Considering engaging a trendy influencer to finally get your firm’s presence booming on platforms like TikTok and YouTube? It’s a common and potentially fruitful strategy, but a word of caution: you need to familiarize yourself with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)’s updated social media guidelines. Ignorance isn’t bliss in this scenario – falling afoul of these guidelines could land your firm in hot water, serving as a cautionary tale for the rest of the industry. After all, it’s no small matter if the government decides to make an example of your firm, as Law.com explains:
The FTC recently issued new regulations for the social media influencer market, commonly a prelude to a substantial increase in enforcement actions. Importantly, guidance has been provided on the definition of disclosure: it should be “clear and conspicuous”, outlining the relationship between the advertiser and influencer. The FTC requires this disclosure to be hard to miss and easily understood by the average consumer, and the commonly used “sponsored post” label or #ad might not always fulfill these requirements.
These rules aim to address the ‘astroturfing’ phenomenon often seen when companies attempt to capture the attention or favor of various demographics. If you’re not familiar, ‘astroturfing’ involves crafting an artificial grassroots movement, often through undisclosed influencers articulating a message seemingly organically, but funded or orchestrated by a third party. Elements of this technique are ubiquitous across social media and other platforms, but they skid along the boundaries of transparency that the FTC insists upon.
To summarise, setting up some essential quality control sessions with your influencers is advisable. The focus needs to be on a clear and transparent elucidation of your relationship with them, and it’s equally important that they convey this information to their audience. If the FTC takes umbrage with your corporation for violating these regulations, you will end up with media attention, though not the kind you’d probably prefer. Transparency, therefore, is a paramount consideration to keep in mind when engaging with influencers.
More information on the FTC’s crackdown on social media influencers can be found in the original Law.com article.