Should Bloggers' Deals With Marketers Be Regulated?

In his article, Mr. Weissman asserts that “the Word of Mouth Marketing Association say in their voluntary codes of conduct that they support disclosure, but the industry challenges the FTC's most significant disclosure proposal. . . . [S]o long as there is disclosure of sponsorships, those on the receiving end of endorsements messages are not being deceived or manipulated. . . It's hard to see how the argument against disclosure is anything other than an argument for deceiving consumers."

Accuracy - - like disclosure - - matters, and therefore, we must respond to Mr. Weissman’s assertions.

WOMMA represents the interests of approximately 200 (?) members in the word-of-mouth industry, which includes the appropriate management of marketing practices of bloggers and brands alike through social media platforms. In the Code of Ethics, WOMMA requires its members to be transparent and honest in all their communications. No exceptions.

In particular, through a recent announcement by its WOMMA Board of Directors, the Code now prohibits any form of consideration (such as cash, free prizes, coupons, and the like) from the marketer to the representative/communicator, unless meaningful and adequate disclosure is provided in the communication to the consumer. This is not only in line with what we expect from the FTC in their Guides to be released soon, but it serves to protect the integrity of the industry practices.

Moreover, WOMMA is committed to getting this right. In a webinar that WOMMA is conducting on September 14, WOMMA hopes to educate the industry about the issues surrounding the concept of adequate and meaningful disclosure, including a discussion of best practices. As the promotion for the webinar provides, “As brands engage more and more with bloggers and other influencers, online and offline it is critical that brands and influencers apply full, meaningful disclosure of any material relationship from product samples to campus visits to product review programs.”

Likewise, WOMMA will be opening its Living Ethics Blog http://womma.org/ethicsreview/ from September 14 thru October 14 to capture comments, thoughts, feedback concerning the issue of what constitutes full, meaningful and prominent disclosure. WOMMA will then be compiling this information and releasing industry standards this fall on disclosure.

This type of educational and feedback process is the cornerstone of effective self-regulation, and WOMMA is proud to lead this effort.

Kristen Smith, Executive Director of WOMMA

and

Anthony E. DiResta, General Counsel of WOMMA, partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips

Kristen Smith of IL 11:53AM September 01, 2009