Getting your ads preapproved

Manufacturers don’t just hand out co-op money as if it were candy. You can contact a manufacturer about a potential co-op ad campaign, or a manufacturer may contact you and suggest one. But before you can begin to spend any co-op money (no matter whose idea it was), you must get your ads preapproved by the manufacturer you’re working with.
Suppose you own a paint store. One of your major manufacturers has told you that it will co-op an advertising campaign to sell 1,000 gallons of Putrid Peach paint it has lying around. Your supplier tells you that, if you contribute some of your ad bucks ( you pick the amount you think you’ll need to dispose of this paint within a reasonable amount of time), it’ll match you 100 percent up to $5,000. Your total ad budget could, therefore, be $10,000 — more than enough to buy some local radio time and a couple of big ads in the newspaper.
Your next step is to get your ads preapproved by the manufacturer. In most cases, your supplier requires you to have all your advertising preapproved by the factory to make sure it adheres to the manufacturer’s co-op guidelines. Your supplier may have an approval form for you to fill out. Along with this completed form, you must submit copies of radio scripts, a CD or MP3 file of the final produced commercial(s), and at least a rough layout (plus a copy of the final, finished copy) for your newspaper ads. ( Be sure to ask what your manufacturer requires for various mediums.) Then the manufacturer’s advertising or marketing department either sends you a stamped approval as is or advises you to make certain changes. The department may also simply advise you of the required changes and stamp and sign the approval “Approved with changes.” Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s co-op rules and guidelines carefully, making whatever changes they request.
Never run co-op advertising without first obtaining signed preapproval from the supplier.