Endorsement Guideline

Endorsement Guideline
H/T Randy Milanovic 

Did you purchase a product on your own, "like" to enter a contest, get paid for an endorsement.

Basic guidelines from the FTC (Federal Trade Commission).

#endorsements   #trustyourgutethics  

Originally shared by Randy Milanovic

FTC GUIDELINE ON ENDORSEMENTS BY INDIVIDUALS ON SOCIAL NETWORKING SITES

Many social networking sites allow you to share your interests with friends and followers by clicking a button or sharing a link to show that you’re a fan of a particular business, product, website or service. Is that an "endorsement" that needs a disclosure?

Many people enjoy sharing their fondness for a particular product or service with their social networks.

If you write about how much you like something you bought on your own and you’re not being rewarded, you don’t have to worry. However, if you’re doing it as part of a sponsored campaign or you’re being compensated – for example, getting a discount on a future purchase or being entered into a sweepstakes for a significant prize – then a disclosure is appropriate.

I am an avid social media user who often gets rewards for participating in online campaigns on behalf of brands. Is it OK for me to click a “like” button, pin a picture, or share a link to show that I’m a fan of a particular business, product, website or service as part of a paid campaign?

Using these features to endorse a company’s products or services as part of a sponsored brand campaign probably requires a disclosure.

We realize that some platforms – like Facebook’s “like” buttons – don’t allow you to make a disclosure. Advertisers shouldn’t encourage endorsements using features that don’t allow for clear and conspicuous disclosures. However, we don’t know at this time how much stock social network users put into “likes” when deciding to patronize a business, so the failure to disclose that the people giving “likes” received an incentive might not be a problem.

An advertiser buying fake “likes” is very different from an advertiser offering incentives for “likes” from actual consumers. If “likes” are from non-existent people or people who have no experience using the product or service, they are clearly deceptive, and both the purchaser and the seller of the fake “likes” could face enforcement action.

I posted a review of a service on a website. Now the marketer has taken my review and changed it in a way that I think is misleading. Am I liable for that? What can I do?

No, you aren’t liable for the changes the marketer made to your review. You could, and probably should, complain to the marketer and ask them to stop using your altered review. You also could file complaints with the FTC, your local consumer protection organization, and the Better Business Bureau.

https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking#social

#knowthelaws   #trustyourgutethics