I’d planned a post about E911 and the need to keep your land line. But today’s headlines have me changing course.
BusinessWeek wrote a short article about the “influence” that’s both paid, and unpaid in the blogging world. Naturally, they focused on the Mommy Blogging World, and naturally they focused on Jessica Smith. There is an 86 page PDF on the site that serves as proposed guidelines to bloggers. I recommend reading the PDF and then taking the the article as commentary.
Jessica Smith puts herself out there. She was one of the original Wal Mart Eleven Moms (I forgive her for that), she’s accepted a Ford for a year after writing a very complimentary review of their car, and she has been paid by just about every company a Mommy Blogger would hope to woo. I want to tell you two things about Jessica.
Jessica Smith isn’t a Mommy Blogger. I’ve scoured Jessica’s site and I can’t find anywhere that she calls herself a Mommy Blogger. Jessica refers to herself as a PR person and a marketer, and I totally respect her as such. Jessica has a blog. But a Mommy Blogger? No, is she a friend of the Mommy Bloggers? Yes. Jessica Smith might be the best friend a Mommy Blogger has. She’s a Mom and she’s a marketer with a blog that appears to be well compensated.
Secondly, within this space I’d consider Jessica Smith a friend. We’ve certainly had our go-rounds, but from my perspective she is completely up front and just working hard to support her own lifestyle. Jessica often recruits Mom Bloggers for paid work. I respect that. She’s introduced me to some pretty terrific women, and her reputation is stellar. She’s an honest woman. I give you honesty and demand it from the people in my life. Honest is good.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is looking to make some changes. According to these documents the the FTC will be attempting to hold bloggers to some of the journalistic standards that real journalists are held to. If the FTC has it’s way there will be no more eczema cures from hand creams or reviews of car seats that magically appear at people’s homes. I welcome this change.
I’m pitched every day. I have a filter set up for press releases, and for the most part I file them away, never to be seen again. I have a few publicists I’m happy to hear from. There’s one lady out of New York that always has a great small business to introduce me to. I desperately want to point y’all to small businesses and organic practices. I typically keep reviews or mentions of specific products off this blog, I write at a number of other places, and I like to keep my reviews there, where I’m paid, so I don’t have to worry about the messiness of accepting free crap, I can simply write.
Would I accept a laptop from Microsoft (as others have)? Maybe, if I needed one. Let’s be clear though, the price of free is high. Is my blog now a Microsoft Sponsored blog? Do you care what I have to say about a product if it’s been given to me? What if my policy is to only write nice reviews? How would I be taxed on that “free” laptop?
My promise to you is to be honest when I talk about a product. If it is given to me, I will tell you. Things do not just appear in my home. It is not acceptable (in my mind) for a blogger to say, “Occasionally I enjoy featuring something that I really like (sometimes it’s given to me, sometimes I buy it myself).”
I’m not the one making the rules. I love the blogosphere, I love that we’re writing the rules as we go along. Publicists will need to be more careful, perhaps asking bloggers for free reviews and then giving them eight pages of “product detail” will cease to be the norm. I doubt it. As one of my favorite publicists once said, “there are legions of 23 year olds in fake Louboutins screwing this up for everyone.”
I’m sad for Jessica that she’s once again being held up as the standard of a blogger on the take. I could easily direct you to a dozen “mommy blogs” that call themselves Mommy Bloggers and haven’t a lick of original (or literate) content. I’m not really into giving them traffic though.
The advertising firms and the PR firms will need to choose their bloggers wisely. Thus far, the selections have been mind-boggling. I’d rather have no mention of me than a mention from ____. I’ll give you a hint, the lists suck. I’m just going to grab a handful of popcorn, sit back, and watch the show.
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I am not even sure if Mom-O or Monique deserve the 1 minute that I am going to spend on saying this, but, really? For one I would not be surprised if you are the same person, for another if you have an issue with someone the best place to address them is in private, it is pretty classless to do it on a public forum, it amazes me that you judge someone so strongly that you do not know.
Your last comment is so insane, I did not even get it at first, I thought ‘No, there is no way she is stating that Jessica Smith is not real.’ You cast a lot of stones, but you are obviously not the most congenial person around.
Good God! Where to start!? I review the stuff I get because I say I will before they send it. If it shows up unsolicited, it goes back out just as unceremoniously. That’s where I draw my line, but that’s just for me. Just like I don’t expect anyone else to think my husband’s hot or not be bothered by my dirty house, I don’t expect everyone to blog like me. We’re. All. Individuals. While we ALL need to disclose to not feel the wrath of The Man, we’re going to do it in different ways! It is what it is! I do it with a button that says “Product Provided” in every post when, well, it has been. I also give positives and negatives in every review. Again – just ME.
