit organisations time playing to the crowd for increased-exposure?

When I was looking into my lease car I looked at her prices and they were way-off alot of her competitors. Only the lazy will buy from someone that shouts and waves ribbons alot.

Neither is her website.

Quite the opposite, it's self-aware and very intentional. I first heard of her by someone going "wow, look at this website", and I expect I'm far from the only one. It's a very clever bit of marketing.

Why waste a legit organisations time playing to the crowd for increased-exposure?

You've answered your own question there.

Only the lazy will buy from someone that shouts and waves ribbons alot.

Plenty of lazy people in the world looking to rent cars.

Ok so I accept that it's from the Barry Scott school of marketing - so bad you'll remember it.... my comment was tongue in cheek.

Plenty of lazy people in the world looking to rent cars.

Plenty of people piss upto ten grand up the wall in depreciation though- especially on Vauxhall, Ford etc.

Like I said - the lazy accept her deals. The savvy go straight to the manufacturer and say 'look at what I can get'.

What's unprofessional is her response to criticism. Why waste a legit organisations time playing to the crowd for increased-exposure?

What rubbish.

Are you of the opinion that no company should ever fight an ASA complaint as it wastes everyone's time?

The fact she has made it public costs the ASA no more than if it was going on behind closed doors, they have gone through exactly the same process.

Can you understand that she did it to waste time with an ulterior motive for self-promotion?

The ASA receives alot of complaints, investigates and imagine how many argue/rude etc etc. They don't just deal with the big companies- but many many small ones too. Its childish timewasting.

Oh and Ling- I know you sit googling your name on google and have posted on this site in the past. Its not big and its not clever.

There are people that seek attention on the internet? Every day I learn something new!

hora's one of them 🙂

Oh and Ling- I know you sit googling your name on google and have posted on this site in the past. Its not big and its not clever.

Clearly, based on this thread, you have a bit of a thing for Ling. 🙂

Was it you who made the original complaint to the ASA? Doing so because she called you an idiot on Pistonheads that really is wasting the ASA's time! 🙄

I know you sit googling your name on google

It's the best place to do it.

Was it you who made the original complaint to the ASA? Doing so because she called you an idiot on Pistonheads that really is wasting the ASA's time!

Which? Calling you an idiot or making complaints?

If it's the former, I think everyone's guilty. 😉 The later, no, I'm not so precious that I have to complain about what someone might say about me on an internet forum. 🙂

I've only ever made one complaint to the ASA - I think it was something to do with Virgin (I 'think' it was to do with a new-launch division to do with cancer cover insurance) that they'd splashed over a advertising hoarding- I found it offensive whereas Macmillian etc tend to be understated/informative with the right balance of awareness raising.

So she reported herself to the ASA?

Whatever the rights and wrongs, made me have a chuckle at the end of a manic day!

Neither is her website.

So much so that I'd suggest anyone visiting does so with one's volume OFF.

Quite the opposite, it's self-aware and very intentional. I first heard of her by someone going "wow, look at this website", and I expect I'm far from the only one. It's a very clever bit of marketing.

Nah, not for me. All very 90s and puts me right off. I'll even leave the barge pole by the entrance as I turn away.

Mildly funny, but I've seen better on here...

I'm with Hora on the publication element (I think), same publicity and joke could have been made while obfuscating the name of lady from ASA, something just doesn't sit right about that.

I dont get this x% of the population may not know about deloreans etc, If i did not know about something like say the DMC12 then i might do something called "a bit of research" ie find out a bit more about it. I might even go on wiki and type in "Delorean DMC12" to find out more!, i might even search for a delorean dealer to see if i could have a test drive... who knows i might even ask on STW!. What i probably wouldn't do is try an sign up for a 3 year lease on a car i never heard of, never seen and never driven! still maybe there are lots of people out there that would!

I bet it stressed the shit out of the ASA girl. Wondering her grammar/etc may get picked at or her tone quested etc as its not normally laid out verbatim for all to see. Unfounded but I imagine she didnt giggle herself. A gungho business woman wouldnt see this though.

I love this!!

You know what, she could have bowed down to the ASA and their nasal voiced clipboard enforcers, or done the smart move, poked some fun and gained a ton of awareness.

Smart business move, bit of a gamble, but from what I have read of Ling before, she's quite the renegade and fair play to her. We need more free thinkers and innovators who aren't afraid to shake it up a bit!

🙂

We need more free thinkers and innovators who aren't afraid to shake it up a bit!

Well said

[img] http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTf5Hrgk9B8UO_cl7QWSzgeu6AXvG4kcvSyI4ESdVZcAduA3yYK [/img]

I bet it stressed the shit out of the ASA girl. Wondering her grammar/etc may get picked at or her tone quested etc as its not normally laid out verbatim for all to see. Unfounded but I imagine she didnt giggle herself. A gungho business woman wouldnt see this though.

