Consumer Day: avoid becoming the bad example
Photo: Avila Ops Tecnologia
Consumer Day is March 15, and the surrounding week has become a promotion period, with Procon, the press, and social media watching mistakes. You do not become the bad example by charging high prices. You do by breaking promises: fake discounts, late delivery, refused exchanges, unanswered messages. The five errors below often become complaints, and all are prevented beforehand, not during the event.
Public complaints in March echo because everyone is discussing consumer rights. Service that resolves problems gets attention that week too. Choose which you want visible.
Which Consumer Day errors become complaints?
- Disguised discounts. Raising prices in February to “lower” them in March is misleading advertising under article 37 of Brazil’s Consumer Protection Code (Law 8.078/1990). Price history sites spot it in minutes, and screenshots spread.
- Nonexistent inventory. Advertising ten discounted units while having two. Offers are binding under article 30; customers choose the remedy under article 35: the advertised product, an equivalent, or a refund.
- Optimistic delivery. Promising three business days when postal service takes five in your region. Delays become complaints; complaints become one-star ratings.
- Refused exchanges and withdrawal. Website or WhatsApp purchases allow seven days to withdraw from receipt, without justification, under article 49. “No exchanges on sale items” does not override this right.
- Silence. A complaint reaches WhatsApp, Instagram, or Reclame Aqui and nobody answers within 48 hours. This turns a small problem into a public case.
How do I prepare operations before the week?
Two weeks before, check:
| What to check | How |
|---|---|
| Price | Record prices charged in the previous 30 days. Discounts use that figure. |
| Stock | Advertise only shelf stock. When sold out, the page says so and stops selling. |
| Deadline | Add picking time to actual carrier time. Publish the total. |
| Service | Assign who replies, working hours, and response times. Write answers to the five most common questions. |
Publish terms of service, a clear exchange policy, and the written seven-day withdrawal right. If missing, see What terms of service are. Terms published before a promotion count; terms invented during an argument convince nobody.
What if a complaint arrives anyway?
Reply quickly and resolve it. Post a public response within 24 hours with the agent’s name, planned action, and deadline. Resolve privately. Do not debate merits in public; acknowledge, resolve, and return to say it was resolved.
If your business joined consumidor.gov.br and a complaint comes through it, the platform sets response deadlines and measures resolution rates. A small business with 100% resolution looks good there, and any customer can verify it. See Public complaints: reply, delete, or ignore.
Example: a shoe store sold a size that ran out during the week. Instead of canceling, it called each customer and offered another color with the same discount or an immediate refund. It cost an afternoon of calls. Zero complaints.
What to do now
Choose the promotion start and count back 14 days: begin checks then. Run the four table checks. Publish terms, deadlines, and exchange policy before any ads. To learn what your operation exposes before that week, we diagnose it in one conversation: avilaops.com/contato or WhatsApp: wa.me/5517997811471.
Frequently asked questions
Must I run a Consumer Day promotion?
No. It is a commercial date, not a legal requirement. A poorly prepared promotion is worse than none. If margin cannot support discounts, offer free shipping or a gift and explain clearly.
A sale customer wants another size. Must I accept?
Size exchanges are not legally mandatory unless defective; they follow your policy. But advertising “guaranteed exchanges” makes it binding. Seven-day withdrawal on remote purchases is law.
Can I limit quantity per customer?
Yes, if the rule appears in the ad. Clear limits are allowed; limits invented when the order arrives are a problem.
Turn what you learned into your next step.
Tell us about your company and what you want to improve. We can explore the right tools, integrations or custom project together.