The Ethics of Influencer Disclosure: Who is Responsible?

The American Advertising Federation’s Principles and Practices for Advertising Ethics calls upon brands to communicate transparently with consumers. This practice of honest, fair and balanced advertising offered fewer stakes when brand communications were churned out by the brands themselves.

The main issue arises in disclosure of advertising activities, also referenced in the third principle in the AAF’s guidelines. The principle states that “Advertisers should clearly distinguish advertising, public relations and corporate communications from news and editorial content and entertainment, both online and offline,” (Institute for Advertising Ethics, 2011). However, as noted in the commentary, this practice operates in a “self-regulatory” nature. But who is ultimately responsible for this regulation?

The average consumer may assume that brands control the messages and, in turn, the disclosure practices of their influencer partners. In reality, most reputable brands uphold this belief and remind influencers to disclose their post as a brand deal and refrain from swaying the opinion of the influencers. The end result, however, weighs heavily on an influencer’s own moral compass and their decision on whether or not to abide by the FTC regulatory rules.

In order to examine this concept on a deeper level, let’s take a look at a recent influencer campaign that my team activated on to promote the release of a new film in theaters. We hosted over 150 influencers to attend a free screening and afterparty. A few of the influencers were paid through an agency, but others were invited without compensation. Invites included and FTC disclaimer:

If you choose to post about the film or the event, you must disclose what you received from XXXX in a clear and conspicuous manner.  It can be done in text or audio and here are some examples: “Thanks XXXX for inviting me to the XXXX advanced screening. All opinions are my own.” Or ““I’m excited to share some fun details about the XXXX event that XXXX invited me to.”  Please visit the FTC website at www.ftc.gov for more information about testimonials and endorsements.

*** Note, the name of the Studio has been redacted from this blog post

Influencers were also reminded verbally to include disclosures upon check-in for the event and once more prior to the start of the film.

Following the event, I went through a sample of the influencers to determine whether or not they upheld FTC regulations. A sample of 20 in-feed posts found that four individuals chose not to disclose at all.

An additional six influencers disclosed in a way that does not meet the FTC guidelines which require the disclosure to occur before the “more” option on the post.

*** Note usernames and the name of the film been redacted from this blog post

The remaining 10 influencers posted in adherence to the guidelines. All of the influencers offered positive reviews without the team suggesting this in any way. Interestingly, one influencer voiced displeasure with the the Studio for what she perceived as underrepresentation at a separate premiere event.

This experiment only further begs the question about the role and responsibility of brands in influencer communication. Perhaps I’m bais, but I believe disclosure falls to the ethics of the influencers. In fact, as a result of this experiment, my team has decided to refrain from inviting influencers that do not disclose in the feature in order to present and ethical and refined image for our organization going forward.

Clearly, questions remain regarding the integrity and transparency of influencer sponsorship. Perhaps the FTC needs stricter guideline disciple, or maybe the age of influencer marketing needs to sunset all together. Until then, brands are left feeling confused and uncertain about the ethics of influencers.

References

Institute for Advertising Ethics. (2011). Principles and practices for advertising ethics. Retrieved from https://www.aaf.org/_PDF/AAF Website Content/513_Ethics/IAE_Principles_Practices.pd