New Policy: Gift Giving Restrictions to Bloggers

Since I began blogging, I've been offered a variety of products to review. Some companies followed through while others sort of disappeared. I'm a small time blogger but it has been gratifying to be contacted by other companies to test out products. Even though some of the offers I receive are a bit strange, it feels good to know someone is reading. I've never been offered a freebie or money to write a positive review for a company. It would be tempting but I wouldn't feel right.

The FTC created new guidelines mandating bloggers to disclose their relationship with a product and whether they received a gift for writing a review.

“Under the revised Guides, advertisements that feature a consumer and convey his or her experience with a product or service as typical when that is not the case will be required to clearly disclose the results that consumers can generally expect,” the FTC said in a statement. “The revised Guides also add new examples to illustrate the long standing principle that ‘material connections’ (sometimes payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers—connections that consumers would not expect—must be disclosed."

Just when I was having fun receiving some freebies...I'm suddenly monitored. I understand why but the blogging scale varies. A blogger receiving an expensive gadget might write something a little different from someone who receives a baby bottle. It will be interesting to see how all this is regulated. In the meantime, I'll have to give some serious thought when another marketing executive contacts me.

Read more here.