Seems like a classic example of 'handwringing' and 'being offended on someone else's behalf'. I believe you're a big fan of that hora. 🙂

Seems like a classic example of 'handwringing' and 'being offended on someone else's behalf'

Can't speak for Hora, but that's not the issue for me.

It's an issue to do with respecting an individual's situation that they are just doing what they are paid to do by their organisation. Posting personal details on the internet of an employee, without consent, is not fair game, and steps beyond what should be done by a company, whether they want to portray themselves as a bit clever arse or not. Do you think STW would do it? If you ran a large company, would you do it? It's naff & unprofessional.

FWIW, ASA have to deal in[b] facts[/b] presented, and with what is presented from Ling's site, they have no other avenue than to uphold.

Handwringing?

I'm more a neck-ringer. 😆

But I do have lashings of empathy. Maybe grum should stop and reflect.

So the person at the ASA is a 'girl' and Ling is a woman. How do these judgements on people come to be made.

It seems I this case that the poster sympathises with 'girls' and find 'women' a bit more tricky to deal with?

I was dramatising a situation. A sort of Mistral retelling a scene.

I'm now considering spending my car allowance with Ling - was going to shop round, but all the deals are much the same as it's a competitive space, so I may as well go with someone I like. Smart, irreverent, able to turn a stupid situation to her advantage. I admire these characteristics and they've won a customer. I doubt I'm the only one 🙂

Excellent. Feeling sorry for the process hamstrung ASA but can't help liking Ling's email stylee. Could see it coming but still laughed at the complaint against her own website 😉

It's an issue to do with respecting an individual's situation that they are just doing what they are paid to do by their organisation. Posting personal details on the internet of an employee, without consent, is not fair game, and steps beyond what should be done by a company, whether they want to portray themselves as a bit clever arse or not. Do you think STW would do it? If you ran a large company, would you do it? It's naff & unprofessional.

What personal details? Lucy Crowe is part of a public government body and is paid to investigate this kind of thing, I can't see her personal number or address, just her title, corporate email, and (presumably) work phone number. Why shouldn't that be published?

(Granted, Ms. Ling's not making any friends in the ASA with this public approach, but that's her problem, not mine.)

I'm now considering spending my car allowance with Ling - was going to shop round, but all the deals are much the same as it's a competitive space, so I may as well go with someone I like. Smart, irreverent, able to turn a stupid situation to her advantage. I admire these characteristics and they've won a customer.

Planning on ordering a DeLorean?

I wish - but then unlike a huge amount of online customers, I have a brain in my head and research. That way if anything goes wrong, it's my fault.....

Crikey Ling is annoying, never realised.

You never watched The Apprentice then?

Lucy Crowe is part of a public government body

Fail.

When people at work leave their screens unlocked at work, Lings Cars suddenly becomes their homepage

So. Ling. Would you?

Lucy Crowe is part of a public government body
Fail.

Sorry, should have been more precise: she works for a body that is not part of the political (elected) government, but is an organisation that regulates advertising, with legal firepower provided by the OFT. So no, not technically speaking a "public government body", but it might as well be.

Shes an employee- anyone could scrutinise her emails/complain/dig etc etc - it'd probably come to nowt but if your personal emails to clients etc were made public, someone could nit-pick (or you'd worry they might). She might have gone home stressing about etc.

Handwringing? maybe but its part of the reason why I think Ling over-stepped a line. Self-promotion without thinking of others.

Just noticed this thread, she's always had a bit of a crazy idea about advertising, years ago I'm sure she had a tank or a old jet fighter parked up advertising her cars. Not sure if she still does, but she lived about half a mile from me, second hand cars sales in dodgy advert scam...nothing new here?

It's really not a scam.

Re: personal details, I can see an obvious potential issue with publishing email addresses on the Internet in this sort of context. To wit, an influx of semi-literate abuse from the bottom half of the Internet.

[i]second hand cars sales in dodgy advert scam[/i]

errrm, except she only sells new cars and even then only acts as an agent.

I'm interested as to why the equally frivolous Robin Reliant ad has received no attention from the ASA.

has received no attention from the ASA

so, in theory, she could continue to run the Reliant stuff despite the ASA ruling that the identical bar the car DeLorean one is 'wrong'?

Well that's the public well and truely protected.

Yes - she even offered that they look at the Robin advert in her correspondence with them.

It is ludicrous.

I saw a misleading advert the other day for Mcdonalds, there was a pilot saying he had just bought a burger for £1.49??? not in an airport he didnt!

misleading adverts you say?

[img] [/img]

of course some are more accurate than others
[img] [/img]

It's starting again.

from twitter;
[i]
Reply from the Advertising Standards Authority. It is "embargoed". Bollocks to that. Will publish, very soon.[/i]