Battle against influencer deception

Despite influencers taking a financial hit during Covid-19, millions of dollars are ex- pected to be spent on paid posts and content deals this year, with the amount of money influencers are being paid showing no long-term sign of slowing down.

An estimated $250 million was spent on influencer marketing in the MENA region last year, according to Ipsos Connect, while globally Business Insider Intelligence estimates that the industry will be worth up to $15 billion by 2022.

And yet, despite the prevalence of influencers being greater than ever, the industry re- mains plagued by fraud and a worrying lack of transparency. Misinformation and deceit are hampering the market, particularly in the UAE, where 84 per cent of influencers are failing to disclose branded content or brand partners, according to the Bukhash Broth- ers’ Influencer Marketing 2018-2019 survey. Released in October last year and based on interviews with 100 influencers, the survey found that only 44 per cent of those inter- viewed used the ‘paid partnership’ tag on Instagram, although 61 per cent said they had signed exclusive contracts with at least one brand.

This is despite the UAE’s National Media Council stating quite categorically that all pro- motions on social media must be clearly defined as such.

“Influencers should clearly state in writing when content is sponsored,” says Alex Malouf, a former board member at the Advertising Business Group (ABG) who worked on the development of influencer marketing guidelines. “And brands should insist on this. It’s a joint responsibility, and all UAE-based brands have a legal obligation to do so. It’s distressing to see many brands are still not doing this. Ultimately, any marketing is only good and effective if it’s trusted by consumers. And transparency is the best way of building trust with consumers.”

The ABG advocates responsible advertising standards across the GCC and actively promotes “creative, responsible and ethical advertising with influencers through self-reg- ulation”. Its ‘Transparency Guide for Influencer Marketing’, which was released last year, stated that “consumers should be able to understand that sponsored content is an ad”. That means using hashtags such as #ad, #advert or #advertising, or using the tools provided by social media platforms, including Instagram’s ‘paid partnership’ button.

Why is this important? Because paid content is advertising by another name, and all ad- vertising should be declared. To do anything else is either misleading or outright decep- tion. This not only applies to influencers, but to brands and their agencies, too, many of whom flout transparency guidelines and help to perpetuate unethical behaviour.

Influencers trade in authenticity and play an important role in bridging the gap between brands and audiences that are looking for recommendations from credible sources.

Consumers should have access to all the information they need in order to make a pur- chase decision, including disclosure of whether an influencer is in partnership with a brand or driving awareness of a brand without a partnership.

“Consumers should know when an influencer is making a recommendation based on their own conviction or if they’re paid to do it,” says Khaled Akbik, senior director of so- cial media at OMD UAE. “On the flip side, people are becoming smart enough to know by now when a piece of content is for pure entertainment/educational/inspirational pur- poses and when it’s to promote a brand, product or service. More of a reason why the partnership should be declared. That would be a sign of maturity.”

Transparency is a global problem, not just a regional one, with industry bodies across the world attempting to counter it. In the UK, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), along with the Competition and Markets Authority, clearly states that “marketing com- munications must be obviously identifiable as such”. That means “upfront disclosures” such as #ad are “necessary as a minimum”, said the ASA’s chief executive, Guy Parker, in September. Simply tagging a brand in a commercial post is not enough.

In the US, both the Association of National Advertisers and the American Association of Advertising Agencies are fighting the same battle with guides and playbooks, while the European Advertising Standards Alliance has stressed the importance of ‘recognisability and disclosure’. Both are needed, it says, to ensure an “audience clearly recognises a marketing communication as opposed to pure editorial content”.

For influencers, that means clearly signposting paid partnerships and being honest. Af- ter all, research carried out by Zayed University for the ABG in 2018 found that the abil- ity of influencers to evoke trust in their followers depended on their “level of authenticity” and their “ability to be discerning about who sponsors them”. The disclosure of partner- ships with brands that fit their personality only adds to their credibility.

For brands, it means abiding by industry best practices, refusing to work with influenc- ers who buy followers, and being genuinely committed to building consumer trust. It also potentially means redefining what an influencer is based on levels of engagement, their contribution to social issues, and their willingness to embrace best practices.

For the platforms themselves, it means continuing to make it easier to disclose influ- encer partnerships. “Platform owners need to better police social media, so that there’s fewer bots, manipulated trends, and less fraud,” says Malouf. “And influencers need to realise the responsibility they have to act as a positive role model for their followers – for many young people, social media influencers are the stars of today and they look up to them accordingly.”