As a brand marketer, you commission a design and production run of a point-of-purchase display for your latest product. You place an initial order of 5,000 and then later discover you need another 5,000 pieces for a launch later in the year. In an effort to save dollars, you bid out the project to several vendors. It's tradition, but is it legal?
Think again. You might very well be violating laws that govern the ownership of creative work.
In the point-of-purchase advertising industry, creative ownership becomes some of the thorniest ground for relationships among creatives, POP producer/suppliers, brand marketers and agencies.
As the trade association serving the in-store advertising industry, POPAI has seriously studied the issue of creative ownership of point-of-purchase advertising displays. There's an incredible resource in this area available to all members of the brand marketing, retailing, agency and POP community for anyone creating, designing, manufacturing or purchasing in-store advertising.
POPAI recently issued a Master volume of POP Industry Standards of Practice resulting from 18 months of effort by representatives of POP producer/suppliers, brand marketers and retailers as well as legal experts in the areas of antitrust and ownership of creative ideas.
To accomplish this, POPAI assembled a trade practices committee, held focus group meetings and brought together industry leaders to review and formulate a set of real world industry standards and guidelines. Seminars took place in New York and Milwaukee. Two white papers were commissioned. Professional facilitators were also involved to provide objective guidance to the process.
An industry code of ethics was also forged for the first time. The code includes the stipulation that POP professionals are expected to comply with the following standards:
· Abide by all federal and state laws while maintaining the highest level of integrity and honesty.
· Communicate clearly and comprehensively all relevant company policies prior to entering into a business relationship, including pricing and ownership issues.
· Possess awareness of and adhere to POP industry trade practices and standards as issued by POPAI.
This Master Volume should serve as a guide in successfully facing the challenges encountered by brand marketers, retailers, agencies and creators of point-of-purchase advertising. Ownership of creative ideas is an issue that must be determined, faced by anyone who creates and is a hotly debated subject in all segments of advertising.
The least we can do is make sure we're all playing the game using the same rulebook and within those rules that stand the legal test. For information on obtaining a copy of the Master Volume, contact POPAI at 201-894-8899 or 202-530-3000.
