The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) has today published its social media influencers report, which found that failure to label ads is widespread throughout the industry.
In October 2021, the CCPC commenced a research project on online consumer behaviour and influencer marketing.
The aim of the project was to examine consumer engagement with social media platforms and influencers.
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Research took place between October 2021 and April 2022, using a mix of focus groups, surveys, interviews and social media analysis to reach its conclusions.
The report found that 48.4% of the commercial content reviewed by the CCPC was not labelled as advertising in any way.
The development and expansion of social media platforms has changed the way people consume news and radically modified how they experience advertising in their daily lives.
The shocking report revealed that Irish Influencers are inconsistent in labelling marketing content and that clear guidance is needed.
Influencers in Ireland have an explicit responsibility to label commercial content under the Consumer Protection Act 2007 (the 2007 Act).
Commercial content includes commercial communication, marketing or advertising.
Speaking on the report, Kevin O’Brien, Member of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, said:
“This research shows that influencer marketing is constantly evolving and as such influencers and consumers alike need clarification in relation to the labelling of social media advertisements.
“Platforms and brands must take greater responsibility for educating and informing their users and consumers, and must support influencers in clearly and consistently labelling paid content. We will monitor social media platforms for progress in this area.”
Mr O’Brien added: “It’s crucial that platforms, brands, influencers and agents understand their responsibilities and abide by the law. We will also work with the ASAI to develop guidance which will provide greater clarity in relation to responsibilities and requirements.”
A significant portion of the posts with commercial content that was analysed as part of this research were either not labelled at all or not sufficiently labelled when considered in the context of the 2007 Act, the current Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland (ASAI) guidance and international practice.
In an Irish context, specific issues were identified with the labelling of posts relating to own brand product, the reposting of content from partner brands, and links directing consumers to external sites with marketing.
The report added: “There were also inconsistencies in the style of labelling used by influencers, suggesting that they may be taking direction on labelling from brands rather than the guidance provided by the ASAI.”
This research indicates that there is a need for clarity around aspects such as own brand and reposted content, custom tags (e.g. #iworkwith[company]), and posts containing links to pages owned by influencers (e.g. blogs, websites) that contain advertised content.
Influencers and consumers agreed there was a need for clear guidance.
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