As for Jessica Smith – wow, what a crazy comment from Mom-O-No-You-Didn’t and Monique – one in the same? Jessica writes about her physical transformation because that’s who she is – a mom becoming a powerhouse before our eyes and sharing her story. And is she real? I’ve fought with her, laughed with her, cried with her, and snorted with her. And watched our kids play together lovingly. Yeah, she’s real.
Loving when this all blows over….
Um, I just want to say…if Disney is reading this, I would love a free vacation for my family of 4 to Disney World. I have a decorating on a budget blog, so I guess I could stay in one of your really fancy suites (for free, of course) and then I could write a blog post on how I could get that expensive look by shopping at garage sales.
Then, we could move on to landscaping on a budget…I could write about how to make Mickey Mouse topiaries out of recycled newspapers and green spray paint.
Really, the possibilities are endless and I think you’d better snap me up quick before Dollywood does ;)
(Peace to all bloggers, xoxo)
Jessica Smith is a real, live human being. I went to middle school and high school with her, and I was on poms with her. Too funny that something thinks she’s not real!
Interesting discussion. I have a blanket disclosure, and if I’m writing about a company that pays me money to consult, I write that. The only product I’ve written about on my blog has been provided for giveaways, and I say what company gave it.
While I understand the discussion about the FTC regulating, I think the discussion is being driven more by a fear of new media from old than actual issues in the blogosphere. Because really, so many of the mommy blogger policies people are scrutinizing are in widespread practice in male dominated tech blogs. I would rather err on the side of overdisclosure than under, and let people draw their conclusions accordingly. But do I want to see Government resources wasted on yet another impossible task? No thanks, we have the war on drugs, let’s just stick with that- It’s going so well.
And for all you crazy bitch haters up there- Jess G and Jess S are both real life people with real life kids and real dinner tables where I’ve been a guest. And they both kick ass. Why don’t you focus on the CIA detail that’s following you and leave the discussion to the folks whose meds are properly adjusted, and who aren’t too pussified to leave a link?
I see Jessica Knows has assigned the marching orders to all her minions who have rallied to her defense. How sad that “the troops” are incapable of actually processing what I’ve written to acknowledge what part of the message is true. You would have to admit, I’ve gotten your attention, otherwise, why would so many of you spend your precious time addressing someone you deem so unworthy. Perhaps I can recommend “The Narcissism Epidemic” by Dr. Jean M. Twenge or “Generation Me” by the same author, or “The Mirror Effect” by Dr. Drew Pinsky. They can provide a more clinical perspective that would help the readers of this forum actually process what narcissism is. What I have failed to realize is that people who possess no ability to be introspective and self-analytical will never “get it” which is disappointing. I would hope that we, as educated women, would utilize our intelligence a little better. And no, I am not Monique.
Oh, gracious. As “educated women”, I would hope we’d understand the difference between discussion of an issue and repeated harping on one person’s perceived personal shortcomings. If you don’t like how someone blogs, tweets, or vlogs about their pearly whites, pay them no mind-don’t give them your traffic, which is part of how they gain influence and get paid. Certainly don’t expect to effect change by mocking everything about them ANONYMOUSLY in a public forum.
Thanks for the narcissm recs- I’ve actually read quite a bit about it, thanks to a crazy neighbor. I would also recommend “Children of the Self Absorbed”.
And with that, I will take my own advice and stop trying to change someone who only hears
her own voice.
it’s a shame people have to turn a worthwhile discussion into a circus freakshow *mom-o and monique*…enjoying the debate otherwise. let’s get back on topic!
Let’s call out the real offenders, the “make a million dollars in 24 hours” and “lose 50 lbs in 10 days” and leave bloggers alone who just give an opinion on how much they like the movie “Hotel for Dogs”. If reviews seem skewed and positive, maybe it’s because we keep it upbeat and don’t review what we can’t endorse. I don’t get into bashing anything on my blog, so if something stinks, I’m not going to review it. I do agree that some pr people get a little icky with their pitches. Bloggers have to pick and choose wisely. I think it’s a good time for us all to take a look at ourselves and our blogging ethics. Even the good ones. Never hurts to re-evaluate from time to time.
I learned long ago a lesson I’ll share with everyone here.
Don’t feed the trolls.
