October 08

Be fair to your customers - it's the law!

Where can I get more advice about the legislation?

Could the new legislation be good news for your business?

Where can I find out about the other laws relating to marketing?

If you have any questions about treating your customers fairly, why not Ask the Eye? It's free!

Forward thinking accountants and tax advisers.

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We've been away for a bit, working on improving the look of Eye Level and deciding how we can continue to make sure it is a worthwhile and efficient read for all of our readers. Thank you to everybody who gave us feedback. We hope you like the results.

Up to date and informative content is what you've asked for, so this month we'll cover some changes in the law that could well affect your advertising and marketing.

1. Find out more about these regulations by visiting one of the following websites:

www.businesslink.gov.uk

www.berr.gov.uk

2. Familiarise yourself with theblack list of practices that will, in all circumstances, be considered misleading

3. Always ask yourself, 'is this message true, fair and not misleading?'

4. Contact your local authority's trading standards service for free advice

5. If you think you are sailing too close to the wind, you probably are!

The European Union Unfair Commercial Practices Directive has recently come into effect in the UK and prohibits unfair trading practices. The legislation is designed to put a stop to businesses misleading people about products or services. The good news is that if you deal fairly with your customers, you probably don't have to change the way you work at all!

Examples of things you now can't do by law include falsely claiming endorsements (this includes writing positive reviews about your business on blogs and review sites) and promoting a special offer that doesn't really exist. There are new rules around competitions and prize draws too.

Advertorials (editorial that you pay for) have to be clearly stated as such and you're not allowed to claim that market conditions make now a good time to act unless you can substantiate it to be the case.

Advertising to children has always been an ethical minefield and it's now prohibited to encourage children to buy advertised products or to egg them on to nag their parents into buying products for them (proving that the EU isn't all bad!).

The consequence of failing to comply with these regulations is that your company may be investigated by your local authority's trading standards service. These lengthy investigations could take up a lot of your time and you could also be fined if you are found to be in the wrong - ouch!


	The Marketing Eye - always nice and legal!
	We can�t give legal advice, but do endeavour to keep up with the basics of new legislation affecting marketing activity. If you would like to discuss a campaign or receive a copy of The Chartered Institute of Marketing Fact File on marketing law, please call us on 08454 567760

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