Home Depot’s retooled digital-marketing model

Melanie Babcock had a confession to make.

As Senior Director/Agile Marketing (Audience), Social Media, AdTech & Display at The Home Depot – the home-improvement retailer – Babcock is charged with crafting omnichannel media and content strategies that fuel demand.

The problem? What seemed like a promising campaign for boosting paint sales, she said, fell undeniably short of expectations. "I thought it was going to be the best thing ever," Babcock admitted at SXSW 2018.

Melanie Babcock, Senior Director/Agile Marketing (Audience), Social Media, AdTech & Display, The Home Depot

"And I got a zero dollar return."

The post-campaign analysis revealed that "we had too much paint" marketing in train at the same time, meaning a customer interested in acquiring a few cans of satin or semi-gloss ultimately was bombarded with messages. "So, now, I had to go out and re-score my model, and think differently about that customer." Babcock said.

In doing so, her team sought to establish the particular projects that were occupying the prospective buyer, and develop more relevant communications for "that same customer who got a paint ad [when] I got a big zero." Babcock reported.

The redemptive outcome? "I sent the exact same customer, who I knew was on a bath[room] project, a paint ad, and it was the best-performing ad that I had. So, failure helps," she said.

Optimization of this kind demonstrates, in the first instance, The Home Depot's commitment to a test-and-learn ethos. Equally, it indicates that digital channels – like social media, programmatic, and retargeting – have become uniquely powerful tools for understanding customers.

The Home Depot's three main audience pockets are consumers, trade professionals, and shoppers who want experts to undertake a job for them. And, as Babcock transitioned from her original role as the firm's Senior Director/Social Media – a position she held from December 2013 to November 2015 – to leading agile marketing, adtech, social, and display, the granular data on offer about these groups has exploded.

"We know so much about each of our customers now, and what they need, and their desires. And it isn't based on demographics or psychographics. It's based on this data," Babcock told the SXSW assembly in Austin, Texas.

"And our ability to think about our customer has expanded exponentially over the last couple of years as we really dig down into: What does a customer mean? When you're moving, you're also redoing your bathroom, or maybe you're redoing your kitchen, and you're also buying exterior paint. And, all of a sudden, you're no longer a customer for products, but you've got a whole house renovation going on.

"So, how do I speak to you about all of that, and how do I prioritize which message I'm going to send to you first? It's really significantly changed what we know about our customer, and how we speak to them."

These new ways of speaking might include:

• Artificial intelligence (AI): A common hurdle for The Home Depot's customers involves sifting through the mass of products available online to find the ideal solution.
  
  "When you have a thousand faucets in your catalog, people don't want to see a thousand faucets. They want to know, 'What faucet is best for my price point in the vanity that I just bought?' By the way, faucets are really complicated … Especially to market them," Babcock said.
  
  "But to offer up products that are relevant to you requires a significant amount of AI and machine learning."
  
  A recent Pinterest campaign tackled this problem head on for people trying to pick a new water heater. More specifically, The Home Deopt utilized information-led creative providing hints and tips for consumers. And coupling first-party data of known customers with retargeting yielded powerful engagement and return on investment.
  
  "We have a customer base who demands it. They want to know the best selection," Babcok said.

"If we aren't using all of the data that's available to us … delivered in a federated way to the marketers on our teams – who can use that data to produce really strong campaign strategies, but more importantly, highly-relevant content in a place like Pinterest – then our customers are going to leave us."

• Mobile app: This digital tool has been downloaded 20 million times and is regularly updated based on research among consumers and tradespeople.
  
  Its primary attribute is enabling consumers to shop for more than a million products on their phone, and have these purchases shipped to a store or their home.
  
  Some other app features:
  
  • a store locator;
  • tailored "in-store menus," so guests can see a bespoke guide to finding items on-shelf, view local ads, and access details about live workshops
    
  • voice and image search capabilities, so consumers can take a photo of an object to view similar products, or make an enquiry with oral commands
    

• consumer reviews, as seen through scanning a product's barcode.
• Events: A Pinterest campaign for holiday décor drew on the insight that people start planning their festive finery in October. And that knowledge points at how Home Depot has changed its approach.
  
  The brand began targeting messaging at relevant shoppers early in the purchase journey as they browsed their feed or searched for appropriate ornamentations. And this effort prompted a spike in in-store and online sales alike.

• Google Home: Last year, Home Depot announced it would sell products in response to voice instructions submitted via Google Home, the tech company's AI-driven interactive speaker, as well as through the Google Express website and app.

