National Advertising Division Recommends Solawave Discontinue Certain Claims for its SolaWave Advanced Skincare Wand
07 January 2025 - 3:00AM
As part of its routine monitoring process, BBB National Programs’
National Advertising Division recommended Solawave Inc. d/b/a
Solawave discontinue certain express and implied claims for its
SolaWave Advanced Skincare Wand.
The National Advertising Division’s (NAD)
inquiry focused on claims representing the product’s dramatic
performance benefits. After receiving NAD’s inquiry, Solawave
modified the challenged claims to include a disclosure that said,
“based on a 30-day consumer perception study on 60 people, ranging
from 25 to 60.” NAD reviewed the claims as modified.
To support the challenged claims, Solawave
submitted results of a 30-day in-home use test (IHUT), designed to
evaluate the effectiveness of its Advanced Skincare Wand, as well
as user-submitted before and after photos demonstrating its
efficacy.
NAD determined that the IHUT’s methodological
flaws, including the lack of a washout period and that participants
could continue using anti-aging products during the study, rendered
it insufficiently reliable to support the modified claims.
The IHUT’s subjective user evaluations are
insufficient to support the challenged objective performance
claims. NAD accordingly recommended that the challenged claims
“smooth fine lines,” “fade blemishes,” “increase firmness,”
“decrease puffiness,” and “boost skin’s glow,” together with claims
touting the percentage of users who observed the results, be
discontinued.
Regarding the “before” and “after” photos, NAD
concluded that the use of the consumer-submitted photographs to
depict measurable improvements over the 30-day period were not
sufficiently reliable to depict measurable improvements and may
overstate what consumers can reasonably expect to achieve when
using the product. NAD recommended that the challenged “before” and
“after” photographs be discontinued.
During the proceeding, Solawave informed NAD
that it voluntarily discontinued certain challenged claims. These
claims will be treated, for compliance purposes, as though NAD
recommended they be discontinued.
In its advertiser statement, Solawave stated
that although it “disagrees with NAD’s decision,” and “maintains
that [its] study...substantiates its product claims,” it will
“comply with NAD’s recommendations.”
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About BBB National
Programs: BBB National Programs, a non-profit
organization, is the home of U.S. independent industry
self-regulation, currently operating more than a dozen globally
recognized programs that have been helping enhance consumer trust
in business for more than 50 years. These programs provide
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About the National Advertising
Division: The National Advertising Division (NAD) of BBB
National Programs provides independent self-regulation and dispute
resolution services, guiding the truthfulness of advertising across
the U.S. NAD reviews national advertising in all media and its
decisions set consistent standards for advertising truth and
accuracy, delivering meaningful protection to consumers and
leveling the playing field for business.
Name: Jennie Rosenberg
Email: jrosenberg@bbbnp.org
Job Title: Media Relations