What You Need to Know About the FTC's New Social Media Ethics Q&A

The group tries to clarify its policy on social media endorsements.

A few months ago, our parent publication Adweek asked whether a campaign in which Lord & Taylor paid 50 fashion influencers to wear the same dress on the same day (without disclosing that they’d been paid to do so) “thumb[ed] its nose at FTC disclosure rules.”

According to a newly updated Q&A on the matter released by the Federal Trade Commission, the answer is “probably.”

Some basic takeaways:

  • The purchase/sale of fake “likes” or followers is “clearly deceptive”
  • Followers participating in contests used to promote a given brand must make that fact clear (preferably by using “contest” or “sweepstakes” in the hashtag
  • The client is ultimately responsible for the individuals who post on its behalf
  • Sponsored videos should note their status in the videos themselves (information below is not good enough)

FILES-US-GOVERNMENT-FTC(AFP Photo/Paul J.

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