"We have a very historic, successful event-marketing practice," Babcock said of its evolution in this area. "Those are tentpole events that we do at Home Depot that market products. And to have to change how people think about marketing – and the strategy and the approach – [needs a] lot of education."

Additionally, the company's online team has worked with store members to work out if Google's speakers could be a useful aid as consumers try and navigate around stores to locate products.

• Augmented reality/virtual reality: One important use of augmented reality, which overlays digital features onto real-life images using digital devices, empowers Home Depot app users to envision what a piece of furniture or lighting might look like in their home.
  
  The brand also allied with OATH, the digital-content arm of Verizon, last year to test AR-driven ad units that let people find out whether an item could enhance their current rooms via messages run on platforms like Yahoo Mail.

Elsewhere, the Home Depot partnered with OmniVirt, a VR ad platform, to formulate a social-media campaign that shows people, in 360 degrees, how they can redesign their living room, bathroom, and so on.

As the brand's priorities have transformed, so Babcock's team has evolved. "My team structure is an audience strategist, a head of creative, a media planner, and a data scientist. And, together, the four of them – that pod – goes after data and our audiences to deliver the best experiences. And I would say that's remarkably different from two years ago," she said.

Their key performance indicators are changing, too – and in a manner that tracks straight back to unsuccessful experiments. "The tests that we do can show zero return. You don't want a lot of them. But those are great tests. It really helps you stop and think about: Was my data right? Was my messaging right? We build a lot of models in our company. Was the model scored properly?" Babcock asserted.

"Did the creative messaging work? Did the landing page experience work? Did they go in-store and not have a good experience? That really helps you stop, and think about every aspect of your job, and what you're doing, and where the breakdown occurred.

"And then you can fix it."

5 must-have considerations when working with influencers

While influencer marketing is thriving, there are many challenges that come with the territory, according to Procter & Gamble's Associate General Counsel Thomas Adams. He touched on several thorny issues in the space that can sometimes turn into legal risks at the Association of National Advertisers' Law & Public Policy Conference in March, including a lack of control over content, the need for disclosure, the murky legal landscape of product ownership and balancing marketers' needs against influencer independence.

Not too long ago, the possibilities social influencers held were promising, but brands were somewhat reluctant to hand over the reins to an unfamiliar representative. Now, 51% of marketers believe influencer marketing is an integral part of their arsenal that outperforms brand-created content. However, in their eagerness to explore new ways to connect with elusive consumers in an era of apathy toward traditional ads, marketers may be opening themselves up to potential legal issues. 

Below are five key contract considerations Adams outlined for brands both big and small where they're dealing with social influencers:

What constitutes an endorsement?

A brand's relationship with the influencers it chooses to sponsor isn't as cut and dried as finding someone with a large following and letting it fly from there. The process is more complex, Adams said, and the first step boils down to defining some of the legal nitty-gritty of what exactly constitutes an influencer endorsement.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission says an endorsement is "any advertising message that consumers are likely to believe reflects the opinions, beliefs, findings or experience of a party other than the sponsoring advertiser." According to Adams, this can be simplified to any material or paid connection between influencer and advertiser that could impact the credibility or weight of the message in the minds of consumers.

Addressing the FTC's disclosure crackdown

Consumers, especially those from younger generations, crave authenticity when it comes to content they interact with. Sixty percent of people surveyed by eMarketer said they rely on blogger recommendations when making purchasing decisions, making influencer powerhouses key to building brand awareness and trust through digital word-of-mouth. But brand ambassadors or influencers who don't adequately disclose their paid relationships with sponsors make themselves and the brands that sponsor them vulnerable to fines by the FTC or class action lawsuits by consumers who claim they were duped by disingenuous advertising, Adams said.Last year, the FTC shared specific guidelines for endorsements and warned the industry that it would get aggressive in taking legal action against those who don't comply after settling its first complaint against two influencerswho failed to disclose connections to a sponsor.

Though both influencers and the brands that sponsor them face shared liability, Adams insisted it's ultimately the brands that get burned worse. Preventing a legal headache begins with the contract. Brands must contractually require creators to comply with the FTC's disclosure requirements and make sure any agencies involved are also a part of the process. After that point, it comes down to training and constant monitoring of influencers' work.

"Influencers, at least the more sophisticated ones with agents, are now aware of the issue and are willing to work with the brands [to adhere to FTC guidelines]," Adams said. For many, this is a full-time job, so they don't want to be blacklisted from future partnerships for past disclosure blunders, he added.

