Commercial Competitions and Giveaways
Social media or in-store competitions such as a product giveaway or a “like, share and follow us” contest can be an effective way to interact with your customers, gain insight into your target market and increase brand awareness, goodwill and online presence. But do you have an effective set of terms and conditions for your competitions and promotions? It might surprise you to know that each state in Australia has different laws governing competitions and trade promotions, and if you run a competition Australia-wide, you will need to comply with each and every state law!
Running a social media competition? Or a trade promotion? If you’re wondering whether your competition terms and conditions are legally compliant, then you need to speak to Gladwin Legal today.
Gladwin Legal’s competition lawyers can assist you with:
- Tailored competition terms and conditions (Australia-wide)
- Competition permit applications and requirements
- Advertising and marketing review and sign-off
- Electronic drawing of winners
- Low cost competition structures
Not only could non-compliance cut your competition short and create bad press, but you may face hefty penalties. That’s where Gladwin legal comes in. Our competition lawyers have assisted retailers all over Australia to run their competitions smoothly; from obtaining permits where required and walking you through the process of running a competition from start to finish.
Additionally, a robust set of terms and conditions can provide a clear structure and guidance for running your competition in addition to helping manage associated risks.
If you need some assistance with trademarking, our specialist trade lawyers can also provide dedicated commercial trademark and brand services.
Specialists in Trade Promotions and Competition Terms and Conditions
Here at Gladwin Legal, we’re experts in retail and we’ve run the legal rule over countless competition terms and conditions for retailers in the past.
Our competition lawyers move quickly and diligently to ensure your promotion launches without fuss or delay. Importantly, we’ll work with you to provide compliant legal alternatives if what you’re planning simply isn’t going to work.
As specialists in retail promotions and competitions, we can help you set up competition terms and conditions for social media, in-store or your eCommerce website. For a free consultation and peace of mind about competition terms and conditions for trade promotions or social media competitions, get in touch with the competition lawyers at Gladwin Legal. We’re here to help.
The general rule of thumb is to contact us at least 1 month prior to when you are planning on opening your competition to entrants. It can take up to 3 weeks to obtain competition permits in some states.
Additionally, most states require you to include the permit number on your competition advertising. Some states will require adherence to certain advertising requirements, which should be reviewed before publication – so you will need time to have advertising copy finalised. Make sure to give yourself plenty of time to comply to avoid penalties.
Whether you need to obtain a permit depends on whether your competition is classified as a “game of skill” or a “game of chance”. If entrants are judged on their skill or ability, then generally no permits are required. However, if the competition winners are determined by luck, then it is likely that it is a considered a ‘trade promotion’ and certain legislation applies.
A permit may be required depending on the state that the promotion is offered in and the value of your prize offerings. Additionally, even if a permit is not required, almost every state requires compliance with a number of general terms and conditions for games of chance (particularly if you are offering a travel prize). Some states also require compliance with advertising requirements.
As retailers often run competitions, we understand that it is important to keep costs down and we can make recommendations on how to best structure your competition in order to suit your budget.
The costs of running a competition can vary as we will need to consider your competition details to determine the type of competition you are running.
However, we offer a fixed fee for drafting of competition terms and conditions and permit applications. Feel free to contact us with your competition details for a no-obligation quote.
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