04:35
Faizan
The Internet is a vast resource of store coupons. Companies commonly advertise deals on their websites that aren't available in the stores, yet companies don't always honor the deals you find online. In some cases, the company has the legal right to refuse to honor an Internet ad.
Penalties
It's in a company's best interests to ensure that the ads it posts online are all accurate. The Federal Trade Commission considers a reasonable consumer's response to an ad when determining whether or not the ad is deceptive. If the FTC determines that a company's online ad misleads customers about the facts of a sale, it may impose fines of thousands or millions of dollars. The ad may be misleading either in the information it includes or does not include.
Errors
Typos are a fact of text media, even when it comes to online sales ads. If a company sincerely runs an ad that includes an error, it is not obligated to honor the ad, says Rob McKenna, the Washington state Attorney General. The FTC may not consider the ad deceptive if a reasonable consumer would realize that it included a typo. For example, since apartments usually rent for a minimum of several hundred dollars per month, an online ad that advertises apartments for $75 per month should likely say "$750 per month."
Stock
Before a company launches an online ad campaign, it should be aware of the potential reach of its ads. Since the company can estimate how many people will see its online ads, it should have enough of its sale items in stock to satisfy the customers who respond to the ad. If a company knowingly invites more customers to a sale than it can accommodate, the FTC may consider its online ads deceptive--unless the ad contains a disclaimer, such as "while supplies last." Look for such disclaimers in all sales ads you see online before trying to take advantage of the offer.
Habit
Unscrupulous companies may try to take advantage of the FTC's "reasonable consumer" standard for determining whether an online sales ad is deceptive. For example, a company might post an online ad with a false sale price and claim that the price was a typo, or willfully neglect to stock enough items for a sale. Posting a sales ad in these cases would lure customers into the company's store without providing the promised sale, which may lead some customers to buy more expensive items than the ones advertised. A state attorney general might be able to prosecute a company that regularly encounters such situations, according to McKenna.
Penalties
It's in a company's best interests to ensure that the ads it posts online are all accurate. The Federal Trade Commission considers a reasonable consumer's response to an ad when determining whether or not the ad is deceptive. If the FTC determines that a company's online ad misleads customers about the facts of a sale, it may impose fines of thousands or millions of dollars. The ad may be misleading either in the information it includes or does not include.
Errors
Typos are a fact of text media, even when it comes to online sales ads. If a company sincerely runs an ad that includes an error, it is not obligated to honor the ad, says Rob McKenna, the Washington state Attorney General. The FTC may not consider the ad deceptive if a reasonable consumer would realize that it included a typo. For example, since apartments usually rent for a minimum of several hundred dollars per month, an online ad that advertises apartments for $75 per month should likely say "$750 per month."
Stock
Before a company launches an online ad campaign, it should be aware of the potential reach of its ads. Since the company can estimate how many people will see its online ads, it should have enough of its sale items in stock to satisfy the customers who respond to the ad. If a company knowingly invites more customers to a sale than it can accommodate, the FTC may consider its online ads deceptive--unless the ad contains a disclaimer, such as "while supplies last." Look for such disclaimers in all sales ads you see online before trying to take advantage of the offer.
Habit
Unscrupulous companies may try to take advantage of the FTC's "reasonable consumer" standard for determining whether an online sales ad is deceptive. For example, a company might post an online ad with a false sale price and claim that the price was a typo, or willfully neglect to stock enough items for a sale. Posting a sales ad in these cases would lure customers into the company's store without providing the promised sale, which may lead some customers to buy more expensive items than the ones advertised. A state attorney general might be able to prosecute a company that regularly encounters such situations, according to McKenna.
Posted in: Advertising
