Ad and affiliate marketing transparency is important to users. They want to know if biased content is in their feeds. While the industry as a whole has been leaving the responsibility of disclosure up to the influencer who is sharing content, brands should still be aware of the best ways to disclose a partnership or UGC turned into an ad.
Here are four easy ways to keep it real with your audience in a way that leaves your ads intact, but with another layer of authenticity:
- Use a hashtag: #Ad #PaidPromotion #Sponsored #Partnership are some examples. It’s not hard, but it’s also not the prettiest method.
- Use the caption: Keep it short, sweet, and simple. Just write within the post that it’s part of a paid partnership or relationship between the influencer and the brand.
- Use a voice: Sometimes you can just say it. Verbal disclosure in video content is still disclosure so long as it’s clear. Best practice is to include the disclosure in written form, especially if you don’t have closed captioning.
- Use the platform: Instagram and Facebook provide easy labeling for paid post tagging. Check out your chosen platform’s policies and features to see how you can build in disclosure to your ads.
Regulations can be tough to navigate, so sometimes it’s best to err on the side of caution when it comes to partnered content. Check out the full post of disclosure advice and more tips on the Ad Standards blog post.
