News

Running a prize promotion? Five offences to avoid

By Spark and Fuse on September 30, 2010

When it comes to prize promotions, we understand the importance of compliance. It drives our clients’ nuts but we won’t allow short cuts. We don’t want consumers to feel cheated and we wouldn’t want a client to be named and shamed by the Advertising Standards Authority. So if you’re thinking about running a prize promotion, and you’re not sure what’s right or wrong, we’ve selected five offences to avoid.

1. We didn’t receive many competition entries and they’re all rubbish, so we’ve decided to move the closing date until we get some that are better.

A closing date cannot be moved to suit a promotion. If consumers have made the effort to enter, the prize must be awarded, even if the winning entry doesn’t meet the standard that you would have liked. If you want to avoid this scenario include a clause in the t’s and c’s to make it clear you are looking for a certain quality of entries in order to award the prize.

2. The winner will be chosen at the promoter’s discretion.

A winner cannot be picked by anyone involved in the promotion. A prize draw must be conducted or overseen by an independent person and a competition must be judged by a panel with at least one member who is independent. There are agencies, like Spark & Fuse, that can conduct a fair draw on your behalf, but it’s fine to find your own adjudicator as long as they are truly independent. A teacher is okay, your mum is not.

3. We have a prize for our magazine, but the t’s and c’s spoil the page so they’re all online instead.

Prize terms and conditions help consumers make an informed decision before entering a draw. If entry is exclusively online, then it is okay to feature all the t’s and c’s here as that’s where you’re sending consumers. However, if there are a number of entry options, say post and SMS, then not all consumers will automatically go online, therefore some of the key t’s and c’s must appear on the page.

4. We only want to use premium rate telephone numbers for entry.

Offering a premium rate phone line as the only entry route would be in breach of the Gambling Act 2005 and is an illegal lottery – this is because payment is required to enter and inflated above the normal cost of an item, in this case the cost of a call. In order to keep things within the law, you’ll need a free route of entry too, like post or email.

5. We want to include this in our t’s and c’s: The promoter reserves the right to amend the terms and condition and the right to withdraw the promotion.

A promoter can’t stop a prize promotion once it’s live. And the terms and conditions must remain the same for the entire promotional period, too. There’s never a good reason to stop a promotion before the closing date and such action only results in complaints and criticism.

Made in Dagenham film premiere

By admin on September 21, 2010

Because we are able to source great prizes from our amazing contacts, we managed to bag two red carpet tickets to the UK film premiere of Made In Dagenham for one lucky magazine winner. A once-in-a lifetime opportunity to be more Mayfair than Essex for the night!

Last night, our lucky winner and her plus one waved their tickets and strutted their stuff on the red carpet in London’s Leicester Square, rubbing shoulders with some of the best British acting talent.

The film’s star Sally Hawkins arrived on the red carpet in a vintage Ford car with co-star Bob Hoskins. While fellow cast members Miranda Richardson, Jaime Winstone and Bond girl Rosamund Pike signed autographs for waiting fans.

And I was there too! Seated in the second row, no less, I knew we were in for a real celebrity treat when the movie’s stars all walked onto the stage. Bob Hoskins is even smaller in real life than he looks in the movies but definitely has super star presence with the biggest roar from the crowd.

After an evening of feeling as if I was at the Oscars, it was time to give the movie its final applause and step outside to our fans. Well I can dream…

Our lucky winner went onto enjoy five-star treatment back at her hotel which was also included in her fantastic prize. I, on the other hand, made do with the tube and a hot chocolate before bedtime in Bethnal Green.

Clair Bodie

Welcome aboard Clair Bodie!

By Spark and Fuse on September 13, 2010

Clair Bodie - new employee at Spark & Fuse

Clair Bodie

Meet Clair Bodie – Spark & Fuse’s newest recruit. Clair brings to the team a wide range of skills that will see her sourcing prizes and discount offers, to event management in London and beyond. Her ability to coordinate a project is outstanding, as is her ability to put together an outfit from Top Shop. Welcome aboard Clair!