Curator Terms & Conditions
Boll & Branch, LLC (“Boll & Branch,” “we,” or “us”) is committed to transparency and honesty in all of its advertising messages and promotional communications with consumers. One of the most common ways to advertise and market products and services in social media is to use third party endorsements. Like other types of advertising, endorsements must be truthful and not misleading. Consumers must understand when a social media endorsement is sponsored by us.
This Policy applies to all agencies, independent contractors, speakers, writers, bloggers, talent, influencers, and any other individual or entity engaged in promotional communications on behalf of Boll & Branch on social media or other non-traditional media. This Policy also applies to our employees and agencies who manage these individuals and entities and employees who promote Boll & Branch, our brands, and our products on their personal social media accounts.
By understanding and accepting these requirements, the endorser agrees to the below content usage terms:
Boll & Branch Organic Social Usage
- By opting into our program, you have agreed to grant Boll & Branch the right to use the content you created for the Boll & Branch Curator program on our organic social accounts. Boll & Branch does not have to ask permission to use this content in an organic branded capacity, but will tag your account for proper credit in all assets.
Boll & Branch Branded Ad Usage
- By opting into our program, you have agreed to grant Boll & Branch the right to use the content you created for the Boll & Branch Curator program in paid media assets across our branded paid media accounts. Boll & Branch will reach out and confirm your interest in being featured in our branded ad, and will tag your account for proper credit in all assets.
Allowlisting Usage
- In the event that Boll & Branch is interested in allowlisting your content, a team member will contact you for consent.We will not allowlist any of your content without your permission.
Defining an Endorser Covered by This Policy
An individual or entity communicating on social media or other non-traditional media is covered by this Policy if its promotional messages about Boll & Branch or our products or brands are sponsored by us (“Sponsored Endorser”). If the individual or entity is acting independently, it is not subject to this Policy.
A message is sponsored by us if we have a material connection with the individual or entity. A material connection is a tie to us which if known to consumers might make consumers question the credibility of the endorser or materially affect the weight consumers place on the endorsement. It puts the endorser's independence in question. For example and without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Boll & Branch creates a material connection if we do any of the following either directly or through an advertising agency, public relations firm, or other third party:
- Hire an agency to blog, post, or serve as a community manager on our behalf (both the agency and its employees then become Sponsored Endorsers).
- Enter into an agreement with an individual to blog or post.
- Pay an individual to blog or post.
- Provide free accommodations or travel to an individual for a company event or experience.
- Provide discounts, sweepstakes entries, or other incentives to an individual.
- Provide an individual with free prizes for giveaways or sweepstakes on social media platforms.
- Provide an individual with free samples to review on social media platforms.
- Provide an individual with free samples after that person has blogged or posted independently, especially if providing the free samples creates the expectation of additional free samples (which makes the individual a Sponsored Endorser going forward, not retroactively).
- Engage affiliate marketers to advertise, blog, endorse, or sell on our behalf (making the affiliates and their employees Sponsored Endorsers).
- Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Boll & Branch can turn our everyday consumers into Sponsored Endorsers by:
- Establishing a consumer marketing program that gives members free products, coupons, discounts, or other benefits.
- Providing incentives to consumers to review our products.
- Requiring sweepstakes or contest participants to post photos of our products as part of their entries.
- This list, though comprehensive, is not exhaustive. Check with the Manager of Digital Strategy and Acquisition (the “Manager”) or any other party Boll & Branch may designate in writing from time to time for any questions about whether Boll & Branch behavior or actions has created or will create a material connection with a third party.Note that Boll & Branch employees have a material connection to Boll & Branch so are also considered to be Sponsored Endorsers. Employee behavior as to use of social media is addressed more comprehensively in a separate employee policy. However, this Policy requires employees to clearly and conspicuously disclose their connection to us when promoting Boll & Branch or our products and brands on social media. Recommendations and requirements for clear employee disclosure language are listed in Appendix A to this Policy.
- Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Boll & Branch can turn our everyday consumers into Sponsored Endorsers by:
Sponsored Endorsers Must Comply with Our Standards of Conduct
With respect to promotional statements or other claims made on social media platforms and on other non-traditional media about Boll & Branch and our products and brands, Sponsored Endorsers must adhere to the following principles:
- They may only make statements that:
- reflect their honest beliefs, opinions, or experiences; and
- are transparent about their connection to us.
- They may not:
- make deceptive or misleading claims to consumers about our products or services, or our competitors' products or services;
- make any claims about our products or services, or our competitors' products or services, that are not backed up by evidence;
- disclose any of our confidential information;
- engage in any communication that is defamatory or infringes upon the intellectual property, privacy, or publicity rights of others;
- offer for sale or solicit products on behalf of Boll & Branch;
- make offensive comments that have the purpose or effect of creating an intimidating or hostile environment;
- use ethnic slurs, personal insults, obscenity, or other offensive language; and
- make any comments or post any content that in any way promotes unsafe activities that could lead to an unsafe situation involving Boll & Branch's consumers or other individuals.
