[Welcome back to the Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That! newsletter. This is text of the great issue all of our email subscribers just received. Sign yourself up using the handy form on the right.] This is the 1,000th issue of the Damn, I Wish I’d Thought of That! newsletter. (Well, not quite — in the […]
Newsletter #1000: The “Greatest Hits of All Damn Time” Issue
August 7, 2014
Social Media Ethics Alert
April 7, 2014
Actually, there’s no ethics alert. Nothing in social media ethics should be news to you. In 1914 Woodrow Wilson signed the Truth in Advertising rules that gave the FTC the authority to protect against “Unfair and Deceptive” practices. Since then, they’ve seen the rise of every new marketing practices: TV, direct mail, multi-level-marketing, infomercials, and […]
FTC busts ADT for using bloggers to lie to you. The punishment is excellent.
March 14, 2014
The FTC announced on Thursday that it has caught ADT paying bloggers for endorsements (on blogs as well as national TV/radio) and not disclosing it. Folks, the rules and the law on social media ethics are clear, as I’ve been sharing for years. More here. In addition to ending the program, ADT will now be […]
A simple test of marketing authenticity
December 23, 2013
I did this piece for Bazaarvoice (disclosure: I’m a Bazaarvoice advisor) as a part of their series on “Collected perspectives on authenticity.” It asks marketers to think about authenticity with one question, “Would it look good in a press release?” If so, it’s not authentic. Why? Because real people don’t talk like marketers. So instead […]
You shouldn’t be surprised about the FTC rules
May 22, 2013
Greg Gerik wrote an insightful post about one of my presentations on the importance of the FTC’s disclosure requirements. Read it here. He makes a great point: If you do not know the rules, you should not play the game. The time to learn how to … properly manage a sponsored campaign is not when […]
The original WOMMA Ethics Code
November 13, 2012
The Word of Mouth Marketing Association is the leading organization for word of mouth marketing ethics. We founded the group first and foremost as an ethics organization — to raise this worthy practice to a higher level. We were raising the bar, with a plain-English call to action. We committed to inspire others to do the […]
Live coverage from last week’s BlogWell: How Big Brands Use Social Media
November 16, 2009
Last week’s BlogWell in Atlanta was fantastic. The case studies were filled with great ideas — lots of stuff to take home, the venue at Newell Rubbermaid was perfect, and we had some great support from our sponsors and partners. If you missed the event or are looking for a recap, be sure to check out our […]
Disclosure is easy
October 24, 2009
Did you see how I met the FTC guidelines in the last post? One simple sentence that discloses my relationship with a client (and what kind of ladies’ clothes I wear). You don’t need some giant legal statement to do good, honest disclosure. Just tell people what your deal is. Here’s another easy example: Put […]
8% of companies have fired someone for Facebook idiocy
August 19, 2009
When we’re in college, we can do whatever we want on Facebook. Then we get hired. Nobody explains how the rules are different or what’s acceptable and professional. The change in culture, plus the lack of information, is what causes trouble for the employee and employer. Here’s a great article with the details from Mashable […]
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