So, what does a proper disclosure look like?

Clearly, disclosing paid endorsement deals is critical to avoiding lawsuits and maintaining good relationships, but more importantly, transparency prevents consumers from feeling duped about a brand or product. Exactly how to sufficiently disclose these partnerships is a challenge thanks to length constraints on social platforms and changing influencer trends on channels like Twitter and Instagram.

Some influencers have turned to hashtags like #sponsored, #sp or #partner, which Adams and the FTC said are not clear enough, while others may bury disclosure links or tags at the end of a post. The problem with the latter approach is that channels like Instagram clip longer content with a "read more" button, so just the first three lines of a post appear, making those buried disclosures virtually invisible to the quick-scrolling user. In a recent crackdown, the FTC explicitly addressed this issue and now requires influencers to include these hashtag disclosures above the "more" button.

Some social platforms have even taken matters into their own hands. In June 2017, popular influencer platform Instagram added a "paid partnership" tag that appears directly next to the influencer's name above the post, making the brand sponsorship obvious to any user who's quickly scanning a screen.

Who really owns the content?

It's not absurd for marketers to think they ultimately own the rights to sponsored content created by influencers as they typically conceptualize, commission and fund the campaign. However, the situation, in reality, is not so clear-cut. Many brands elect to work with influencer agencies to navigate legal complexities like licensing content back to brands, removal rights and addressing usage agreements for once the contract ends.

According to Adams, ownership is often a gray area in influencer relationships.

"These influencers, they want to own [sponsored content] too. It's all they have," he said. "They have their channel and their content. Sometimes this stuff is fairly ephemeral, so when we don't really have to own it, I don't want to make that a major negotiating point if it's not that critical." 

Managing provocative personalities and content

As any savvy marketer knows, working with influencers for any amount of time comes with challenges and potential issues outside of tricky ownership legalese and superficial endorsements. There's also the real risk that a partnership will sour due to an influencer's behavior, such as inaccurate brand messaging, rogue behavior or a seemingly slight slip-up that leads to major damage to a brand's reputation.

Adams suggested brands issue a "continuity of persona" clause in a contract to clearly communicate their expectations of influencers' behavior, appearance, stance or tone, and make influencers accountable for any sudden changes not previously agreed upon.

Sports influencers, for example, may agree to not significantly change their weight, hairstyle or stance on controversial social topics in such a clause. It might sound overly restrictive, but the underlying idea is to maintain a consistent character and tone throughout an influencer campaign, Adams said. This clause typically includes specific topics that influencers must avoid, such as animal or domestic abuse, race relations, reproductive issues, politics or anything that could cast a negative spotlight on the influencer or brand.

Looking ahead

Despite legal risks and challenges that appear to be par for the course in influencer marketing, the sponsorship strategy doesn't appear to be dwindling, as nearly half of national advertisers say they plan to increase their influencer budgets in the next 12 months, per the ANA's estimates. But as the space evolves from a scrappy social media tactic to a digital marketing must, legal counselors like P&G's Adams highlight the importance of keeping in mind the ever-changing legal nitty-gritty before adding social influencers to the marketing arsenal.

Your Guide to Facebook and Instagram Contest Rules 2018

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Promotional campaigns, including Facebook and Instagram contests, are a great way to engage existing customers, get in front of new customers, and to collect user-generated content and other useful marketing data. But do you know the most important Facebook and Instagram contest rules?

Sponsoring such promotional campaigns comes with legal regulations and restrictions that can be confusing.

Whether you’re running a Facebook or Instagram contest, or have a contest embedded on your website, it’s important to understand the legal issues surrounding these kinds of promotional campaigns.

In this post we’ll explain some of the differences between various types of giveaways, suggest best practices for writing rules, and include a template that could be used to write rules for a giveaway. If you’re a ShortStack user (even a free user) you can create a landing page to post your rules. Start with a blank campaign, or use one of our templates. 

Please note that the following is only a brief overview and you must obtain legal guidance from an experienced attorney before conducting a promotional campaign.

Sweepstakes vs. Contests vs. Lotteries

First, understand the differences between sweepstakes and contests (which are legal promotional campaigns), and private lotteries (which are illegal under state law).

• A Sweepstakes is a campaign in which entrants can win a prize based on chance. No purchase, payment, or other consideration is permitted, and the winner is picked at random.  The element of consideration must not exist in a Sweepstakes.  Caution: consideration is anything of value the contestant must give up to participate, monetary or non-monetary, and can exist if the contestant must expend substantial time or effort that benefits the sponsor.  For example, some states have determined that providing contact information is consideration if the information is to be used for marketing purposes.