You won’t ever ‘win’ the argument and all you do is give them a stage and audience. They are self important in their own minds and will not care one bit about anything we have to say.
“I was on poms with her.” That is the funniest thing I’ve read in months. This thread is classic.
I’ve taken to dropping product names into blog posts that make it seem like the post is sponsored by those companies if you are inclined to assume every brand mention in a post implies free stuff. Because I’m raging against the machine, yo. Unsurprisingly I actually received e-mails harshing me for selling out. So they thought, not only did this guy sell out, but he isn’t even disclosing that he sold out! So he’s a snake oil salesman AND a liar.
And THAT is what the murkiness of product reviews has done to the relationships between bloggers and readers.
At the other extreme I’ve also done a mini-review of a product (The Bissell OneSpot) without any compensation and made the EXTRA effort to say that I received no compensation, because people really do assume that if you mention a product you got it for free. And then Bissell offered me free product in appreciation. And, well fuck, now I HAVE to tell people about that because I wouldn’t like the world in which bloggers do free reviews because that’s how you get products under the table.
As Trisha (MomDot) says, it seems like everyone just knows bloggers get free stuff. But taking a step back from the mist that surrounds bloggers, out into the real world where people are jumping on and offline and reading a website here and there…those people don’t know anything of the sort. Not all of them. The role of government has always been to legistlate for the lowest common denominator. (Maybe I can safely drive 90 on the freeway, but that person over there in the beater can’t, so the speed limit is 65 so that he doesn’t run over my grandma.) And in this case that means making sure that if there is a professional relationship between a company and a blogger and the blogger is shilling the product they need to tell everyone about their sponsor.
However, I grow confused. Is there a disclosure somewhere in the movie credits that discloses the relationship between a product and the film producers? Like when Subway is plastered all over “Happy Gilmore”? I don’t remember seeing any, but I’ve also never looked. If not, then maybe there are two federal standards and bloggers are weirdly falling between them at the moment, and the FTC just needs to figure out whether bloggers are like movie producers or like television shows (brought to you by….) Or maybe there are disclosures even in movies, in which case I don’t see any reason for bloggers to hope to exist in some disclosure-limbo when it comes to free products or paid reviews.
Assuming that everyone knows already is disingenuous. Everyone knows that Coldplay sucks, but those bastards keep selling albums to SOMEBODY.
Jessica Knows uses twitter to make money for her family. She is pretty clear that she is there to monetize the social network. Her tweets are rarely personal and talk about the product she is endorsing, whether it be a truck or a Wii game.
The disclosure policy needs to be posted on sites like hers because she could be claiming the Ford Flex is terrific, but she never discusses it’s poor gas milage. It’s not environmentally friendly at 17-24 mpg, yet the Jessica Knows blog has made many statements in the past about how important “becoming more green is.”
Mom reviews are great when they are honest and the Mom knows what she is standing for. Moms who flip back and forth between values for free items can’t always be believed. New internet users need see blogs as people’s journals and don’t question their validity.
Stacy, with all due respect I have always said that people should do whatever they can to be green because every little bit counts. So while I don’t drive a hybrid, I do a lot to be more environmentally friendly including but not limited to: recycling paper, plastic, glass & aluminum, using cloth napkins instead of paper, growing our own vegetables, buying locally whenever possible, and using eco-friendly cleansers.
But back on the real subject of this blog post: agreed on the disclosure policies. I don’t do as many reviews as I used to but will still always have the disclosure policy on every page so there’s no confusion. I also disclose whether or not a post is sponsored (meaning I received a check) or if I received product for free in the individual posts as well. I recommend others do the same as it’s so simple and clarifies for both new and veteran readers of our blogs.
W-O-W! How VERY ironic that I just included Jessica [Smith] on my latest blog post on Are We There Yet.
While, I’ve never “met” Jessica in real life, I honestly could care less if she was in fact, not a real person. As long as I am enjoying what I’m reading and/or getting valuable information, I am all good. I commend Jessica for her marketing campaigns, and am happy that she is doing something that makes HER happy. While I love her blog and PR campaigns, who knows whether or not I would like a Ford Flex whether it was given to me or not. I am not going to rave over it because Jessica says so-her tastes are different from mine. My best friend of 23 years has totally different taste from mine, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t listen to her if she gave me her opinion on a product or service.
No man is the Gospel. I would be a fool if I followed anyone blindly. And I would also be a fool if I knocked anyone else for following their dreams. I do not think the FTC should have to tell fully grown people how to form an opinion. While marketing is a great way to find out info on new products and services, we still have to be responsible for forming our own opinions.
