5 Takeaways from #NAD2021

Every year since 2014, I have attended the National Advertising Division’s annual conference. And every time I go to one of these conferences I can’t help but feel like I am entering the lion’s den. In a roomful of advertising attorneys whose reasons for attending likely include learning how far they can push the limits of truthful advertising for their clients, I am the odd one out. But for the last two years, the event has been held virtually due to COVID, sparing me the quizzical looks directed by some at a name tag that proclaims: “Staff Writer at Truthinadvertising.org.”

This was the case last week, when NAD celebrated 50 years of self-regulation in the advertising industry. Here are five tweets that tell the story of #NAD2021.

Re social movements and brands “an omission of a statement speaks volumes as far as consumers are concerned.” #NAD2021

— Truth in Advertising (@TruthinAd) September 29, 2021

Increasingly, brands are weighing in on social issues, though there were differing opinions voiced during a Wednesday panel on whether it’s appropriate for brands to publicize their position on every social issue of the day. While one speaker remarked that “an omission of a statement speaks volumes as far as consumers are concerned,” another asked, “Is that really our role?” One thing everyone agreed on: statements related to social issues will quickly be called out by consumers if they appear cursory or hypothetical and are not followed by action.

Third-party seals and certifications are “not a safe harbor,” in terms of substantiation for sustainability claims. “We still want to see your work,” says NAD panelist. #NAD2021

— Truth in Advertising (@TruthinAd) September 29, 2021

When it comes to third-party certifications, TINA.org has noted how some of the organizations that offer certification rely on companies’ statements without verifying the information themselves.

“I don’t think consumers are savvy at all,” says influencer on #NAD2021 panel, regarding ability to discern advertising disclosures in promoted posts.

— Truth in Advertising (@TruthinAd) September 30, 2021

That’s all the more reason influencers and brands need to ensure that advertising disclosures are “clear and conspicuous,” in accordance with the FTC’s Endorsement Guides.

Influencers will negotiate contracts with brands that allow them to take down promoted posts when the contract is over. #NAD2021

— Truth in Advertising (@TruthinAd) September 30, 2021

I found this interesting because it reminded me of the time we identified hip-hop producer DJ Khaled as a Ciroc influencer because he included #ad and tagged @Ciroc in a February 2020 Instagram post in which he is seen holding a bottle of the vodka, only to be informed by Ciroc’s parent company, Diageo, that the liquor giant and DJ Khaled formally cut ties at the end of 2019.

What feels like a choice whether consumers share their data may in fact be a manipulation, says FTC comm. @RKSlaughterFTC Consumers either agree and get access or refuse and are denied access. They have no bargaining power. #NAD2021

— Truth in Advertising (@TruthinAd) October 1, 2021

FTC Commissioner Rebecca Kelly Slaughter delivered the keynote address on Friday. In her remarks, Slaughter made the point that consumers shouldn’t have to sacrifice their personal data to participate in a digital society. She signaled her support for opening a rulemaking proceeding to address data collection abuses, two days after fellow FTC Commissioner Noah Phillips wrote in an op-ed that privacy legislation should be left to Congress. “I don’t think we can wait for Congress to act,” Slaughter said.

Until next year.