Advertising on social networks: making influencers transparent

The influencer marketing It is a growing trend, there are more and more people who are looking to content creation for their way of life. And although many companies of all sizes have benefited from commercial agreements with influencers, not everything is hunky-dory.

Because it is a recent phenomenon, there is no regulation in this regard and these legal gaps have been taken advantage of by influencers to obtain income, without thinking about the consequences that they can cause in their audience. In recent years, around the world, strategies carried out by content creators have emerged that have been questioned for their lack of transparency.

It is common to see television hosts, singers, actors or people who have risen to fame through social networks and who recommend products or services without mentioning that they received something in return (sometimes money, sometimes lodging, dinners or free products). ).

The INE and the PVEM

In the last electoral process of 2021, the Green Ecologist Party of Mexico hired 104 influencers so that in the middle of the electoral ban, June 5 and 6, they would publish videos in favor of said party. This resulted in a fine imposed by the National Electoral Institute for the amount of 40.9 million pesos and the withdrawal of propaganda for one year (times on radio and television to which each party is entitled).

This was the second time that the PVEM has been punished for using influencers to spread proselytizing messages. In 2015 they were also sanctioned by the INE.

Finfluencers o tipfluencers

The term influencers refers to content producers on social networks who promote advice on specific topics. Many of them do not have enough experience, knowledge and certifications to tell people what to do in terms of finances, health, nutrition and more.

Related to finfluencers, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) of United Kingdom warned on its website about the risk of buying crypto assets on the recommendation of influencers.

Kim Kardashian, who is followed by 250 million people through Instagram, last June, promoted the Ethereum Max cryptocurrency. Although she clarified that it was promoted content and used the #AD hashtag, she did not explain that Ethereum Max is not the same as Ethereum. Ethereum Max, is a speculative digital token of very recent creation and by unknown developers.

Mariana Rodriguez and Samuel Garcia

The now governor of Nuevo León, Samuel García and his Movimiento Ciudadano party were also fined by the INE. García’s wife is the influencer Mariana Rodríguez, who has more than 2 million followers on Instagram. During 2021, she published 1,300 stories and 45 photographs in favor of her partner, who was a candidate at the time.

The General Council of the INE determined that the influencer made contributions of 27.8 million pesos through publications on her social networks, as well as 60,000 pesos for the appearance of the influencer in the video “¡Agárrate Nuevo León!”

What is #AD?

It is the hashtag that distinguishes those contents that are sponsored. That way, people who see them know that not an organic post or a 100% honest recommendation. This has happened with publications of celebrities such as David Beckham, Jennifer Lopez and Heidi Klum.

This type of regulation is already a reality in the United States, England, Spain and the United Kingdom. In those nations, influencers are required to disclose any business, employment, personal, or family relationship with any product or service in all their social media posts.

The Tec-Check AC organization is fighting for digital rights in Mexico. Using the hashtag #LeyInfluencer and with the support of What The Fake (an online community that talks about cyberculture) and Los Supercívicos (a group of people who promote civic education) seek to regulate advertising through influencers.

The objective of the so-called Influencer law is to regulate content creators, marketing agencies and brands so that they correctly promote products and services on digital platforms. In other words, they seek to avoid misleading advertising and/or propaganda.

itzayana.rios@eleconomista.mx