The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has updated their guidelines for disclosure in online advertising which prohibits unfair and/or deceptive acts and practices. It covers advertising claims, marketing, and promotional activities.
Entitled “.com Disclosures: How to Make Effective Disclosures in Digital Advertising,” the free document can be downloaded from here.
The guidelines provide information that businesses should use when developing ads for online media to ensure they are in compliance with the new law. Particular attention should be focused on the “proximity and placement” area of the rules, as well as “hyperlinking” the advertisement or endorsements.
Disclosure statements should be noticeable to all consumers. They should be sized, colored and include graphics when and where applicable.
Also included in the updated rules – use in advertising, endorsements, etc., when using space-constrained areas and social media platforms (i.e., Twitter’s 140character limit). If you share reviews on products and point a link to a particular product or service you are endorsing, you must follow these new rules.
If you are unsure how this affects your business and/or blogging activities, the guidelines provide 22 examples to assist you.
Click here for your guidelines and don’t get caught without them.
http://ftc.gov/os/2013/03/130312dotcomdisclosures.pdf