Jessica,
First, you don’t mean with the cheap line “with all due respect.” You came here and instead of reading and acknowledging the truth, you fluff over it so it doesn’t sound so terrible. Having respect means you are truthful to people.
If you look through your blog, I am sure you can find a dozen or more posts about “being green” or “becoming green.: I know you tweeted away about it. Yet, you can’t then hold your credibility “on being green” when you choose to drive a gas guzzling auto. Not using paper napkins doesn’t cancel out the fact that you aren’t being conscious about your car choice and the emissions. You simply weren’t green because it was free.
On Twitter, you have no disclosure policy – there’s no room for it OR IS THERE? Your profile could contain a link to your disclosure page, but it doesn’t. So all we see is a lot of tweets about Ford this and Ford that. Most people know about the current status of the Ford Corp.
Just state the truth, the truck uses a lot of gas and you don’t get the same mpg that you get with many other cars.
Ford needs to fix that – we all know it. Luckily for us the president is going to get car companies onboard with paying more attention to our environment. Seeing Mom Bloggers flip flop from “being green” to “selling out for free” doesn’t bring credibility.
I feel ” to each their own” honestly. Every review I have read I usually see the words “I received” or “This was given to me” etc etc. I rarely have read a blogger that reviews a product without a mention that they received it. I usually say I was honored to receive or something like that. I only accept items that pertain to my audience interest and/or topic of conversation. I personally would rather host a giveaway than do a review lately, because it’s fun to give items away and make ppl happy – hence the name “Happily Blended”.
I love Jessica Smith – she does so much good for people. She is honest, she is out spoken and she tells everyone how it is. She is not hiding behind anything and she has never referred to herself as a mommy blogger, nor have I ever thought of her that way. She is more of a marketing PRO and she talks marketing campaigns – like really cool fantasy campaigns and she is GREAT at what she does. I enjoy reading her blog and calling her my friend. I wish everyone would stop picking on her, and those who do call themselves mommy bloggers!
In an effort to stay on topic, I’ll say this. Stacy, you’re just as bad as the Business Week reporter in that you clearly didn’t check your facts.
I wrote that I fell in love with the Ford Flex and blogged it MONTHS before I got it to drive for a year (just picked it up last month). Oh, and by the way, I paid my airline ticket to pitch the Ford team and paid for my family to fly out to pick it up.
I don’t proclaim to be a “green” blog…what I do is encourage people to do what they can and that means different actions for different people. I’d rather see people take small steps than be indifferent.
Bottom line: My blog is my own and my Twitter stream is my own. You don’t like it? Don’t read it and unfollow me. I don’t have time for anonymous commenters.
Any other nasty comments on this post can read http://outspokenmedia.com/vzgg – because it expresses how I feel about all of this and @lisabarone says it so well.
Brandy,
Look what we have come down to! You said, “I feel ” to each his/her own” honestly.” That’s why the FDA is stepping in! Because it’s not called honesty when each do their own style of honesty
Stacy, I’m pretty sure you mean the FTC not the FDA. You’ll be glad to know that I called the FTC personally and invited them to come check every nook and cranny of my blog after the Wall Street Journal article came out. I had a great conversation with an FTC agent on the phone.
Thanks for your concern but I’m covered.
***** This comment has been deleted by JG. The IP address was forged and the email address bounced.
I welcome (and delight) in conversations and pseudonyms are fine, but this is my space, and if you are forging both email and IP address, then I can’t give you a voice. ******
Yes, Jessia I did mean the FTC. Thanks for the laugh.
Stacy, I think I’m very clear about everything I write. I even disclose in my sidebar who I am currently working with. I also disclose on a post by post basis when a post is sponsored and when I receive product. If a Tweet is paid, I add #spon to the end of the Tweet.
I also always encourage my readers to do the same.
If you still think I’m advertising “secretly” after all that, then I’m afraid there’s not much I can do. I stand behind what I write and I will continue to do it ethically and honestly with full transparency.
And again, if that’s not enough…stop reading my blog. Stop following me on Twitter. Because again, the FTC and I have already had a conversation about this, that I initiated, and of course everything checked out.
Jessica,
You DO NOT always use the #spon. Anytime you speak of the Ford Flex or that EAS Wii related item, you have not used the #spon. You have been advertising the item just as the company planned.
