• by Bob Liodice , October 13, 2010

The Marketers' Constitution sets forth what the ANA believes are ten essential "musts" of marketing for the next 100 years. These will help ensure that the industry thrives and continues to contribute to the growth of the nation's businesses -- as well as to the economic and social well-being of our society. Read the entire Marketers' Constitution and show your support for its tenets by digitally signing it.

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The ninth tenet of the Marketers' Constitution states that marketing must be unencumbered by inappropriate legislation or regulation. This is a topic that does not grab marketers' attention until adverse legislation is proposed. Delivering marketing's societal benefits depends upon a business environment that is supportive of our industry and its essential work in building brands and growing businesses. A key tenet of the ANA Marketers' Constitution is assuring that the marketing environment is free of undue restrictions and burdens.

For many years, the ANA has been a bastion for commercial free speech and for upholding advertising as a legitimate business expense for tax purposes. However, under the current administration and congress, these rights are being threatened. The marketing community must be free of any negative legislation that would damage either of these two core platforms: commercial free speech and taxation.

First and foremost, commercial free speech begins with The First Amendment. Free speech is the most fundamental of American rights and privileges -- rights and privileges that must be unequivocally protected. In fact, the Supreme Court conclusively extended First Amendment protection to commercial speech of lawful products and services conducted in a non-misleading way.

As an industry, we must protect this right, despite the difficult situations that may arise when contentious products are involved. It is important to vigilantly prevent a slippery slope that would severely compromise advertising's effectiveness. Over the years, marketers have won significant battles affecting a number of controversial industries.

The most onerous threat to the industry is advertising taxes and efforts to alter the 100% tax deductibility provisions. Simply put, taxes make marketing more expensive. The added costs would force companies to either reduce the amount of marketing or increase the cost of their goods and services to consumers. This would likely result in decreased consumer demand, slower economic growth, a rise in unemployment and a reduction in business profit.

ANA's work to recently proposed changes to the deductibility of pharmaceutical advertising is a classic case of how the industry needs to respond to thwart legislation. Last year's proposal, which would have cost the pharmaceutical industry $37 billion, was defeated with a rigorous defense by the advertising and marketing communities. At the heart of the industry's argument is the main concern that limiting the advertising tax deduction for just one industry would be unprecedented and would raise very serious First Amendment concerns.

Finally, self-regulation is the best model for the marketing community. There is no finer example in championing self-regulation than the National Advertising Review Council and its primary arms, the National Advertising Division and the Children's Advertising Review Unit. Long heralded by the Federal Trade Commission as the best example for self-regulation in our country, the industry rallied to validate those claims. In recent years, self-regulation mechanisms have been adopted for the food and beverage industries as well as online behavioral advertising.

To ensure continued success and the vitality of marketing for the next one hundred years, this industry must do everything in our power to deflect all possible legislative and regulatory encumbrances.