This has been coming for months, and as of December 1st, it’s here.

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) has decided to put their hand into the blogosphere (as well as other types of endorsements) and have a policy shift that requires more disclosure than before. This initiative (started and most of the formulation was done by the previous presidential administration) is no surprise – but an under-covered story. Now that’s it’s on our doorstep, I hope more pay attention.

In some ways, this is a good thing – digital is being taken seriously enough and has proven it’s efficacy enough to require being noticed. But, with prestige comes responsibility – and since we’re talking about transactions, even if they’re “freebies,” you’re influencing people because of influences you normally wouldn’t have.

I’ve always been a proponent of full disclosure – I think that the culture of the web (which is the deciding factor – not of your profession or company) leans toward being transparent

Social media etiquette is like when you go to someone’s house – the deciding factor of whether you take your shoes off at the door is the discretion of the host, not the guest.

Open The Kimono

I honestly don’t understand the outrage of people who are against disclosure. Why does it matter to tell your audience if you received a sample, gift, or are paid for the review? If your audience ACTUALLY trusts you, it won’t hurt your credibility whatsoever.

Here’s some suggestions for disclosure:

• Lay The Disclosure At The Reader’s Feet: The footer disclosure. At the end of the post, possible as a p.s. or italics, there’s a straightforward disclosure line.
• Integrate it into the post. Just come out and say, “The Acme company sent me these freebies the other day, and I tried….”
• Have A Post That Tells The Story. Especially if your site is a review site and you’re brought on retainer by a PR or ad firm to write about their products (I know bloggers who are in this situation), et all, you should have a post that states the relationship directly, offer a place for questions in the comments, etc.

Again, if you actually have trust with your readers, you have nothing to fear. It will be interesting over the next few months how the public reacts to this disclosure. However, if you’re really serious about your blog and reputation – step into the dojo:

Black Belt Judo Move: Develop and Publish Your Policy

Yep, I’m encouraging individuals to have a policy on this and publish it.. according to what you’re comfortable with and what’s within the bounds of the upcoming regulation. I believe readers (even if you don’t consider yourself a journalist, however, evidence is mounting that’s the default standard the public has once your readership reaches a certain level) deserve to know what you’re internal barometer is. This is a big reason WHY mainstream publications are trusted by most and continue to have high level of readership - and continue to be the “originators” of content. If you’re going to be a quality, followed, content originator, trust needs to be built up over time. Here’s a great for-instance from CNET on how they approach disclosure. Not saying you should copy exactly, however, it’s an idea how a respected publication takes it. One initiative our network uses is Blog With Integrity.

The Field Is Moving Forward

I believe December 1st is a turning point of sorts. I think the entire discipline is growing up so different rules are being applied, and just like people forever thought “blogging is dead,” it’s just because the people who weren’t dedicated and not as good didn’t have the readership or passion to continue – and Twitter, at 140 characters, was easier.

The unintended consequence is that those who actually do still blog got more authority and audience due to the lack of commoditization – if you’re writing blog posts, you’re obviously putting in more effort than a Tweet and more and more people aren’t willing or able to do more than a Tweet – and they NOW realize how much more difficult it is as far as writing, time commitment, research, etc.

What do you think? Is the government stepping too far in? What justifiable reasons does a blog writer or person have to NOT disclose relationships?