The advertiser is responsible for ensuring that any agencies or influencers they work with on social media marketing campaigns know and correctly practice the rules of disclosure. Influencer marketing has the potential to yield high ROI, however, the relationship between brands and influencers must be disclosed in order to ensure compliance with the governing body (the FTC) that dictates whether sponsored content is acceptable or not. The FTC’s endorsement guidelines, through the FTC Act, apply to social media influencers. With the evolution of influencer marketing and growing confusion over the FTC guidelines, incongruities between brands and influencers often emerge. On November 5, 2019, the United States Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a guide entitled “Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers” and a video “Do you endorse things on social media?” to alert influencers to the laws governing endorsement or recommendation of products or services and provide social media influencers with “tips on when and how to make good disclosures.” But the law says they also have to be truthful and not misleading. If so, this video has tips to help influencers like you comply with the law. It’s necessary for brand marketers to understand and comply with Google and the FTC. Trust the FTC to Create Trust. Additionally, endorsements cannot be used to make an unsubstantiated claim that the product’s marketer could not make. “ The FTC’s Endorsement Guides provide that if there is a ‘material connection’ between an endorser and an advertiser – in other words, a connection that might affect the weight or credibility that consumers give the endorsement – that connection should be clearly and conspicuously disclosed, unless it … Avoid using ambiguous phrases like “thanks to…”, attempting to hide written disclosures at the bottom of the video description, or failing to include written and verbal disclosure within the video itself. Written disclosures must employ clear wording, such as “This post is sponsored by…”. Last week, the Federal Trade Commission issued updated and clarified “endorsement guides” that govern so-called influencer advertising on social media. The endorsement guidelines publicized by the FTC help bloggers, influencers, brands and agencies understand what is required of them when a company pays someone to promote / endorse their product. Vyrl is not responsible for use of this information to construct an FTC-compliant disclosure. The FTC guidelines are publically available in the FTC Endorsement Guides at the US Government Publishing Office website. The advertiser is responsible for ensuring that any agencies or influencers they work with on social media marketing campaigns know and correctly practice the rules of disclosure. Sponsored Snaps or Snapchat Stories must have #ad, #sponsored, or #paid written directly on sponsored content. The FTC’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising are guidelines designed to help advertisers of all stripes – TV, print, radio, blogs, word-of-mouth marketing – make sure that they meet this standard. The FTC has also stepped-up its own investigations into deceptive online endorsements. The FTC has responded with efforts to clarify its endorsement and disclosure guidelines, all in the name of protecting consumers. Specifically, the Guides address the application of Section 5 of the FTC Act (15 U.S.C. Advice for Social Media Influencers. Use plain language and syntax so that consumers understand the disclosures. The FTC guidelines are clear: The buck stops with the advertiser when it comes to the disclosure of endorsements. , and must be accompanied by additional proper disclosure hashtags if used. Additionally, content creators must disclose when they have a family relationship with a brand. 14, 2019 The Federal Trade Commission’s endorsement guidelines remain one of the most confusing aspects of influencer marketing. It must be right there with the endorsement … If a brand or influencer violates the guidelines, it can face a fine or legal action. 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