FTC: #Disclosure Required For Employee Social Media Posts

Employing a professional and engaging social media strategy has become an essential business-marketing tool during the past few years. However, a new ruling handed down last week by the Federal Trade Commission could have major implications on how your dealership presents its message. Deutsch L.A. a major advertising firm reached a settlement with the FTC, which was announced on November 25th. Deutsch represented PlayStation as it pushed its new Playstation Vita portable gaming console. Deutsch L.A. then ran a social media campaign using the Twitter platform on behalf of this Sony client using the hastag #GameChanger. The company then reportedly mass sent an email to its employees encouraging them to promote the new console on their personal twitter accounts with the hastag #GameChanger. The FTC ruled that this was in violation of its rules because the postings by employees violated its rule on disclosure.

In a press release from the FTC, the government agency explained their reasoning in going after Deutsch L.A. Part of the press release reads, “The FTC has charged that the tweets were misleading, as they did not reflect the views of actual consumers who had used the Playstation Vita, and because they did not disclose that they were written by employees of Deutsch LA.” The key word seems to be disclosure. This means that all employees at a company need to be careful. They need to be weary of posting promotional tweets or posts. This isn’t to say that they shouldn’t be posting on behalf of a certain product or service. It just means that they need to make it clear that they have a connection to that company or else run the risk, albeit small, of running afoul of the FTC.

Many employees will want to show loyalty and enthusiasm for a brand or product for which they have a tie via social media. It appears that the way to accomplish within the rules is to use small indications of disclosure. For example, if an employee at an Audi dealership tweeted specific support of a particular car of the Audi brand on their personal Twitter account, the addition of #sponsored, #client or #employee would be necessary. Those small indications of the ties that the person has to the product or company offer protection for the dealership or automotive brand. They indicate that the personal social messages delivered by the employee are coming from someone with potential bias. The FTC sees this as essential. They apparently don’t want companies to employee the usage of faux social testimonials to promote their product or service. They fear that without disclosure, there would be no way to tell the difference between tweets from, “actual consumers who had used (a product or service),” and individuals who are in sending out social endorsements related to their own business interests. The FTC fears employees are “astroturfing.” However, not everyone agrees. According to a Mediapost article, Santa Clara Law professor, Eric Goldman, feels that in the case of Deutsch LA, its possible that employees really do like the PlayStation Vita product. He feels the FTC may be trampling on their free speech rights. Goldman said, “The complaint seems to suggest these people could never tweet the hashtag #gamechanger without it being an ad. (However) the allegations are consistent with other FTC statements condemning astroturfing. The FTC hates inauthentic online content.”

How will this ruling impact the social strategy at your store? Do you encourage your employees to post or re-post endorsements of your dealership or the brands which you support? Is this ruling by the FTC a rational idea, or is the government attempting to limiting social free speech?