Today, brands and online celebrities are working more closely together than ever before. According to Insider Intelligence, influencer marketing is a $5 billion industry. While the relationship between influencer and brands has always been a win-win, the FTC's guiding policies for influencer marketing are very important for both brands and bloggers themselves to be aware of compliance.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent U.S. government agency established in 1914. Its primary mission is to promote consumer protection and eliminate anti-competitive business practices such as forced monopolies. In response to online marketing on social media, the FTC has also worked in recent years to regulate and limit the incidence of deceptive advertising. As a result, the FTC requires influential celebrities to publicly announce their partnerships with brands. For example, Kim Kardashian was fined $1.26 million for failing to disclose information about a brand partnership to her Instagram followers, which led to her being paid for endorsing and promoting a cryptocurrency, EMAX.
THE FTC'S influencer MARKETING GUIDANCE AND DISCLOSURE RULES CAN BE A BIT CONFUSING AND DIFFICULT TO UNDERSTAND. TO PROVIDE ASSISTANCE WITH LEGAL SUPPORT, IZEA HAS DISTILLED SOME OF THE HIGHLIGHTS AND HELP TO YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PROPOSED GUIDANCE. BELOW IS A LIST OF WHEN, HOW AND WHERE YOU NEED TO DISCLOSE A influencer-BRAND RELATIONSHIP, AS WELL AS SOME ADDITIONAL TIPS AND SUGGESTIONS.
FTC'S GUIDE TO influencer MARKETING
Under what circumstances must an online celebrity blogger disclose his or her partnership with a brand? According to the FTC's Guidance for Social Media influencer Creators101, if a influencer blogger has any financial, personal, employment or family relationship with a brand, that connection must be disclosed and made public to followers.
influencer bloggers must also inform their followers if the brand does any of the following.
- BRANDS PROVIDE A FREE PRODUCT FOR influencer KOLS.
- Brands pay influencer creators to endorse their products.
- Brands offer any valuable trade-ins or benefits to online bloggers, such as event invitations or early access to selling products.
How do I make compliant disclosures?
THE FTC SAYS THAT AS AN ONLINE BLOGGER, YOU NEED TO DISCLOSE YOUR PARTNERSHIP WITH A BRAND IN A "CAN'T MISS" MANNER. ACCORDING TO THE FTC'S SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES, HERE ARE SOME DO'S AND DON'TS.
DO THREE TIPS ON WHAT TO DO.
- Use words that are easy for fans to understand.
- Use keyword terms such as advertising, paid advertising, brand sponsor and brand ambassador.
- Place the disclosure prominently in the content post.
Five tips for Don't Don't do.
- Don't mix brand partnership disclosures into the subject tag at the end of your post to confuse things.
- Don't just disclose advertising partnerships on the site or page the content links to.
- Don't assume that fans already know about your partnership with a brand, even if they have worked with that brand before.
- Do not use vague terminology keywords such as sp, spon, collab or Thanks.
- Don't assume that the platform's disclosure tools are good enough to rely entirely on automated alerts.
FTC'S EXAMPLES OF DISCLOSURE
THE FTC'S GUIDANCE STATES THAT IF A BRAND IS WORKING WITH AN ONLINE CELEBRITY BLOGGER, IT IS ACCEPTABLE TO SAY SOMETHING LIKE "THANK YOU TO XXX FOR THE FREE PRODUCT" IN THE CONTENT, OR TO PUT THE AD, PAID AD, BRAND SPONSOR, OR BRAND AMBASSADOR FRONT AND CENTER IN THE COPY.
Look at the example below. The first word of the post is #ad. It's clear that this online blogger has a relationship with the brand and it's easy for fans to understand in the content.
