Happy hump day, folks!

If you’ve been following me on Twitter, you’ll know that I’m currently down with a bad cold. With mush for brains, today’s Bloggie Wednesdays is going to be a little different.

I had a chat with Kimmi from The Plastic Diaries a week ago on what running blog giveaways are like in Australia, what the terms and conditions are, etc. She gave me a copy of a post she wrote for Stef  quite some time ago (formerly of The Lip Print and Blogging 4 Love, which are now defunct. Stef is now blogging at Read, Cook, Shop. Go check out her lovely blog!).

Kimmi has very kindly allowed me to repost that original post here for today’s Bloggie Wednesdays. If you are blogging in Australia and do run giveaways and competitions on your blog, this is vital information you have to know. I was not aware of the regulations we have in Australia regarding giveaways and competitions. A lot of us (me included) run giveaways quite often on our blogs without knowing the rules. It’s time we do.

Over to you, Kimmi!

PS: If you have any questions on running giveaways in Australia, Kimmi would be happy to answer them. Believe you me, this lady knows her stuff 😉

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Running a giveaway or competition is a great way to build your blog readership, as well as rewarding your readers. However, it is not as simple as one would think.

Over the last few months I have noticed more and more blogs running competitions. This is a good thing, however 99% of them are being run illegally, which is a bad thing. After mentioning this to some bloggers recently, I was confronted with a concerning, yet understandable question, “Why does it matter if they are legal or not? We are just little bloggers”. That may be true but there are many reasons you, as a blogger, should be concerned. If you don’t run competitions, but rather enter these illegal ones, you too should be a little concerned. Without terms and conditions, there is nothing legally upholding the promoter to what they say, and for this reason you can’t be guaranteed they are running the competition fairly.

So why should you, as a blogger, be concerned? Well, to give you a basic understanding without completely boring you, it all comes down to money. Each state in Australia has its own governing body that manages the legitimacy of Giveaways, Lotto, Gambling and Competitions. They each have a set of criteria that must be met. If you run any of the aforementioned and you do not meet the criteria, you can be prosecuted. In most cases, you will be fined, but depending on how many times you have failed to comply, and the degree of infringement, you could face more serious consequences.

As yet, there have been no cases (that I am aware of) where a blogger has been punished for illegally running a competition. However, I feel it is not too far away. These government departments rely on the revenue they generate from handing out fines, and if you look at our small industry as a whole, they could make a lot of dough!

I could go on forever about the legal stuff but I rather give you some straight up tips to get you on your way.

Writing Terms & Conditions
I won’t lie, this is the most difficult part. I was very lucky to have learnt this painful task in my early years within Media but it took me a really long time. I still email my lawyer friends every now and then to check over my stuff.

When moving into blogging I searched for a broader template that I could use as a basis for my Terms & Conditions. I didn’t find one, and unless things have changed in the past couple of days, I doubt it will pop up in a quick google search for you either. To make things easier for everyone, I am happy to share the Terms & Conditions template I made.

Before I tell you how to get my template, I want to point out a few things that MUST be included in Terms & Conditions. Just in case you don’t like mine, at least you will know some of the things that have to be included.

These are:
1. The Competition: Clearly state the business that is running the competition, the name of the competition, who the competition is open to (which states/countries) and who cannot enter (employees, family, etc).
2. The Promoter: Full name of the business and the full business address
3. Competition Period: Start and End date & time
4. Detailed steps entrant is required to complete in order to submit a valid entry
5. Prize: Complete outline of prize the winner will receive, including its value and the prize pool total
6. Drawing: State the location of draw, date, time and how winners will be notified. Also include how the winner must contact you (The Promoter) and by when to claim their prize.

The above are just some of the details that should be included.

Example:
The Plastic Diaries – http://theplasticdiaries.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/TPD-Competition-Terms-and-Conditions-February-Favourites-Giveaway-2011.pdf

Competition Types
There are two basic structures to a competition. ‘Game Of Chance’ and ‘Game Of Skill’. To put it simply, almost every case of Game Of Chance requires you to buy a permit for each individual competition. Even more annoying, you need to buy a permit in every state that the competition is open to. Headache. However, a Game of Skill rarely requires a permit.

Game Of Chance
A ‘Game Of Chance’ commonly is a competition where the winner is drawn at random. This means, no matter what skill or requirements are involved in entering the competition, ultimately the winners name is pulled from a hat, so to speak.

Example
1. “Leave a comment below for your chance to be 1 of 2 random winners”

Game Of Skill
A ‘Game Of Skill’ commonly requires an entry mechanic (a way of entering) that differentiates entries. Basically, some skill is required and all entries are reviewed, with the most talented being selected as the winner.

Example
1. “Leave a comment below explaining why red nail polish is better than all other colours. Best answer wins!”
2. E.g. http://theplasticdiaries.com/body/february-favourites-giveaway/

Refer to the below ‘Government Offices’ links to view the complete legislation and information on what is required per state. It isn’t a fun task but if you want to run competitions legally, it is what has to be done.

Publishing Winners
In most states, and depending on the prize value, you may be required to publish the winners names as proof that actual winners were drawn, as stipulated in your terms and conditions. I find the best way to do this is to have a dedicated ‘Win’ page where these can be listed.

Example:
The Plastic Diaries ‘Competitions’ Page – http://theplasticdiaries.com/win/

Help
As I mentioned earlier, running a competition is not an easy feat, but the benefits can far outweigh the difficulties. If you need some help, or have questions, the below links can provide you with a lot of information.

Government Offices
Below is a list of the Australian state government offices who are in charge of gaming.
1. NSW Office of Liquor, Gaming and Racing
2. ACT Gambling and Racing Commission
3. WA Department of Racing, Gaming and Liquor
4. TAS Department of Treasury and Finance
5. SA Office of the Liquor and Gambling Commissioner
6. VIC Commission for Gambling Regulation
7. QLD Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation
8. NT Department of Justice

Useful Links
The below links I have found useful when trying to address the legal side of running a competition:
Competitions Guide – The Legal Side of Competitions
Digital Dialogue – Online Competition Permits in Australia

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Thanks very much for enlightening us with the regulations of running giveaways and competitions in Australia, Kimmi. It really wasn’t as simple and straightforward as I thought.

If you’re not blogging in Australia, I strongly suggest that you check your country and government’s rules on running giveaways and competitions on your websites. Y’know, just to be sure you aren’t breaking any laws.

Always remember to protect your behind! 🙂