By John Eckberg
Enquirer staff writer

When Jason McGlone of the Better Business Bureau comes calling, executives at local companies waste no time. Usually they start changing ads - or pull them altogether.

The advertising review specialist at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky office of the bureau, McGlone's job is to review advertisements and convince companies to make changes in ones that could be misleading, untrue or fraudulent.

Jason McGlone, an advertising review specialist with the Better Business Bureau, cuts out a suspicious advertisement. (Enquirer photo/MEGGAN BOOKER)

"It's a question of I know what's right," said McGlone, 26. "Most of the advertising we look at is fantastic and just fine."

When McGlone finds a wayward ad, the next step is simple. He calls the company and politely points out the advantages of an advertisement that is accurate; for instance, not being investigated by the state attorney general or the Federal Trade Commission. Then he asks that they change the ad.

"I say, hey, we're trying to help you out," he said. "At the end of the day, the BBB is a neutral third party."

New- and used-car ads generate the most reviews each year, followed by home-remodeling ads and help-wanted ads that offer lucrative salaries but are vague about duties.

McGlone finds that errors in ad copy are usually in print ads and are more oversight than obfuscation. "Maybe it's someone forgets to put in the (loan) percentage rate, for instance. There are other oversights like use of the word liquidation," he said. "There are sometimes claims they just can't prove.

"Really, most of the time they reply 'thanks for bringing it to my attention.' "

Hundreds changed or pulled

From January through June 30 McGlone processed 354 cases, and of that number 152 companies voluntarily changed their advertisement, while 101 dropped the ad altogether.

Chris Manolis, associate professor of marketing at Williams College of Business at Xavier University, believes many companies exaggerate claims for one reason: hyperbole compels customers to buy.

"There are two schools of thought," Manolis said. "The first is that you can't set the expectations too high so when consumers use the product, their experience may be better than their expectations. Research shows that can lead to satisfaction."

If, on the other hand, companies decide to raise the bar on expectations with, say, claims of a product that is bigger and better, a potential customer may buy out of curiosity.

"Research suggests that most firms end up setting up high expectations because they're afraid that they will not get the consumers through the front door," Manolis said.

"The problem is that everyone else is talking about how great their products are."

Advertising remains a largely unregulated industry because of the volume of messages distributed each day. Manolis says the average person sees 200 to 500 advertising messages a day. "You hear or see ads from the minute you wake up."

BBB's early mission

One of the first missions of the Better Business Bureau in the United States was to investigate outrageous advertising claims in the early 20th century, said John Darr, communications coordinator for the Cincinnati BBB.

At the time, consumers wanted truth in advertising, an elimination of sales abuses and a panel to investigate claims of sales abuses. The Better Business Bureau evolved out of those concerns.

"What we challenge the most are issues of substantiation," said Jocile Ehrlich, president and chief executive of the Cincinnati Better Business Bureau, which serves Northern Kentucky, Southwest Ohio and Southeast Indiana.

"Our role is to challenge companies when they make claims that appear over the top so we can help get the ad corrected or modified before it attracts attention of government - the state attorney general or the Federal Trade Commission.

"Our goal is to work with business. We are not an adversary."

McGlone says he focuses on print advertising - though claims from other media are fair game - and typically begins his day by reading and reviewing advertisements in the newspaper.

"By and large it's print advertising that we review," he says. "Print is more abiding. You can hold it in your hand and it's logistically easier to review."

He closes 50 to 60 cases each month, and at any time has 30 to 60 cases under investigation.

Top complaints

The top 10 complaints the Better Business Bureau received by industry in the Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky region.

Rank	Industry	Complaints
1.	Internet shopping	802
2.	Banks	521
3.	New car dealers	375
4.	Home builders	209
5.	Used car dealers	183
6.	Furniture retailers	163
7.	Roofing contractors	160
8.	Home remodeling	154
9.	Mortgage companies	149
10.	Plumbing contractors	136

Source: The Better Business Bureau

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E-mail jeckberg@enquirer.com