• A Contest is a campaign in which effort, skill, or merit, is required to enter to win a prize. For example, you may require people to upload a photo or video in order to enter. The winner is determined by voting or other judging criteria. The element of chance must not exist in a contest.

• A Lottery requires purchase, payment, or other consideration (the contestant has to buy something, such as a ticket), chance, and a prize. Note: Private lotteries are illegal under state law.  Moreover, under federal law, it is illegal for U.S. citizens to even participate in a foreign lottery. You may not use ShortStack to conduct a lottery.  Do not run a lottery.

Before you host your next campaign, familiarize yourself with best practices regarding writing regulations, and then download and complete the document (included below) to post rules and requirements specific to your campaign. Go through the document and wherever you see [bracketed text in orange] replace the bracketed text with details about your company, prize, and rules.

Note: Be sure you’re familiar with each social network’s regulations.

Best Practices

In the United States, Internet sweepstakes and contests focus on federal laws against online gambling. Here’s what you need to know:

• Official Rules should include:

• “No Purchase Necessary”

• “Purchase does not enhance chance of winning”

• “Void where prohibited”

• Details regarding non-monetary consideration

• The identity of the host/promoter

• Entry procedures and beginning/ending dates, including time and time zone

• Eligibility requirements

• An explanation of all methods of entry

• A clear description of the prize(s); certain states have stricter regulations (see examples at the end of this document)

• Date winner(s) will be chosen and notified

• Judging criteria must be clear and sponsor should be able to show how the winner was determined based on objective criteria

• Method of selecting a winner (to avoid any appearance of impropriety, it is recommended that sponsors avoid conducting their own drawings or determining the winners of their own contests)

• Publicity rights regarding use of Winner’s information (Sponsor should obtain written consent from Entrant to ensure compliance with state laws)

• Publicity rights regarding use of Participant’s information (Sponsor should obtain written consent from Entrant to ensure compliance with state laws)

• Liability limitations

• Odds of winning

• Physical address, not a PO Box

• Contest/Sweepstakes sponsors must be careful about advertising prizes by using the brand name of a prize without the consent from the trademark owner in the title. For example, if you are giving away an Apple iPod, the contest name cannot say “Apple” or “iPod” unless Apple was a cosponsor of the promotion or gave consent in the contest title. However, they can list the item in the official rules as part of the prize list.

• If the prize winner is subject to U.S. taxes, the host is required to send the winner a 1099 in January of the following year.

• It is recommended that records for the promotional campaign should be maintained for 2 years.

State Exceptions

Many states in the U.S. individually regulate promotional campaigns, especially when prizes include alcohol, tobacco, or firearms. It is important to know that promotional campaigns are governed by the laws and regulations of the state in which the contestant lives.  As you write your contest rules, take note that individual states have individual considerations. For instance, below you will find a list of some state-by-state examples.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This list of state examples is neither complete nor updated.  It is recommended you obtain legal guidance from an experienced attorney before conducting a promotional campaign.

• Colorado

— Prohibits purchase requirements even if the contest winners are selected based on skill.

• Florida

— Prize worth $5,000 or more must be bonded and registered 7 days before sweepstakes begins. Must be able to provide a list of winners to anyone who requests it.

• Maryland

— Prohibits purchase requirements even if the contest winners are selected based on skill.

• Nebraska

— Prohibits purchase requirements even if the contest winners are selected based on skill.

• New York

— Prize worth $5,000 or more must be bonded and registered 30 days before sweepstakes begins. Must be able to provide a list of winners to anyone who requests it.

• North Dakota

— Prohibits purchase requirements even if the contest winners are selected based on skill.

• Rhode Island

— Retail outlets offering a sweepstakes with prizes valuing more than $500 must register promotion with the state.

• Tennessee

— Prohibits sweepstakes agencies and sponsors from requiring sweepstakes prize winners to submit to “in perpetuity” publicity releases.

• Texas

— Special rules apply to sweepstakes with prizes more than $50,000 such as not automatically entering an individual in a sweepstakes because the individual has made a purchase

• Vermont

— May not require people who request a list of sweepstakes winners to pay for postage for the response.

— Prohibits purchase requirements even if the contest winners are selected based on skill.

• Virginia

— Cannot require a “player” to visit a location to enter due to this being a form of consideration that would convert an otherwise legal sweepstakes into a lottery.

