What documentation should I keep for discount campaign compliance?

Question

As an e-commerce business owner, I'm struggling to understand the documentation requirements for maintaining legal and financial compliance with my discount campaigns. I need a comprehensive guide that outlines what records I should keep, how long I should retain them, and what specific details are crucial for potential audits or tax reporting. My goal is to create a systematic approach to tracking discount campaigns that protects my business and provides clear financial transparency.

Muhammed Tüfekyapan · Accepted Answer

Documentation for Discount Campaign Compliance
Regulatory investigations and consumer complaints often occur months or years after a campaign runs. Without documentation, you can't demonstrate compliance. The key is capturing evidence at the time of the campaign, not retroactively.

Documentation Checklist by Category

CategoryWhat to DocumentRetention Period

Campaign termsFull T&Cs as published at campaign launch; screenshots of offer creative3+ years minimum
Reference price historyPricing records showing the "was" price was charged in normal trading3+ years
Expiry enforcementEvidence that codes were actually invalidated at stated expiry time3+ years
Email consent recordsOpt-in timestamps, consent language, source of signup for each subscriberDuration of relationship + 1 year
Unsubscribe processingLog of unsubscribe requests and when they were honored3+ years
Consumer complaintsLog of complaints related to discounts and how they were resolved3+ years

Practical Documentation Workflow

At campaign launch: Screenshot the offer creative, save T&Cs as PDF, record campaign start date and planned expiry
At campaign end: Confirm codes have been invalidated; screenshot post-expiry state
Monthly: Export email consent records from your ESP; confirm unsubscribes are suppressed
Quarterly: Archive pricing history to document genuine reference prices for past campaigns

When Documentation Gets Used

Customer dispute over discount terms (documentation shows what was published at time of offer)
Regulatory inquiry into pricing practices (pricing history shows reference prices were genuine)
Email complaint or legal claim (consent records show subscriber opted in lawfully)
Chargebacks involving discount amounts (T&Cs document what was agreed at time of purchase)

What documentation should I keep for discount campaign compliance?

TL;DR - Quick Answer

Complete Expert Analysis

Documentation for Discount Campaign Compliance

Documentation Checklist by Category

Practical Documentation Workflow

When Documentation Gets Used

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Muhammed Tüfekyapan

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Use Cases

Category	What to Document	Retention Period
Campaign terms	Full T&Cs as published at campaign launch; screenshots of offer creative	3+ years minimum
Reference price history	Pricing records showing the "was" price was charged in normal trading	3+ years
Expiry enforcement	Evidence that codes were actually invalidated at stated expiry time	3+ years
Email consent records	Opt-in timestamps, consent language, source of signup for each subscriber	Duration of relationship + 1 year
Unsubscribe processing	Log of unsubscribe requests and when they were honored	3+ years
Consumer complaints	Log of complaints related to discounts and how they were resolved	3+ years