- Engage in any conduct which Boll & Branch, in its sole discretion, determines would undermine or discredit Boll & Branch or its products and brands.
- They must adhere to:
- the posted guidelines and terms of use on any site on which they post content on behalf of Boll & Branch; and
- any additional guidelines provided by Boll & Branch, such as product-specific program requirements.
- Sponsored Endorsers must also refrain from creating fake followers or engagement on social media platforms, such as:
- Buying followers.
- Using bots to grow audience size by automating account creation, following, commenting, and liking.
Disclosing a Material Connection Clearly and Conspicuously
When posting about our products, Boll & Branch requires Sponsored Endorsers to disclose their material connection to us clearly and conspicuously.This policy does not require specific language to disclose a material connection, but Sponsored Endorsers must communicate the material connection effectively so that consumers:
- Can easily find it.
- Can easily understand it.
- Obtain sufficient information to make a judgment about the value of the endorsement.
- Consult Appendix A to this Policy for examples of language that successfully communicate a material connection and language that does not do so.To ensure a disclosure is clear and conspicuous, appropriate consideration should be given to the limitations and nature of the platform being used. Sponsored Endorsers must:
- Ensure the disclosure is:
- well-placed so it can be easily noticed; and
- prominent so it can be easily read.
- Avoid burying the disclosure:
- in a bio;
- below the fold;
- in a hyperlink, like a “Legal” or “Disclosure” button; or
- among a series of hashtags, other disclosures, or general copy.
- Superimpose a material connection disclosure on images, including on Snapchat and Instagram Stories. The disclosure should be:
- easy to notice and read in the time that followers have to look at the image; and
- well-contrasted against the image.
- In video posts, including podcasts:
- place the disclosure both within the video itself, and in the description of the video; and
- display the disclosure long enough for a consumer to be able to read and understand it.
- In Instagram posts, disclose a material connection before the “More” button.
- For a live stream, repeat the disclosure as needed to ensure that consumers see it or keep it posted throughout the live stream.
- If the posts are part of an online chat or tweets, or a similar thread, make the disclosure clearly in the first entry into the conversation thread, and then add to subsequent entries at 3-10 entry intervals depending on the media and the length of the thread.
- Disclose the material connection even when just tagging a brand or product in a photo.
- For a television or radio talk show appearance, disclose the material connection verbally when promoting our Boll & Branch or our products and brands.
- Ensure the disclosure is:
- If we ask consumers to promote our products and brands on social media in exchange for the chance to win a prize, the official rules must require entrants to disclose the fact that the entrant's post is an entry into a contest or sweepstakes. Whether the products and brands are promoted in a text, a hashtag, a photo, or a video, the entry post must include some clear and conspicuous indicator that the consumer has received an entry in a promotion in exchange for the post. For example, the official rules could require entrants to use a specific hashtag disclosing that the post is a sweepstakes or contest entry. Failure to make the disclosure should disqualify the entry.We should avoid encouraging endorsements that use features that do not allow for clear and conspicuous disclosures, such as likes, Pins, or shares, if the absence of that disclosure is likely to be misleading.If we run a social media endorsement campaign outside the US and the product is sold in the US, we must require a disclosure if the posts are likely to be seen by and to affect US consumers.A social media platform may have a required tool or feature for paid endorsements. Though these tools or features must be used to comply with the platform's rules, they should not be relied on alone to meet FTC disclosure requirements.
What We Must Provide to Sponsored Endorsers
When Boll & Branch engages a Sponsored Endorser, either directly or through a service provider, the Sponsored Endorser must sign either:
- An agreement outlining the business terms of the arrangement and the guidelines set forth in this Policy.
- A statement agreeing to comply with the guidelines set forth in this Policy.
- Boll & Branch must also provide Sponsored Endorsers with:
- Message points, facts sheets, or other similar talking points about the products at issue, that do not necessarily prescribe what the endorser should say, but include:
- a list of claims about Boll & Branch’s products that Boll & Branch has substantiated; and
- guidance on what the Sponsored Endorser cannot say about the Boll & Branch's product.
- Links to or copies of FTC guidance on endorsements (which can be found on the FTC's website), specifically:
- Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (Endorsement Guides).
- The FTC's Endorsement Guides: What People are Asking.
- The Do's and Don'ts for Social Media Influencers.
