Tag: digital marketing

Advertising, Corporations, cyber risk, Entertainment, Marketing, Media, Reputation

Combatting Online Reputation Attacks: A Business Guide

The Internet, and user-generated review sites such as Yelp! and others, make it easy to engage in online attacks to the reputation of both individuals and companies. Unfortunately, pervasive online reviews and review sites,  can, and do, cause serious damage to businesses. 

While “attacks” come from a variety of sources, most originate from disgruntled employees, competitors, disillusioned investors, professional extortionists (e.g. “mug shot” web sites) or just regular people upset with a company (or its managers).   

Attacks come in many forms.  Some are legitimate concerns on consumer-protection websites. But some are customers and competitors who post false information on social media or false reviews.

This article provides multiple approaches and practices for dealing with online attacks on personal and business reputations. 

  • Understand online risks. Online reviews and social media make it easy for disgruntled employees, competitors, and others to publish damaging or false information that can quickly harm a business’s reputation.
  • Form a response team. When attacks occur, assemble a coordinated team (legal, PR, marketing, tech, and an internal lead) to assess the threat, plan strategy, and decide how to counter or dilute the negative message.
  • Evaluate harm and when to sue. Analyze financial data, traffic, and business trends to decide whether the attack is actually hurting profits and whether litigation is worth the cost, risk, and potential extra publicity.
  • Investigate the attacker. Gather information about whether the attacker is anonymous or known, a one‑time complainer or a persistent campaigner, and how large and influential their online audience is.
  • Unmask anonymous posters carefully. Use investigators, subpoenas to platforms and ISPs, forensic exams of suspected devices, and (in some cases) affidavits to identify anonymous attackers, while staying within ethical and procedural limits.
  • Use platform rules to remove content. Rely on website terms of service and reporting tools (for sites like Yelp or Wikipedia) to argue that content violates their rules and should be taken down or edited.
  • Pursue quiet, practical fixes. Consider confidential negotiations or settlements with the author, asking traditional media to update or remove outdated stories, and using ORM or SEO tactics to push harmful links lower in search results.
  • Leverage courts and de‑indexing. In serious cases, obtain court orders against attackers and then present those orders to search engines (like Google) to have harmful links de‑indexed from search results, even if the content remains online.
  • Litigate strategically and beware anti‑SLAPP. If filing suit (often as a John Doe case initially), ensure solid legal grounds, proof of falsity and damages, and an ability to withstand anti‑SLAPP motions so the case does not backfire publicly.
  • Prove and recover damages. Use lost‑profit evidence and expert estimates of ORM/cleanup costs to quantify harm, invoke defamation per se where available, and in competitor‑fake‑review cases seek remedies under the Lanham Act for false advertising.
Advertising, Affiliate Marketing, Business, Compliance, Content Development, Facebook, Influencer Marketing, Law, Marketing, Technology

Ping® May 2022 – Improving Affiliate Engagement

Affiliate Marketers: Want to learn best practices, strategies, and tactics from a seasoned legal professional who works with businesses and regulators at the federal and state levels? 

David Adler takes clients through the ins-and-outs of providing advertisers, merchants, agencies and affiliates the tools they need for running a trustworthy and successful business.

On May 25, 2022 David Adler is presenting Trafficking in Trust: How to Enhance Affiliate Engagement an AMDays Workshop at Affiliate Summit East 22. In case you can’t make the presentation, here’s an excerpt of one of the topics covered:

The 3 C’s of Affiliate Marketing Disclosures: Clear Conspicuous Content. 

Clients often seek my counsel on issues related to Affiliate Marketing legal disclaimers and disclosures. For example, this might require guidance on the substance and placement of legal disclaimers for a consumer-oriented, product review and ratings website. This type of website needs to include at least two different, but related, disclosures. First, it must disclose that it is compensated when a user clicks on a link. Second, it must disclose certain material connections. 

Affiliate Disclosure Content

There are several factors to the affiliate commission disclosure. Appropriate disclosures have both the necessary content and the correct placement within a specified context.

What needs to be in your affiliate commission disclosure? 

The disclosure must make clear that you earn a commission if a user buys something after clicking on a link on your site.

Affiliate Disclosure Context

Where is the optimal location for the disclosure?

Although there is a general practice of putting disclosures on the bottom of the website pages, it can be somewhat obscured and less effective. A location at the bottom of the page, in the same font style, font color, size, and placement as the rest of the text on the bottom of the page, does not help it “stand out.”   

The key to proper affiliate link disclosures is making sure the disclosure is “clear and conspicuous.” This depends on both context (placement and proximity to the relevant content) as well as the content of the disclosure itself.  The general rule is that the closer the disclosure is placed next to the relevant message, the better.

Although not required, it is recommended to add the affiliate link disclosure on the home page, above the fold. While there is no explicit requirement, FTC disclosure cases and guidelines suggest that, in their view, this is required for adequate disclosures. 

What should I do now? Always seek experienced counsel. A seasoned lawyer will help you address other considerations including prominence, distractions, industry vertical (i.e. healthcare, financial services) requirements, and language.