The Hashtag Rules
Over the past decade, influencers have become fixtures at every major fashion event and labels have increasingly allocated their advertising budgets to influencer marketing campaigns.
Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana took note and released this week its first “Guidelines and Interpretative Rules for Influencers,” a pamphlet outlining the best practices fashion brands should embrace when partnering with social media personalities.
After hosting a workgroup with some of its associates, the CNMI compiled the guidelines with the support of attorneys at Deloitte Legal.
“These guidelines may represent a useful tool, both for less structured brands as well as for those that are more advanced in terms of promotional exploitation of social networks, to adopt or improve their internal policy,” the document read.
The pamphlet suggests fashion labels draft an influencer marketing policy; always ink a contract with the influencers they endorse when possible, and make sure social media personalities are aware of and compliant to the brand’s policy when advertising its products or receiving gifts.
The document also maps out a number of marketing-related topics that should be discussed with national and international authorities, as well as with social media platforms, including the use of the #ad hashtag.
“It has become clear, in fact, that the use of #ad/#adv hashtags could be misleading and could potentially communicate the wrong message to the consumers,” read the document, which is available on the fashion chamber’s web site.
The document also addresses the lack of an internationally agreed-upon definition of influencer although it notes Italy’s Advertising Self-Regulatory Institute does provide one stating that influencers are figures “who are able to influence consumers in choosing a product and express opinions about a brand.
These individuals have gained particular prestige or authority as a result of their experience and knowledge in a certain environment or sector.”
The guidelines are aimed at preventing fashion companies and influencers alike to fall into inspection and sanction for a lack of compliance to the number of rules issued by government and consumer-protecting authorities, such as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. — MARTINO CARRERA