Protecting Your Client's Brand
So how do you embrace this new reality? Where do you get started and how do you make it part of your culture?
The first, and most important, step is education. Learn the basic product safety regulations and how they apply in our industry. The most comprehensive federal law is the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). It was enacted in August 2008 and imposes strict lead limits for all children’s products, and additional requirements for toys. Much has been written about how to determine whether the product you’re selling is regarded as a children’s product. The distinction is not always clear and even experts sometimes disagree. Why does it matter? In addition to the lead restrictions, children’s products require third-party testing, permanent tracking labels and certificates specifying when and where the product was manufactured and tested. For everyone’s sake—your client’s, your company’s and the industry’s—I recommend a simple rule of thumb: If the intended audience of a promotion includes children, protect everyone involved. Don’t let yourself get sucked into a debate of whether the item is a children’s product or a general-use product. For these promotions, play it safe and select products that have been produced and tested to CPSIA children’s product standards.