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Are testimonials dead with the new FTC rulings?

by Syndicator
11 replies
After reading about some screen shot cheats that have been discovered on newly released 'products' (fake clickbank results) in the Warrior forums, Im curious how Testimonials will now even continue with the new FTC rulings.

Most people seem to think that the testimonials area made up anyway, regardless of whether that is true or not.

Are we all still using testimonials or is that now dead?

If you are how are you approaching this to abide by the FTC rules and do you think this affects the impact of the testimonials?
#dead #ftc #rulings #testimonials
  • Profile picture of the author LetsGoViral
    Only if your host is in America.
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    Time of thinking is over.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mac the Knife
    I do hate when people try to legislate things that can generally take care of themselves. CAVEAT EMPTOR...BUYER BEWARE! It is up to the CUSTOMER to do their due diligence, not the government. I don't think people should out and out lie, but anyone who has spent anytime...ALIVE can see that many of the review sites are simply just ways to make money and are full of info that is less than honest. Obviously, I write for part of my income and I have clients ask for reviews and such all the time. I make them give ME what their feelings are and I just write in my own words, but it is THEIR opinions. I have to trust that they used the product. Same is true with testimonials.

    If client A sends me a testimonial, and I have the email that shows them telling me how good a product or service is, that is publishing 3rd party info as opinion, not fact. You can bet I will use that testimonial all day long. Testimonials are easy to get anyways...anyone who has ever faked a testimonial is not a true business person in my opinion.

    Anyways...I am one of the Freedom Fighters out there in the land of the brave...I think the FTC stuff is BS...but, I do think if you are honest, state facts, and use content that is yours or directly provided by someone else and you have every reason to believe their testimonial means they used your product, I would say it is A-ok. Otherwise, nice little lawsuit can be developed around all the folks you see on commercials. We should demand THEY must show proof they use the products they endorse as well. Won't happen, but you get the pic.

    Mac the Knife
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    • Profile picture of the author T.R. McCarroll
      Agree with Mac the knife ... as long as the testimonials are true then you shouldn't have a problem.

      Just keep a paper file of each one in case Big Brothers comes to your front door.

      Thom
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    • Profile picture of the author Syndicator
      I have 2 further questions to this...

      Does it matter if you host is not in the US or if you are selling to the US. How do the FTC rules apply?

      Secondly Im not curious as I want to create bogus testimonials, Im really interested if people actually 'use' testimonials to become part of the herd...That is, all of these others are doing it so it must be good so Id better do it as well.

      I agree that most humans can read the BS anyway but Im positive some big names are either now or have in the past used some bogus testimonials OR have provided cash for comment.

      (Is there anything wrong with this and what are the consequences now that cash for comment must legally be declared?)

      Do you read/ 'use' them for conversions or just for social proof and trust building?
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      • Profile picture of the author Paul Myers
        Does it matter if you host is not in the US or if you are selling to the US. How do the FTC rules apply?
        There is definitely some international enforcement potential. Depends on which country you're selling from. Your best bet is to assume the FTC rules apply if you're selling to the US.

        Strictly speaking, they always apply if you're selling to US customers. Some countries may not have enforcement agreements with us on such things. I don't know about China, but Oz does. And there are also the ACMA rules to consider down there.

        You need to ask an attorney with experience in this area to get the correct interpretation for your situation.

        Paid endorsements need to be labeled as such. If you mark a paid endorsement as a testimonial, you're already in deceptive ad territory.

        This is something that's likely, at some point, to come back and bite the folks who do round-robin endorsements without proper disclosure. I'm talking about the groups that take turns promoting each other's products, in return for the promise of reciprocal promotions later. Those are fine if they're hadled properly, but they often are not.


        Paul
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        • Profile picture of the author Syndicator
          Originally Posted by Paul Myers View Post

          There is definitely some international enforcement potential. Depends on which country you're selling from. Your best bet is to assume the FTC rules apply if you're selling to the US.

          Strictly speaking, they always apply if you're selling to US customers. Some countries may not have enforcement agreements with us on such things. I don't know about China, but Oz does. And there are also the ACMA rules to consider down there.

