Advertising rules your business needs to know and follow

Advertising campaigns can make or break a business. Successful adverts, whether that be tv ads, banners, flyers or signs, are memorable.

While you can be creative in your marketing campaigns, there are some advertising regulations that you should know about. Outlined below are some important things to keep in mind.

You must be honest about prices

You are perfectly entitled to launch sales or reduce prices at will, and you can advertise this. What you aren’t allowed to do is be deceptive about your pricing. For instance, if an item regularly sells for $70 and this is what you usually sell it for, you aren’t offering a half-price sale if the price tag remains $70.

You’re also not permitted to label items or services as free if you have charged extra for them. So, if you offer “buy one get one free”, but charge extra for the first item in order to make up for the loss of a “free” item, this is deceptive and unlawful.

Deliberately running out of stock

You’ve promised customers a fantastic discount sale that they do not want to miss. They’ve seen the adverts and have taken the bait. The trouble is that you only have a few discounted items, and they’ve already sold out. In such a scenario, you may be accused of using bait-and-switch tactics to deceive your customers, which is potentially unlawful.

No bad-mouthing rivals

The corporate world can be competitive. Your rivals are constantly trying to match your stride by stride. You want customers to choose you over them, so you do an advertising campaign that focuses on how expensive they are compared to you. The problem is that the stats and figures you have are inaccurate. Once you’ve published them, it’s too late. You could face penalties for unfair business practices as well as a defamation lawsuit.

Before running ads it’s important to familiarize yourself with the law. Having legal guidance behind you before making your next move can help ensure that you stay on track. We help businesses that have questions regarding advertising laws and conflicts over existing ads. Please contact us for a consultation.