I referring to consumers being protected by this type of sneaky pitching. I don’t care if you say that you talked on the phone with the FTC rep., anyone can say that. I’m pretty sure the FTC hasn’t even set up the protocols for this type of social media. But I am glad that the FTC will be monitoring and putting this type of advertising on notice.
I explained why I haven’t stopped following you on twitter above.
Stacy, really?
I don’t put #spon on Tweets that aren’t paid. I do not receive a check from EA SPORTS Active or Ford for my tweets. There is no agreement with them that I will tweet on their behalf. My tweets are my own, unless indicated by the #spon tag.
I do use hashtags for those tweets: #EASactive and #Ford.
And considering I don’t even know you who are because you won’t DISCLOSE your identity here, this isn’t even a discussion.
Trust me, I won’t get mad if you drop me from your Twitter stream. I probably won’t even notice since I have no idea who you are from your first name.
Also, I spoke with the FTC on April 28, 2009 at 11:42am EST. I have a case number on file and the specific compliance department for my records.
The fact that you’re even implying I would make that up kinda makes me question whether you’re just saying things because they sound good to you and not out of anything you know as fact.
Jessica Knows, I just got finished putting a Twitter disclosure on my blog’s disclosure page stating that I would put a disclaimer [ST] on any Tweet about a free item. But you’re right, I’m not being paid to Tweet about those items. I accept them for review and once I review them, my obligation to the company is done. I only Tweet about them if I keep using them and loving them. [ST] only belongs on Tweets I’m actually getting paid for. Thanks for being so experienced with this, I’m off to change my disclosure page again…
@SelfishMom You make a good point though about adding a statement to the disclosure policy…I will add a note about a tweet with a #spon indicates a paid tweet.
The fact of the matter is, there is this notion that bloggers are getting paid, cold hard cash, in addition to these blogger trips & product reviews. Sadly, that hasn’t been the case for me. However, you can bet that when I do get paid it will be disclosed clearly (just like the few posts I’ve done).
***** This comment has been deleted by JG. The IP address was forged and the email address bounced.
I welcome (and delight) in conversations and pseudonyms are fine, but this is my space, and if you are forging both email and IP address, then I can’t give you a voice. ******
EA SPORTS is NOT paying anyone (except the employees of EA) to do anything. All of the 12 challengers are tweeting because we stand behind the product. I’ve been blogging about the Wii Fit (that I paid for with my own money) and Nintendo hasn’t ever given me a DIME. Does that mean I need to slap a huge “I PAID FOR THIS MYSELF” note next to my before and after shots because people are going psycho over something that should’ve blown over by now? What about actors? We don’t believe anything they say because they were given something to endorse in a commercial? What’s the point of commercials? This stream has simply turned into an attack on Jessica and it’s pointless. Don’t hate on someone you don’t know. It’s all Blama (Blog Drama). Blama, I say.
Julie,
So you are saying that EA Sports spent about $2000 wooing you just to get you to try their game. I mean they did pay for a few nights at the Four Seasons, meals, limo, transportation there, correct. That’s payment in the real world – cash doesn’t always get exchanged. They are not your friends inviting you to their resort to hang out with you. It’s business and you received something for something.
It’s great that you are blogging about Wii Fit and that it works, but in this conversation we are talking about disclosure in blogging. If someone receives free items of course they are going to be swayed to promote that item.
This type of advertising is different than a commercial or product placement in a movie. Many people who read “Mom type” blogs believe that other moms are being as honest as they are and wouldn’t lie or “create his or her own truth” as Brandy stated above.
I haven’t hated on anyone or attacked anyone’s personality, but rather discussed blogging style. I support the FTC’s policy because it protects consumers. You may not be able to distinguish what’s wrong with this type of advertising because you are in the middle of it as a blogger. Yet, non-bloggers would not realize that they were being advertised to by “their friend” who writes a blog.
Which bloggers will the FTC target first? All bloggers accepting advertising? Only those working with PayPerBlab advertising dollars?
I have a *very* small mommy-blog. Just today I received a gift in the mail as a “thank you” for a review I did of a product (not a review I was asked to do – most of us review products to educate other moms, not to get free swag)… Granted, the woman who sent me the gift e-mailed me first and said she had read some other of my writings on the web and sent it to “brighten my day” so I don’t feel it was bribery to continue to endorse her product (although I will probably continue to, since I had positive things to say about it without prompting so why would that change?).
I also make it clear to those who contact me about reviews that if I’m not happy with the product, I will contact them before publishing a review but that I will never lie on my blog. Not all mom blogers accept “bribes”…
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