One of our clients received an exciting new certification. Before we were able to widely market their new credential and associated offering, we needed to conduct a comprehensive review of the licensing institution’s terms & conditions (T&C). 📑

Unsurprisingly, some of these terms directly affected the ways in which we could market the client’s offering. There were limits on how and when the trade name of the licensing institution was permitted to be used, how it must be formatted when it is used, and many other small nuances that are important to note and observe PRIOR to introducing materials into the marketplace – even before creating materials. 🎨 🖌️

The terms heavily stipulated the rules surrounding creation of derivative works, and also noted that user submissions made by my client could be sublicensed out by the institution for their continued promotion of their certification program.

By flagging these terms, we were able to help our client narrow their focus and ask pointed questions about specific clauses when reviewing the terms with their attorney. 🗣️

Is YOUR marketing team aware that terms like this might similarly govern some aspects of your business or offering? Your partnerships? 🤔

Have those terms been thoroughly read and reviewed, or was the rush to market so great that you might be in violation right now? ❌

Do you have a process in place where you “create first, approve later”?

Are your departments so siloed that different teams don't even have an awareness that things like this might be at play?

By making marketers and other creative team members aware of these terms up front, one or more rounds of revisions and approvals may be able to be eliminated from your workflow. ♻️

While not lawyers, some of us in design roles can read terms like these and see how they may severely limit some of the initiatives we have planned. By beginning the project with an open conversation about the limits imposed by these terms, we eliminated unnecessary rounds of design / review / approval.

We also avoided the liability (and embarrassment!) of going public with materials that were created without these terms in mind. Because we began with a solid understanding of the limitations on our marketing efforts, we were able to confidently move forward, knowing our client would not be in violation of these important terms.

Disclaimer – we are not lawyers or attorneys at Golden Hour Media & Strategy, but we do have legal background. However, for legal advice regarding your specific situation, you should always consult with an attorney licensed in your jurisdiction. This information is not intended to constitute legal advice, but rather to show the power of having an additional set of eyes to review T&C, especially where marketing and logo usage are referenced. This also helped our client ask more pointed questions to their attorney because we had actively discussed how these terms could limit some of the marketing plans we envisioned. This information does not create an attorney-client relationship.