FTC Influencer Guidelines: What to Disclose and Where

When a brand pays you, sends you free or discounted product, or has a family, business or personal tie to you that your audience would not expect, the FTC's Endorsement Guides say that connection must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously Source [1]. A disclosure that sits only in your profile, or behind a "more" link that hides it while the endorsement stays visible, does not meet that bar Source [1].

This is general information, not legal advice. It is based on the text of the FTC's Endorsement Guides Source [1], and it covers what to disclose, where to put it and who is liable.

Whether a disclosure is easy to see is something a person on the brand's team can check before Autonomah publishes a piece, since it publishes only what the team approves Source [2].

What counts as a connection worth disclosing

The Guides say a connection must be disclosed when it might materially affect the weight or credibility of the endorsement and the audience would not reasonably expect it Source [1]. They list what can count Source [1]:

• A business, family or personal relationship.
• Money, or free or discounted products, even products unrelated to the one you talk about, whether or not the brand asks for a post in return.
• Other benefits, such as early access, a chance to be paid, a chance to win a prize or a chance to appear on television or in other media.

You do not have to give every detail. The disclosure must communicate the nature of the connection well enough for people to judge how much it matters Source [1]. And you need it when a significant minority of the audience does not understand or expect the connection Source [1].

Some connections are too small to matter, and some are expected. The Guides give the example of a film star in a television commercial: viewers likely expect that person to be paid, so no disclosure is needed there (section 255.5, Example 2) Source [1]. A social media post is different. In the Guides' tennis-player example, consumers might not realize the athlete is a paid endorser, so the relationship should be disclosed even if the clinic paid nothing for that particular post (Example 3(ii)), and the audience of the clinic's own account would likely not expect the player to be paid (Example 3(iii)(B)) Source [1].

Where and how to disclose

The Guides define "clear and conspicuous" as a disclosure that is difficult to miss and easily understandable by ordinary consumers Source [1]. In an interactive medium such as social media, it should be unavoidable Source [1]. If the message is both visual and audible, the disclosure belongs in both Source [1].

The Guides give three examples of disclosures that fail Source [1]:

• The connection appears only on the influencer's profile page.
• The connection sits behind a link labeled "more", while the endorsement is visible without clicking it.
• The platform's built-in tool is used, but the text is small, light against a light image, competes with other text and stays up for only a few seconds.

Our advice, which the Guides do not spell out in these words: put plain words such as "Ad", "Sponsored" or "I got this product for free" at the start of the caption, and say it out loud in a video. Two questions are worth asking of every post: is the disclosure hard to miss, and does the video say it aloud. A person on the brand's team signs off on every Autonomah piece before it is published Source [2].

Free products and affiliate links

Free product counts. In one example, a tool maker sends an influencer a lathe in the hope of a post, and the influencer should clearly disclose receiving it for free if a significant minority of viewers would not know Source [1]. The maker should tell the influencer about the disclosure when it sends the product and have a way to monitor posts Source [1].

Affiliate links count too. In another example, a blogger writes reviews independently but earns a share when readers buy through links, and the reviews should disclose that compensation clearly Source [1].

Who is responsible

Advertisers can be liable for misleading statements or for missing disclosures made through endorsements, even when the endorser is not liable Source [1]. Endorsers can be liable too, for example when they say they used a product they did not use, or when they fail to disclose a connection Source [1]. Agencies, public relations firms and similar intermediaries can be liable for their roles as well Source [1].

For brands, the Guides say advertisers should give their endorsers guidance, monitor compliance and act to fix problems. They add that these steps are not a safe harbor Source [1].

What you say matters as much as the label

An endorsement must reflect the endorser's honest opinion or experience Source [1]. In the Guides' example, an influencer who tries a body lotion says it "cures eczema" without a basis. The influencer can be liable for that claim, and so can the advertiser if it lacks substantiation Source [1].

A short checklist

The list is ours, written from the Guides' examples.

1. Ask: did the brand give me money, product, a discount, early access or a chance at a prize? If yes, disclose.
2. Put the disclosure where nobody can miss it, in the first line and in the video itself.
3. Do not rely on the profile or on a "more" link.
4. Say only what you can back up from your own use.
5. If you run a brand, send your influencers these rules in writing and check their posts. Our guide to the FTC Endorsement Guides covers the rest of the Guides, including reviews.

How Autonomah does it

Autonomah is an artificial creative and advertising brain that thinks, creates and publishes each brand's advertising Source [2]. Each correction the team makes guides its next proposals Source [2]. Your team's role is laid out on the site: where your team's approval comes in.

Frequently asked questions

What are FTC disclosure guidelines?

They are the Endorsement Guides in 16 CFR Part 255. They say connections that the audience would not reasonably expect, and that might affect how the endorsement is weighed, must be disclosed clearly and conspicuously Source [1]. The Guides are administrative interpretations of the FTC Act, and practices that go against them may lead to corrective action Source [1].

Should influencers be held accountable for what they promote?

Under the Guides, yes in some cases. Endorsers may be liable for statements they know or should know are deceptive, for claiming to have used a product they did not use, and for failing to disclose connections Source [1]. Advertisers can be liable too Source [1].

Is 10,000 followers an influencer?

The Guides do not define an endorsement by follower count. They turn on what consumers are likely to believe: a message counts as an endorsement when consumers are likely to see it as the opinion, belief or experience of someone other than the advertiser Source [1].