The legal content of social media advertisements
Column #itSAMarketingThing 15: A look at the legislative aspects of online advertising and the promotion of Quebec businesses on social and virtual tools.
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The General and Legal Content of Digital Tools
When you’re the administrator of professional digital tools, you must manage the display of general and legal information. Our website, social media and apps should also include the company details the public expects to find as a merchant or service business.
On a website, in the form of policy, the governance is clear. But in the display of our social media, few offer the option of an about page or company history or various policies. Contact pages and details are usually not malleable. We must therefore use our imagination in publications to communicate our words while respecting the laws.
Ads on social media must also honour merchants’ display and laws. Here is a list of things that aren’t permitted to be published to offer our products and services.
This column concerns advertising of products that aren’t intended for children under 13 years of age. If your merchandise is in the kids’ category, refer instead to the guide to follow by the Consumer Protection Office available on their website.
The Price to Display in the Ads
Besides the GST and QST taxes that may appear during payment, it’s necessary to display our total prices, all additional costs included in commercial communications and advertising. The display of a price without taxes must mention the subsequent costs that the consumer will pay and the total amount, which must be highlighted. The amounts to be mentioned in offers are usually file opening fees, administrative contributions or an expense associated with the purchase for use of the product. More details for certain products (a car, electronic devices, a deposit fee or event or concert tickets) in this article from the Office de la protection des consommateurs du Québec.
Clear Advertisements That Aren’t Misleading
According to consumer protection, it isn’t allowed to make dubious promotions or avoid stating an obvious fact about the product or service. The best example I always give would be to advertise adult toys or dolls without specifying clearly that they’re for adults over 18! That should be avoided, even as a joke.
It isn’t allowed to hide facts (we only have to think of a vehicle sale or a two for one offer with unmentioned conditions).
Don’t Tell Misleading Facts
It isn’t possible to make statements in an advertisement that aren’t true or inferred without foundation. As we can’t give ourselves a professional title, claim to be a lawyer or doctor or indicate false satisfaction percentages without a survey or proof, we must also not make people believe things that aren’t true, defects that clients don’t need to know, or talk about a study by modifying reality to our advantage.
Don’t Say False Cost Prices or Discounts
To inflate a discount by reducing the cost price, it isn’t permitted to announce an incorrect price of the cost of the purchase. For example, in an end-of-season sale, it isn’t allowed to mention that everything is 50% off if the display includes half of the items which are in reality 30% of the cost price announced on the web. Especially in 2025, when more than half of our consumers visit our digital tools before coming to the store. For this store, you must then advertise from 50% off on the display, or make one section at 50% and the other at 30%.
In closing or second-hand sales, it isn’t permitted to mention a false value or a discount to the cost price of $100 when the item is worth $80, for example.
Use of Bad Visuals or Misleading Images
And we end up with the visual or video portion of a promotion or ad. Of course, it isn’t allowed to advertise a product with a misleading image, a standard option promo showing a luxury vehicle, or to present leather furniture without specifying that it’s made of plastic or the size of a doll’s house bed.
The Gerenal Information on Social Media
Budget: $0. Although business social media allows us to personalize our teams, our products and services and our daily activities, there are sections of our social platforms that we must complete with great precision and accuracy with SEO and keywords related to our field.
Consider including as much general information as possible on your business in all the spaces offered in the “About” sections of your social media. Take advantage of every text area, and the photo and video possibilities available, by integrating a relevant action link to your site, or to the purchase page for your products and services. Sometimes a QR code embedded in an image can be a wonderful and very effective tool for many of your customers.
Tips: Social media postings should represent a real chance to reach a potential customer effectively, while offering them the opportunity to make a purchase in just a few clicks.
For example, the profile picture of a business page on Facebook should include a descriptive text of our enterprise and a possibility of an action. By adding a link to our service on our website, we ensure and encourage a contact, or even a deal in just a few seconds!
Finally, the administrative content we share on your social media and other digital tools must be up to date and written with appropriate and professional vocabulary, with the SEO techniques. Consider indicating changes to your opening hours or removing a product that is no longer available.
Tools: As with your website, social media must feature our brand image, our logo in the visuals and our lettering style. Harmonizing the image of our digital tools will only strengthen your brand. Canvas’s free design tool is useful.
Advertising
Conclusion
Of course, each company is responsible for the words and actions of its representatives, its employees and its design and marketing creators. If in doubt about the validity of your campaign, it’s best to check with someone who has the knowledge to attest to the legality of your promo.
See you on the next #itSAMarketingThing Column!
Jeff
Sources:
Consumer Office of Quebec (Office de la protection des consommateurs), section What is prohibited by Law at https://www.opc.gouv.qc.ca/en/consumer/topic/illegal-practice/prohibited/.
Responsibilities for the protection of personal information by the Commission d’accès à l’information Commission d’accès à l’information, at https://www.cqcd.org/en/blog/responsibilities-for-the-protection-of-personal-information/.
Cr Images and production: W+M Services.
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