Is it possible to create effective age restrictions for alcohol marketing online?
But with social media often dubbed the ‘internet wild west’, how can the giants ensure these measures are effective?
Last month, the IARD announced a new commitment between heavyweights in alcohol (including Molson Coors, Kirin, Asahi, AB InBev, Diageo, Pernod Ricard, Suntory, Bacardi, Brown-Forman and Carlsberg) and digital internet giants (Google, Meta, Pinterest, Snap, TikTok and X).
The partnership is focused at strengthening standards across digital channels. At the top of the agenda is building confidence in age-assurance systems, and ensuring online alcohol advertising is only directed at adults who want to engage with drinks brands.
Evolving tech
The fundamental problem, of course, is that any underage user can simply sign up to online or social media platforms with a false date of birth.
That’s an issue that can’t be underestimated, agrees Puja Darbari, IARD managing director – but it's also a problem that advances in tech and AI hold promise for.
“Platforms recognize that users misrepresenting their age is an industry-wide problem - and it’s important to strike a balance between respecting a user’s privacy and using data collection and processing methods to determine age,” she told us.
“While there is no silver bullet in addressing this issue, digital platforms are taking action to ensure that those underage do not see alcohol marketing.
“For example, Meta employs AI-powered age verification tools to find potential discrepancies in a user’s stated age and their actual age.
"The AI model is trained on common indicators of age: for example, users within the same age group tend to interact with content in the same way, to classify a user as “adult” (over 18) or a “teen” (13-17). If the model detects someone who may be under 18, they are asked to verify their age via video selfie or ID upload.
“Since Meta began testing the new age verification tools on Instagram in June 2022, they found that approximately four times as many people were more likely to complete the age verification requirements when attempting to edit their date of birth from under 18 to over 18, equating to hundreds of thousands of users being placed in experiences appropriate for their age. Using these tools, Meta have been able to stop 96% of the teens who attempted to edit their birthdays from under 18 to 18 or over on Instagram from doing so.”
Social media policies for alcohol marketing
Social media giants have a number of policies in place, some of which are surprisingly strict.
TikTok - which has a regionalized approach to alcohol advertising - simply does not permit any alcohol ads in Europe.
In North America, limited alcohol advertising tests are ongoing, targeting only those age 25+. TikTok says, during this phase, every piece of creative and every landing page is being reviewed manually.
Alcohol ads are allowed in Brazil, Japan and South Korea.
Branded content (a paid partnership between a creator and brand) is not permitted in any market.
When content contains alcohol, it cannot show U18s consuming alcohol.
Having the weight of companies such as Google and Meta behind initiatives is what is really going to make the difference to the alcohol industry’s efforts.
“As individual platforms control the content allowed on their channels, it’s vital that we continue to work in partnership with them to enhance responsibility standards for alcohol-related marketing,” said Darbari.
“Although our businesses are diverse, what connects us is our commitment to prevent the sales, marketing and advertising of age-restricted products to those underage.” - IARD
“It’s also important to take a cross-industry approach and this collaboration is an enhancement of standards, not a first implementation.”
For example, in 2021, IARD launched a global initiative with leading advertising, public relations, and influencer agencies, to help ensure alcohol marketing by social influencers is clearly recognized, responsibly advertised, and aimed at an audience over the legal purchase age.
What does success look like?
The new collective commitment is to ‘prevent those under LPA [legal purchasing age] from inadvertently seeing alcohol advertising online and to provide confidence that age-assurance methodologies on digital platforms are robust by 2025’.
“We’ve seen great success with previous guidelines and IARD members are on track to reach 95% compliance with our Digital Guiding Principles, which include guidance for producers on implementing age-affirmation mechanisms, ensuring transparency, policies for user generated content, adding forward advice notices, and including responsible drinking messaging, by the end of this year," said Darbari.
“There is still work to be done and IARD’s members have committed to complete compliance at the earliest opportunity.
“Collaboration with digital platforms will formalize work that’s been in progress since 2018 and hopes to follow the same trajectory.”
The IARD is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to reducing harmful drinking and promoting understanding of responsible drinking. Its members include the world's largest beer, wine and spirit companies.
The IARD has been working in partnership with digital platforms since 2018 to enhance responsibility standards for alcohol-related marketing online in support of UN goals to reduce harmful drinking.
Key outcomes to date include:
- Hundreds of thousands of influencers around the world can now age-gate posts.
- Leading global marketing and advertising agencies are signed-up to the first-ever global standards for influencer marketing.
- Millions of advertisers can age-gate online marketing on digital platforms.
- IARD members are on track to reach 95% compliance with Digital Guiding Principles by end of this year. The five safeguards on brand channels include: age-affirmation mechanism, transparency, user generated content policy, forward advice notice, responsible drinking message.
The next frontier: Influencers
Influencer marketing is growing. What's crucial for any company playing in this sphere is that any posts that are sponsored should be transparent that they are a marketing message, says the IARD.
Its guidance advises that all influencers should have a written agreement with the beer, wine, and spirits brand or its agency, signed by both parties. This should include:
- Information linking to legal requirements relevant to national or regional context, or both
- Disclosure guidelines – asking influencers to clearly and conspicuously disclose their link to the brand so that it is clearly presented as marketing content
- Responsibility guidelines – asking the influencer to comply with the company’s responsible marketing code including ensuring that content does not condone or encourage illegal behavior or excessive consumption
- Best-practice tools for influencers when engaging on social media platforms, for example, information on branded content pages and details on how to age restrict their posts
- Feedback mechanisms so that influencers can flag any engagement or issues around responsible drinking with an agency or brand
Influencers – by their very nature – are often home-grown stars with little knowledge, understanding or concern of responsibility: and alcohol brands need to take responsibility for monitoring posts for compliance. But, as with anything online, it's an area where everyone needs to be prepared to share responsibility.
"Influencers, their agencies, and brands who contract their services share the responsibility for making sure alcohol is marketed responsibly and all parties have a mutual interest in ensuring content complies with best practice," said Darbari.
The IARD’s full guidance for working with influencers can be found here.
