By Susan Edmunds, RNZ

First it was Saben, sending an “internal only” email to its wider customer database, including a discount code offering 30% off bags.

Then it was Breeze Balm telling followers online that its “marketing girlie” had made a mistake and enabled free shipping a day early.

These two examples in a matter of days recently highlight an increasingly common trend of ‘mistake marketing’ - and some shoppers are wondering how legitimate the mistakes really are.

Bodo Lang, a marketing expert at Massey University, said mistake marketing offers tapped into shoppers’ desire to find superior value and novelty.

An email with a subject line that claimed an error or mistake had been made might be more likely to be opened.

“Importantly, these offers often suggest scarcity, prompting consumers to act now,” he said.

“Typically, mistake marketing appears to offer value that is ‘too good to be true’, thus manipulating consumers into thinking the offer can only be a mistake and will expire soon. Using the disguise of a supposed mistake taps into consumers desire for seeking novelty and these offers typically suggest scarcity, increasing their persuasive power.

“The appeal of such offers also means that they may go viral. That is, they are so tempting and exciting that consumers not only use them to buy products for themselves but also share them with their network, typically online through social media.

“Thus, mistake marketing can spread like a virus across social media and induce consumers to take up the offer and spread the message further. This is called the ‘re-transmission rate’ and is key to viral marketing.”

Massey University marketing analytics professor Bodo Lang. Photo / Supplied

But he said there could be drawbacks and not everyone would believe the mistakes.

“While some consumers lack the ability or willingness to critically evaluate these offers, many consumers will see this for what it is: an attempt to capture consumers attention and making them buy a product with an offer that may be misleading because there was no genuine mistake. Instead, mistake marketing is a systematic attempt to manipulate consumers to buy products within a short time-frame.

“Using mistake marketing is risky for companies. Particularly large, reputable brands are unlikely to use mistake marketing as it can erode brand value, result in consumer backlash, and may result in third-party action from the media or industry watchdogs, such as Consumer NZ, the Commerce Commission, or the Financial Markets Authority.”

Saben and Breeze Balm have been approached for comment.

In other cases, things are more clearly not what they seem.

An announcement that Lynx Africa was being discontinued turned out to be a prank and Lipton said its announcement that the peach flavour was being discontinued was an “early April Fool’s” joke.

Consumer NZ spokesperson Abby Damen said the Fair Trading Act (FTA) made it illegal for businesses to mislead consumers, give false information and make misrepresentations, including in advertising.

“This applies to all forms of advertising, including social media. We think these types of ads are likely to breach the FTA and could be damaging for the brands in question.

“Businesses found guilty of breaching the FTA can face substantial penalties of up to $600,000 per offence. We recommend anyone who feels they’ve been misled by these ads lodges a complaint with the Commerce Commission. You can also complain to the Advertising Standards Authority. ”