• Washington

— Prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in the conduct of any trade or commerce.”

— Must provide disclaimers and material terms and conditions in sweepstakes offer.

Customizable Official Rules

__ By checking here and populating the Customizable Official Rules, on behalf of myself and on behalf of any entity for which I am acting (together referred to as “Customer”), Customer accepts all risks and acknowledges that promotional campaigns come with complicated and ever-changing legal regulations and restrictions, Customer understands that it should obtain legal guidance from an experienced attorney before conducting a promotional campaign and populating the Customizable Official Rules, and Customer hereby agrees to hold harmless and indemnify ShortStack and its contributors for any loss, damage, or legal liability associated with Customer’s use of the Customizable Official Rules.

————————————————

Below is an example of rules and guidelines you could use for a social media contest. You would replace the [orange bracketed text] with information specific to your company and your contest.

NO PURCHASE IS NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A PURCHASE DOES NOT INCREASE THE CHANCES OF WINNING.

1. Eligibility: This Campaign is open only to those who sign up at the [Campaign URL] and who are [years of age or older]as of the date of entry.The Campaign is only open to legal residents of [list eligible countries and/or states], and is void where prohibited by law. Employees of [your company name], its affiliates, subsidiaries, advertising and promotion agencies, and suppliers, (collectively the “Employees”), and immediate family members and/or those living in the same household of Employees are not eligible to participate in the Campaign. The Campaign is subject to all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations. Void where prohibited.

2. Agreement to Rules: By participating, the Contestant (“You”) agree to be fully unconditionally bound by these Rules, and You represent and warrant that You meet the eligibility requirements. In addition, You agree to accept the decisions of [your company name] as final and binding as it relates to the content of this Campaign.

3. Campaign Period: Entries will be accepted online starting on [start date, time, and time zone] and ending [end date, time, and time zone]. All online entries must be received by [end date, time, and time zone].

4. How to Enter: The Campaign must be entered by submitting an entry using the online form provided at [Campaign URL]. The entry must fulfill all Campaign requirements, as specified, to be eligible to win a prize. Entries that are incomplete or do not adhere to the rules or specifications may be disqualified at the sole discretion of [your company name]. Optional verbiage to include: You may enter only once. You must provide the information requested. You may not enter more times than indicated by using multiple email addresses, identities, or devices in an attempt to circumvent the rules. If You use fraudulent methods or otherwise attempt to circumvent the rules, your submission may be removed from eligibility at the sole discretion of [your company name].

5. Prizes: The Winner(s) of the Campaign (the “Winner”) will receive [list prizes and approximate retail value]. Actual/appraised value may differ at time of prize award. The specifics of the prize shall be solely determined by [your company name]. No cash or other prize substitution shall be permitted except at [your company name’s] discretion. The prize is nontransferable. Any and all prize-related expenses, including without limitation any and all federal, state, and/or local taxes, shall be the sole responsibility of Winner. No substitution of prize or transfer/assignment of prize to others or request for the cash equivalent by Winner is permitted. Acceptance of prize constitutes permission for [your company name] to use Winner’s name, likeness, and entry for purposes of advertising and trade without further compensation, unless prohibited by law.

6. Odds: The odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.

7. Winner Selection and Notification: Winner will be selected by [a random drawing or by community vote] under the supervision of [your company name]. Winner will be notified by [enter means of notification (e.g., email, telephone, etc.)]within five (5) days following selection of Winner. [Your company name] shall have no liability for Winner’s failure to receive notices due to spam, junk e-mail or other security settings or for Winner’s provision of incorrect or otherwise non-functioning contact information. If Winner cannot be contacted, is ineligible, fails to claim the prize within [xx days]from the time award notification was sent, or fails to timely return a completed and executed declaration and release as required, the prize may be forfeited and an alternate Winner selected. Receipt by Winner of the prize offered in this Campaign is conditioned upon compliance with any and all federal, state, and local laws and regulations. ANY VIOLATION OF THESE OFFICIAL RULES BY WINNER (AT [your company name]‘S SOLE DISCRETION) WILL RESULT IN WINNER’S DISQUALIFICATION AS WINNER OF THE CAMPAIGN, AND ALL PRIVILEGES AS WINNER WILL BE IMMEDIATELY TERMINATED.

