WOMMA: Ethical Contact Guidelines

Earlier this month, the Word Of Mouth Marketing Association released draft ethics guidelines for marketers interating with the blogosphere:

• I will always be truthful and will never knowingly relay false information. I will never ask someone else to deceive bloggers for me.
• I will fully disclose who I am and who I work for (my identity and affiliations) from the very first encounter when communicating with bloggers or commenting on blogs.
• I will never take action contrary to the boundaries set by bloggers. I will respect all community guidelines regarding posting messages and comments.
• I will never ask bloggers to lie for me.
• I will use extreme care when communicating with minors or blogs intended to be read by minors.
• I will not manipulate advertising or affiliate programs to impact blogger income.
• I will not use automated systems for posting comments or distributing information.
• I understand that compensating bloggers may give the appearance of a conflict of interest, and I will therefore fully disclose any and all compensation or incentives.
• I understand that if I send bloggers products for review, they are not obligated to comment on them. Bloggers can return products at their own discretion.
• If bloggers write about products I send them, I will proactively ask them to disclose the products’ source.

In short: tell the truth. Good stuff. Personally, I’d go further on #8:

• I understand that compensating bloggers may give the appearance of a conflict of interest, and I will therefore fully disclose any and all compensation or incentives not do so.

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Alan Rimm-Kaufman
Alan Rimm-Kaufman founded the Rimm-Kaufman Group...