It is commonplace for bloggers to receive gifts and samples from brands hoping to receive a cheeky review or name drop. Being a fan of fashion blogs it is a regular occurrence to read about bloggers receiving boxes full of clothes from high street retailers and designers which they then go onto model and discuss.
If that same scenario happened in a glossy magazine, the magazine would be required to clearly state that the article was in fact an advertisement or advertorial. Within the UK the use of advertorials, without making it clear that the trader has paid for the promotion, is in breach of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 and could result in a fine (OUT-LAW). In terms of blogs it is unclear whether these regulations would apply.
In the United States the Federal Trade Commission has released guidelines stating that any blogger or brand that fails to disclose sponsorships could potentially face a fine of up to $11,000. The main intention of such guidelines being to provide the consumer with a level of protection from misleading blog posts. Considering that online reviews are one of the most influential factors in the online decision making process it is easy to see why the FTC is keen to prevent brands from disguising sponsored messages as genuine blog posts and reviews.
In terms of business conduct and advertising in the UK the ASA dictate that companies have a corporate responsibility not to mislead, harm or offend consumers. Writing a paid for or sponsored blog post without stating so would clearly fall within this definition; but given that anyone of any age can set up a blog the diverse range of individuals which this rule would have to apply to would make it somewhat difficult to enforce.
With there being no official code of ethics we are dependant upon bloggers being honest and clearly stating when a blog post is paid for. However, in doing so it’s possible that the blogger may compromise their credibility; will their readers trust the review of a product that has been gifted or paid for? That’s up to the reader to decide, even if the reader knows the blogger received the product for free they may still decide they like it and the brand still manages to expose the product to the consumer. On the flip side, by not disclosing a blogger could still face losing the trust of your reader and fellow bloggers, as what happened in the case of Royal Caribbean.
Receiving payment or gifts as payment or thanks for content is in no way unethical, it is common practice across a broad range of industries. The main issue is the power and influence a brand can have on the consumer through the use of an ‘independent’ blog, where the readers are not made aware of any affiliation.
The introduction of a formal code of conduct will not only help to protect the consumer from such influence but it will also help to protect the blogging industry, who stand to suffer at the expense of a small few whose non disclosed affiliation will make consumers less trustworthy of online content in general.
How to moderate bloggers disclosing gifts and payments is beyond me. I imagine that it would be no easy task, each case would be pretty unique; perhaps rather than focusing entirely on blogs we should be looking to moderate how brands engage with blogs… If and how the issue is to be resolved is unclear, but one thing is for sure that with the FTC taking action Stateside such regulations will no doubt be slowly introduced within the UK.
Some further reading:
PR 2.0 Blogging- Should Bloggers Accept Gifts?
Joel on Software – Bribing Bloggers
Web Pro News – Key Perspectives on the FTC Blogging Guidelines
