Business marketing
Marketing explained
There are many definitions of marketing. Broadly, it involves activities that help to build your brand and business. It’s about identifying and understanding your customers, and developing products and services that meet their needs. Marketing requires careful planning and research – but investing time and money now will pay off in the long term.
Marketing is more than just advertising and logos, it can be across many areas of your business, including:
- how your customers are greeted on the phone
- your customer service procedures
- what your staff wear
- your email signature.
Benefits of marketing
Good marketing tells a story about your business and gives your customers a reason to purchase from you instead of your competitors. It helps you to look at everything in your business that could affect how your customers identify you.
Writing a marketing plan can help you define certain aspects of your business and focus on your priorities.
Legal obligations when marketing
When marketing your business, products or services, make sure you’re aware of any regulations or legal requirements including the ones we’ve listed below.
You need to make sure you don’t mislead your customers when you advertise your products or services. There may be local requirements such as permits, depending on the type of advertising you use.
Check out our list of legal requirements for different advertising activities.
Competitions, lotteries or promotions over a certain amount are regulated by your state or territory through a permit. You can download a permit form from the Australian Business Licence Information Service (ABLIS) website.
Most direct marketing activities are regulated by federal or state laws. Before you conduct direct marketing, check if your business needs to comply with privacy legislation and spam regulations.
If you want to use telemarketing, you need to comply with the Do Not Call Register legislation. The Do Not Call Register is a list of protected phone and fax numbers. If you contact a number on the register, you may be in breach of the law and could face penalties.
As a business owner, you’re responsible for protecting your customers’ personal information. Take care when you collect, use, secure and disclose a customer's information. Depending on your business, you may also be required to comply with the Privacy Act.
Find out more on how to protect your customers' information.
When you use another person's or business's intellectual property for branding or selling, make sure you're complying with Intellectual Property (IP) regulations, including trade mark laws.
When preparing your branding, business name or website name, make sure you aren't in breach of the Australian or international trade mark laws.
When you export or expand overseas, it's important to comply with both Australian and international regulations.
International pricing regulations
If you're considering exporting your products or services, international regulations may impact your pricing decisions. See Austrade export services for details on how to determine your export prices as well as the laws and regulations that may affect your decision.
When preparing your branding, business name or website name, make sure it doesn't breach Australian or international trademark laws.
European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
The European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a set of data protection requirements. Your business may have to comply with these requirements if you:
- have an establishment in the EU
- offer goods or services in the EU
- have a website that targets EU customers (either by enabling them to order goods or services in a European language (other than English) or enabling payment in Euros)
- have websites that mention customers or users in the EU
- monitor the behaviour of individuals in the EU on the internet
Find out more about how the EU GDPR affects Australian businesses at the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) website.