Dive Brief:
- Lord & Taylor agreed to refrain from misrepresenting that paid advertising is from an independent or objective source as part of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
- The complaint stems from a campaign from last March that included sponsored content in Nylon, an online publication, as well as compensated posts from 50 social media influencers on Instagram. None of the paid ads were properly identified as such.
- The settlement is the first native advertising case for the FTC after releasing guidelines on the format last December, guidelines that the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) immediately expressed concerns over.
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IZEA Featured
From Ted Murphy, IZEA CEO & Founder
Ted Murphy, CEO of IZEA, told Marketing Dive, “The Lord & Taylor settlement is a huge step forward for the integrity of the Sponsored Social industry. It’s critical that both brands and influencers disclose sponsored campaigns and do not deceive consumers with sponsored posts posed as organic content.”
He went on to explain that in IZEA’s 2015 State of Sponsored study, they found that only 8% of marketers reported being fully aware or fully understanding the FTC rules. “When marketers and agencies adhere to transparency, it protects the creators’ and brands’ credibility with their audiences,” Murphy said.