Partnerships, Product Placements and Collaborations on TikTok – regulation and tips
The biggest influencers are experienced and are often accompanied by agents or professionals like the agency Influence4You to assist them in their product placements and campaigns. Many influencers, however, are just starting out and don’t always know how to comply with the law in relation to product placement or how to respect their community. Influence4You presents the best practices for carrying out partnerships on TikTok confidently and with respect to French law.
TikTok, a must for partnerships
In 2020, Chinese app TikTok gained popularity with the global lockdowns. In 2022, 800 million users are active every month worldwide. 11 million people are active on the platform every month and users spend an average of one hour a day on it!
When should product placements be disclosed?
The rule is the same for all social networks. When influencers create content for remuneration such as payment, invitations or gifts, it is essential to disclose the collaboration clearly.
If there is no obligation to create content with a brand, the brand has no control over your publication and you are completely free to create the content, then you’re not required to disclose anything. This is the case, for example, in press relations, when a brand sends you information about a new product or project and you alone decide to talk about it because you like it. In this case, you can mention the fact that you received the product for free, if you want to be perfectly honest with your community, but you are not obliged to do so.
Be careful though, as in certain specific sectors there are legal regulations governing the disclosure of the products themselves, particularly in health, financial products, gambling and cars. The Loi Évin in particular, is particularly strict on cigarettes and alcohol.
What does the law say?
Article L121.1 of the Consumer Code is rather clear as it says, among other things, that the fact of “using editorial content in the media, financed by the professional themselves, to promote a product or a service, without clearly indicating it in the content or using images or sounds clearly identifiable by the consumer” is a misleading commercial practice.
The DGCCRF is looking into the matter extensively and at social networks to ensure that the law is applied. You can find here a detailed article to learn more about deceptive marketing practices.
Failing to disclose a collaboration can be punishable by up to two years’ imprisonment and a fine of up to 300,000 euros and may also seriously tarnish your image.
Your subscribers follow and like you for your content. You lose all credibility with your audience if you don’t clearly disclose a collaboration.
How to disclose a partnership on TikTok?
For sponsored collaborations, disclosure must be explicit and immediate.
Branded Content Toggle
The Branded Content Toggle is a tool available on TikTok, and currently available for accounts with more than 10,000 followers. By activating this toggle a disclosure (for example, #Ad) is added to the description of the published video.
To enable the branded content toggle:
1. Tap More Options on the Post screen, then tap Branded Content
2. Turn the toggle on
By including #Ad or #Sponsored in the video description, activation is automatic (if the profile is eligible). If you don’t have access to the content toggle yet, you will have to disclose the collaboration manually using hashtags. More details can be found on the TikTok support page here.
Influence4You recommends that you use one or more hashtags to disclose the collaboration. Indeed, disclosure of a partnership must be explicit and immediate. English formulations and abbreviations may be misleading. It costs nothing to include #collaboration or #advertising for example, to be sure to comply with the law and thus work confidently on the platform.
For a summary of the best practices to adopt in an easy to understand way, check out our infographic on sponsored posts produced with the ARPP.
Are you a brand looking to carry out an effective product placement with one or more TikTokers? Don’t hesitate to get in touch to set up your next influencer campaign.