          You need to ask an attorney with experience in this area to get the correct interpretation for your situation.

          Paid endorsements need to be labeled as such. If you mark a paid endorsement as a testimonial, you're already in deceptive ad territory.

          This is something that's likely, at some point, to come back and bite the folks who do round-robin endorsements without proper disclosure. I'm talking about the groups that take turns promoting each other's products, in return for the promise of reciprocal promotions later. Those are fine if they're hadled properly, but they often are not.


          Paul
          Thanks Paul..I especially agree with your final ''round robin' comments.

          These guys clearly have a syndicate in place...quid pro quo!
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          • Profile picture of the author Steven Wagenheim
            Testimonials are not dead. According to the ruling (and I have read that
            freaking PDF 10 times now) you have to do 1 of 2 things when providing
            a testimonial.

            1. Show what the typical results are. Results not typical is not longer
            good enough. So for example, let's say you have a product that grows
            hair. You have to know how many products you've sold and out of them,
            how many people grew hair and how much of it.

            So your typical results disclaimer might look something like this.

            "Out of 6,000 sold, only 13 people reported hair growth and the growth
            was limited to a small patch on the front of the scalp."

            OR

            2. You have to show EXACTLY what the person providing the testimonial
            did to achieve his results.

            For example.

            Here is the testimonial.

            "I got John Doe's HairToday and within 2 weeks I had a full head of hair.
            Great product John!...Jim Furry, Union, NJ"

            Now, here is the full disclosure.

            "In order for Jim to achieve the results that he got, Jim did the following
            in those 2 weeks...

            Applied HairToday each day morning, noon and night.

            Ran around room each time in agonizing pain from side effects.

            Ran head under cold water for 3 hours to numb the burning each time
            he applied HairToday.

            Sat under scalding hair dryer for 2 hours each day.

            Messaged scalp for 30 minutes after each hair drying session."

            Okay, a bit over the top, but the point is, everything the person did
            MUST be disclosed.

            For MMO products, this can be a real killer when part of the disclosure
            is...

            "Ran a PPC campaign spending $1,000 a day."

            Anyway, that's the dope on the ruling from what I understand from my
            10 readings of that stupid PDF.

            ** DISCLAIMER ** I am not a freaking lawyer, so if you want legal advice,
            go and get one who knows this law. Not all lawyers do.
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      • Profile picture of the author karis
        Banned
        I feel that US based marketers have more to worry about than overseas based marketers. It is easier to track someone in US than say..Armenia!
        Originally Posted by Syndicator View Post

        I have 2 further questions to this...

        Does it matter if you host is not in the US or if you are selling to the US. How do the FTC rules apply?

        Secondly Im not curious as I want to create bogus testimonials, Im really interested if people actually 'use' testimonials to become part of the herd...That is, all of these others are doing it so it must be good so Id better do it as well.

        I agree that most humans can read the BS anyway but Im positive some big names are either now or have in the past used some bogus testimonials OR have provided cash for comment.

        (Is there anything wrong with this and what are the consequences now that cash for comment must legally be declared?)

        Do you read/ 'use' them for conversions or just for social proof and trust building?
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  • Profile picture of the author Raydal
    With FTC new rulings I thought that the "result not typical" would
    disappear from TV ads but I still see this all the time which leads
    to more confusion on my part--not that I'm losing sleep over it.

    -Ray Edwards
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    • Profile picture of the author BrianMcLeod
      Originally Posted by Raydal View Post

      With FTC new rulings I thought that the "result not typical" would
      disappear from TV ads but I still see this all the time which leads
      to more confusion on my part--not that I'm losing sleep over it.

      -Ray Edwards
      A) Just because a spot is on the air doesn't mean it's legally compliant.

      B) "Make goods" can run for quite a while, and P.I. spots run in weird times and places in the best of circumstances.

      C) Even when you send out new spots to replace old ones, pilot error can keep an old one live.
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      Brian McLeod
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  • Profile picture of the author Dan Bainbridge
    I dont think the new rulings have had an effect yet, you still see testimonials everywhere, and imo if you can get real testimonials from real customers they will increase conversions dramatically and are worth their weight in gold
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