- General guidance on the FTC Endorsement Guides and encouragement to educate themselves on all FTC endorsement guidance. For example, inform Sponsored Endorsers that:
- they should not assume their followers know about their connection to us;
- opinions should be based on their own honest beliefs and experiences;
- they should refrain from making statements about our products that are measurable, other than those on the fact sheets we have provided; and
- any comparisons must be based on actual, personal experiences with all products being compared – they should not extrapolate beyond personal experiences.
- Message points, facts sheets, or other similar talking points about the products at issue, that do not necessarily prescribe what the endorser should say, but include:
- We should advise Sponsored Endorsers that we plan to monitor their posts to ensure the accuracy of any measurable claims they make about our products and brands and that they have adequately disclosed their material connection to us.
Monitoring Sponsored Endorsers
Employees responsible for Sponsored Endorser relationships or campaigns must regularly monitor the postings of Sponsored Endorsers, either directly or through their agencies. Employees must also ensure that:
- Every Sponsored Endorser campaign or relationship has monitoring responsibilities clearly identified. If one of our service providers is to conduct the monitoring:
- it must be given appropriate training on this Policy; and
- its contract or statement of work must make it responsible and liable for monitoring.
- Sponsored Endorsers:
- always disclose their material connection to Boll & Branch in a clear and conspicuous manner;
- are not making unsubstantiated claims about our products; and
- are otherwise complying with this Policy and any other guidance we have provided.
- Contest and sweepstakes entries that promote our products and brands in social media are included in the monitoring, and entries that fail to use a material connection disclosure are disqualified.
- Monitoring of a Sponsored Endorser continues for a minimum of four (4) weeks past the end of our relationship (for example, the contract expiration date or the last time we sent free samples). For longer campaigns or relationships, it may be necessary to monitor for more than four (4) weeks.
When a Sponsored Endorser Fails to Comply with This Policy
Boll & Branch and our responsible employees and agents must correct any failure to disclose a material connection or communication of any unsubstantiated claims by a Sponsored Endorser. The employee team responsible for the Sponsored Endorser must take the following steps:
- If an agency or other third party manages or is otherwise involved with the Sponsored Endorser relationship, alert the third party to the issue.
- Consult with the Manager to determine whether a correction is needed, and how best to make it.
- If needed, require the Sponsored Endorser to make the correction or post the correction on the Sponsored Endorser's post or page directly.
- Determine if it is necessary to:
- withhold payment from the Sponsored Endorser; or
- terminate the relationship with the Sponsored Endorser.
- All written agreements with Sponsored Endorsers must give Boll & Branch the right to take any of these corrective measures for noncompliance with this Policy.
Training on This Policy
All employees and Sponsored Endorsers must have knowledge of this Policy. The Manager is responsible for providing the necessary training on this Policy. The following employees, individuals, functions, and third parties are required to receive in-depth training on this Policy:
- Boll & Branch marketers.
- Corporate Communications employees.
- Creative agencies and other third-party service providers who manage relationships with any of our Sponsored Endorsers. Employees responsible for hiring or managing these third parties must ensure they receive the training.
- Sponsored Endorsers expected to have a long-term relationship with us.
- Contact the Manager to arrange for training on this Policy.
Compliance with Related Policies
All of our other policies that apply to social media use remain in full force and effect.
Administration of This Policy
The Manager is responsible for the administration of this Policy. All employees are responsible for consulting and complying with the most current version of this Policy. If you have any questions regarding this Policy, please contact the Manager.
APPENDIX A
BEST PRACTICES FOR ENDORSEMENTS AND DISCLOSURES
These endorsement and disclosure guidelines (“Endorsement Guidelines” or “Policy”) apply to all Sponsored Endorsers who post, promote, or share content (each a “Social Media Post”) regardless of the medium or channel. This includes whether Boll & Branch engages you through the promise of compensation, free products or services, or sweepstakes/contest entries. All Social Media Posts must comply with these Endorsement Guidelines.
- BE TRANSPARENT.
- You must disclose your connection to Boll & Branch clearly and conspicuously in all Social Media Posts.
- You should ensure that your disclosures carry over and across mediums when sharing a Social Media Post (e.g., when you share a TikTok video in a Twitter post, the tweet should also contain a disclosure).
- You should not represent or otherwise imply that you are impartial or are providing an impartial opinion in connection with Boll & Branch.
- Your Social Media Posts must comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including the Federal Trade Commission’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. If your Social Media Posts are not in compliance with applicable laws, regulations, and any agreement you enter into with Boll & Branch, you may be instructed to remove the offending Social Media Post(s).
- BE HONEST AND ACCURATE.
- All statements and claims should be accurate and substantiated.
- All statements should reflect your honest experiences and beliefs.
- Do not provide an opinion, endorsement, or review for a product or a product feature if you have not tried the product or feature yourself.
- If you make false or inaccurate statements, you may be instructed to remove the offending Social Media Post(s).
