Yesterday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) updated its Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, establishing more precise rules for disclosure when it comes to marketers interacting with online influencers. The news affects anyone running Digital Word of Mouth marketing (DWOM®) to solicit coverage from these influencers. This is the first time the Guides have been updated since 1980, so all of the additions for online marketers are new.
Sarah Hofstetter, SVP of Emerging Media & Client Strategy, told Adweek yesterday that most marketers are “entirely above board,” when it comes to ethical blogger relations. “It’s for a marketer to take that leap of faith to know that disclosure and authenticity is the only way a brand and consumer are going to have a working relationship in social media,” she said.
Hofstetter also praised the update in a Wall Street Journal article, in which she lauded the decision for restoring “common sense to a nascent form of marketing.” 360i has always encouraged the bloggers and online influencers we work with to disclose such relationships even when there isn’t free merchandise involved.
360i’s POV on the FTC’s Updated Guides for Endorsements outlines the key changes made and helps marketers understand what the new regulations mean for future social outreach efforts.
This seems like an heavy burden to place on the shoulders of the millions of bloggers out there — $11K penalties and heavy-handed FTC regulations for one-off freebies?
Bloggers (and publishers) worth their salt already typically disclose when products are received for review. Do we really need the FTC to step in here and force the issue?
I’d rather trust consumers to stay skeptical — that’s one of the main factors driving the quality of information available on the internet: consumer responsibility, both for researchers and reviewers, alike.
A system that is already working doesn’t need onerous regulations that will work (even if unintentionally so) to stifle bloggers.
