I posted an article by Marlon Sanders the other day (Read it here) on the new changes for affiliates and bloggers per the FTC. Since that posting he has made a few updates which I'm posting below.
By Marlon Sanders
I got a ton of replies on my blog to the weekend ezine. However, I DO need to pass on a few corrections. And if you sent out my ezine or posted it, if you could add these corrections to where that post is or inform your folks, it'd be good.
1. Link to the actual FTC stuff:
http://ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005endorsementguidesfnnotice.pdf
http://ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf
2. I'll repeat. I'm NOT a lawyer. There ARE a few attorneys doing webinars on this stuff. Go to imnewswatch.com and you can probably find one.
3. One inaccuracy I made is on average vs. typical or generally expected results. A friend called to tell me that average results aren't the same as typical or generally expected results.
4. The new guidelines applies to endorsements and testimonials.As I read it (but I'm not 100% sure of it) the same laws or guidelines DO apply to the REST of your ad.
5. You CANNOT use a claim at ALL if you don't have proof it's a typical or generally expected result.
That's also the one I find problematic. Like if Bill Walsh wrote a book on how to win the superbowl, the typical result of reading the book is NOT winning a Superbowl. So he can't call the book or ebook that nor use it as a headline in an ad? That's a question I'll probably ask Bob Silbir, who IS an attorney with a ton of Internet experience. http://www.attorneybobsilber.com/
I'm SURE you will see many more things come out on how to comply with this as people adjust and react to it.
I'll be going through forty million web pages trying to take 'em down or clean 'em up before Dec. 1 or whenever it is this goes into
effect.
NOW -- My advice is to put on your best Marketing Ninja outfit,take dance lessons, call Bob Silbur if you got your assets on the line and do your best to comply.
Back to what I do BEST compared to talking about sticky and thorny legal issues.
Marlon Sanders