Rules that apply to different types of posts
THE ABOVE TIPS CAN BE HELPFUL IF INFLUENTIAL WEB CREATORS ARE CREATING STATIC POSTS (SUCH AS IMAGE CONTENT) FOR THEIR BRAND, BUT THERE ARE OTHER CONTENT FORMATS THAT REQUIRE ATTENTION FOR COMPLIANCE. HERE ARE SOME OTHER FTC GUIDANCE TIPS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA THAT APPLY TO FAST-SINKING CONTENT, VIDEO, AND LIVE STREAMING
When posting rapidly expiring content such as Snapchat or Instagram Stories.
-
Need to overlay the disclosed brand partnership information on the image or video.
When posting regular video sponsored content.
-
The blogger's partnership with the brand needs to be mentioned in the video, not just in the description of the video.
When bloggers are doing live content with brand placement.
-
Advertising relationships with brands need to be mentioned to fans regularly during the broadcast.
OTHER IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REQUESTED BY THE FTC
WHEN ANY ONLINE CELEBRITY OR BLOGGER KOL MARKETS A PRODUCT, HE OR SHE MUST BE HONEST. MORE SPECIFICALLY, THE FTC REQUIRES THE FOLLOWING.
- Tell us more about products, services and experiences you've never experienced before.
- If you think the product is terrible (even if you get paid for it), you need to evaluate it objectively.
- Make a statement that requires relevant official certification, such as saying that you cannot provide safety and health certification for the product.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT FTC DISCLOSURES
If an influential customer purchases and promotes the product, is disclosure required?
If the customer purchased the product themselves and the brand did not pay the customer to endorse it or pay for any paid privileges for the blogger to mention it on social media, then there is no need to require any disclosure.
If a webmaster asks to receive free products in exchange for a review, should it be disclosed?
Yes. If an online celebrity receives a free product or any valuable replacement, the relationship must be shown to followers. Even if an influential blogger receives only products and no additional compensation, this must be disclosed.
Are there different rules when an influential blogger provides reviews or promotions for a family member's brand or product?
If the web personality has a personal or family relationship with the brand, such relationship should also be disclosed in the content.
Are there any rules if a company sends a product to an influencer for free but does not formally ask him or her to endorse and promote it?
Even if a weblogger is not obligated to review a product, if you do so, you should disclose that the product was sent for free.
Is simply tagging a brand in a post considered a valid disclosure?
IF A BLOGGER RECEIVES ANYTHING OF VALUE IN EXCHANGE FOR PROMOTION, IT MUST DO MORE THAN JUST TAG THE BRAND. THE COLLABORATING ONLINE KOL MUST CLEARLY STATE THAT THE CONTENT OR INFORMATION IS AN ADVERTISEMENT.
If it's an online customer who tags a brand simply because they like a product, and the brand doesn't ask the customer to say so or get any privilege to write something favorable to that brand, then neither party needs any advertising disclosure.
THE ABOVE IS IZEA'S ANALYSIS OF THE FTC'S GUIDANCE POLICY ON 2022 influencer MARKETING. THE IZEA TEAM ALSO PROVIDES GUIDANCE AND GATES THE COMPLIANCE OF CONTENT FOR MANY BRANDS WHEN THEY ARE COOPERATING WITH influencer MARKETING, SO AS TO REDUCE THE LEGAL RISKS OF OVERSEAS influencer MARKETING COOPERATION.
ABOUT IZEA GLOBAL influencer MARKETING
IZEA Worldwide, Inc. ("IZEA") is a marketing technology company that provides software and professional services that enable brands to collaborate and transact with the full range of today's socially influential online KOLs and content creators. The company is a pioneer in the evolving commercialization of content, enabling self-publishers to create value through their content, creativity and influence. IZEA launched the industry's first influencer content marketing platform in 2006 and has since facilitated nearly 4 million transactions between online brand buyers and influencer content creators. Leading brands and agencies worldwide have partnered with IZEA to drive social media engagement rates, diversify brand voice, expand content production and drive measurable return on investment.
Brand Advertisers
IZEA's influencer marketing software and full-service solutions are trusted by the world's leading brands to find the right solution for you. Contact Us
News