8. Rights Granted by You: By entering this content (e.g., photo, video, text, etc.), You understand and agree that [your company name], anyone acting on behalf of [your company name], and [your company name]’s licensees, successors, and assigns, shall have the right, where permitted by law, to print, publish, broadcast, distribute, and use in any media now known or hereafter developed, in perpetuity and throughout the World, without limitation, your entry, name, portrait, picture, voice, likeness, image, statements about the Campaign, and biographical information for news, publicity, information, trade, advertising, public relations, and promotional purposes. without any further compensation, notice, review, or consent. Optional verbiage for Contests: By entering this content, You represent and warrant that your entry is an original work of authorship, and does not violate any third party’s proprietary or intellectual property rights. If your entry infringes upon the intellectual property right of another, You will be disqualified at the sole discretion of [your company name]. If the content of your entry is claimed to constitute infringement of any proprietary or intellectual proprietary rights of any third party, You shall, at your sole expense, defend or settle against such claims. You shall indemnify, defend, and hold harmless [your company name] from and against any suit, proceeding, claims, liability, loss, damage, costs or expense, which [your company name] may incur, suffer, or be required to pay arising out of such infringement or suspected infringement of any third party’s right.

9. Terms & Conditions: [your company name] reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify or suspend the Campaign should virus, bug, non-authorized human intervention, fraud, or other cause beyond [your company name]’s control corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness, or proper conduct of the Campaign. In such case, [your company name] may select the Winner from all eligible entries received prior to and/or after (if appropriate) the action taken by [your company name]. [Your company name] reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual who tampers or attempts to tamper with the entry process or the operation of the Campaign or website or violates these Terms & Conditions. [Your company name] has the right, in its sole discretion, to maintain the integrity of the Campaign, to void votes for any reason, including, but not limited to: multiple entries from the same user from different IP addresses; multiple entries from the same computer in excess of that allowed by Campaign rules; or the use of bots, macros, scripts, or other technical means for entering. Any attempt by an entrant to deliberately damage any website or undermine the legitimate operation of the Campaign may be a violation of criminal and civil laws. Should such attempt be made, [your company name] reserves the right to seek damages to the fullest extent permitted by law.

10. Limitation of Liability: By entering, You agree to release and hold harmless [your company name] and its subsidiaries, affiliates, advertising and promotion agencies, partners, representatives, agents, successors, assigns, employees, officers, and directors from any liability, illness, injury, death, loss, litigation, claim, or damage that may occur, directly or indirectly, whether caused by negligence or not, from: (i) such entrant’s participation in the Campaign and/or his/her acceptance, possession, use, or misuse of any prize or any portion thereof; (ii) technical failures of any kind, including but not limited to the malfunction of any computer, cable, network, hardware, or software, or other mechanical equipment; (iii) the unavailability or inaccessibility of any transmissions, telephone, or Internet service; (iv) unauthorized human intervention in any part of the entry process or the Promotion; (v) electronic or human error in the administration of the Promotion or the processing of entries.

11. Disputes: THIS Campaign IS GOVERNED BY THE LAWS OF [your country] AND [your state/province], WITHOUT RESPECT TO CONFLICT OF LAW DOCTRINES. As a condition of participating in this Campaign, participant agrees that any and all disputes that cannot be resolved between the parties, and causes of action arising out of or connected with this Campaign, shall be resolved individually, without resort to any form of class action, exclusively before a court located in [your state/province] having jurisdiction. Further, in any such dispute, under no circumstances shall participant be permitted to obtain awards for, and hereby waives all rights to, punitive, incidental, or consequential damages, including reasonable attorney’s fees, other than participant’s actual out-of-pocket expenses (i.e. costs associated with entering this Campaign). Participant further waives all rights to have damages multiplied or increased.

12. Privacy Policy: Information submitted with an entry is subject to the Privacy Policy stated on the [your company name] website. To read the Privacy Policy, [privacy policy URL] click here. Note: a privacy policy is optional, but may be required when running a promotion on the web when using third party platforms or when using features from social channels. Including this information makes it clear to your users how you are going to use their information.

13. Winners List: To obtain a copy of the Winner’s name or a copy of these Official Rules, mail your request along with a stamped, self-addressed envelope to: [your company name] [address] [city] [state/province] [postal code] [country]. Requests must be received no later than [date, time, timezone].

14. Sponsor: The Sponsor of the Campaign is [your company name] [address] [city] [state/province] [postal code] [country].

15. Facebook: If you use Facebook to communicate or administer a contest or sweepstakes, include the following: The Campaign hosted by [your company name] is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook.

16. ___ By checking here, You, the Contestant, have affirmatively reviewed, accepted, and agreed to all of the Official Rules.