- USE CLEAR AND PROMINENT DISCLOSURES.As stated in the Policy, Sponsored Endorsers are required to disclose material connections to Boll & Branch. Listed below is sample disclosure language. Alternative but substantively comparable language may also be used where appropriate. Although Boll & Branch does not require specific disclosure language, it does prohibit certain hashtags and other disclosure practices specifically found by the FTC as insufficient. The goal for a material connection disclosure is to ensure it is readily seen and understood by consumers.
- Disclosures should be clearly visible and easy to read and understand, across all platforms and screen sizes.
- The disclosure should be in language that the intended audience can easily understand.
- Disclosures should be up front in each Social Media Post, before any copy, photos, or links.
- See the chart below for platform-specific disclosure guidance.
- Any hashtag/short-form disclosure should be separate from all other hashtags and should not be buried or included in a string of hashtags.
- Do not require additional action to see the disclosure, such as clicking “more,” scrolling, or place the disclosure on a busy screen or moving background where it may be difficult to see.
- All Social Media Posts should be made using the platform’s native branded content tool in addition to the suggested disclosures listed in the chart below.
- The FTC has indicated that the following disclosures are not clear enough:
- “Thank you” on its own
- “Boll & Branch asked me to try” isn’t enough if the brand paid you
- “#sp”
- “#spon”
- “#collab”
- “Ambassador” or “#Ambassador”
- Saying you received “early access” if you were also paid
- Saying you received a product/service for free if Boll & Branch also had input into exactly what you would say
- Including a disclosure in a bio, or background, or using a single disclaimer when making multiple endorsements
- If you have not made an appropriate disclosure, then we may instruct you to remove the non-compliant post or correct the social media post with compliant disclosure.
- DISCLOSURE GUIDELINES*The following guidance provides a sampling of good disclosures; it is not an exhaustive list.
- Statements about the material connection should identify the nature of the connection, such as:
- For receipt of free products:
- I received free products from Boll & Branch;
- Boll & Branch sent me free products to review;
- Boll & Branch gave me this product to try; or
- Thanks Boll & Branch for the free products.
- For paid Sponsored Endorsers:
- I was paid by Boll & Branch;
- I was hired by Boll & Branch to post about its products;
- I have partnered with Boll & Branch to promote its products; or
- I am a paid brand ambassador for Boll & Branch.
- For receipt of travel and accommodations:
- Boll & Branch has paid for my travel and hotel to ____________(e.g.: visit its headquarters, sample its products, attend the launch of its new product, see a demonstration of its products, etc.).
- For receipt of a prize to be given away in a sweepstakes or contest:
- Boll & Branch is providing the prize[s] for this program at no cost to me.
- For incentivized consumer reviews:
- I received a ___________(e.g.: free samples, sweepstakes entry, discount, or coupon) for making this review.
- I am part of Boll & Branch's program that gives me ___________(e.g.: free samples, sweepstakes entry, discount, or coupon); or
- Reviewers on this page received a ___________(e.g.: free samples, sweepstakes entry, discount, or coupon) for making their reviews.
- For personal relationships:
- I am ______(e.g.: a friend of, related to, etc.) Boll & Branch’s ______(Title of Person, e.g.: CEO, employee, etc.).
- For other material connections:
- “Advertisement”;
- “Sponsored”;
- “Paid ad”; or
- “Ad:” (this would go at the beginning of the statement to indicate the statement is an ad).
- For television or radio talk show appearances where Boll & Branch or its products will be promoted, a Sponsored Endorser should verbally make the material connection to us known, such as stating:
- Boll & Branch gave me this _____ (product or sample) _____;
- I was paid by Boll & Branch to…; or
- I am working with Boll & Branch to….
- If using a hashtag to identify a material connection, make it unambiguous, such as:
- #ad.
- #paid.
- #sponsored.
- #bollandbranchambassador.
- #bollandbranchendorser.
- #bollandbranchpartner.
- Avoid ambiguous hashtags to identify material connections, such as:
- #sp.
- #spon.
- #thanksbollandbranch.
- #teambollandbranch.
- #ambassador.
- #consultant.
- #partner.
- #adviser.
- #collab.
- Additionally, if a Sponsored Endorser has posted a “Disclosure and Relationships Statement” section on their blog, website, profile page, or similar site, the statement should:
- Fully disclose how the endorser is working with us.
- Disclose how the endorser works with other companies generally.
- List any conflicts of interest that may affect the credibility of the sponsored or paid reviews.
- For Boll & Branch employees:
- Be clear about the employer-employee relationship with us, such as:
- I am an employee of Boll & Branch;
- I work for Boll & Branch;
- #BollandBranch_Employee; or
- My company ….
- Do not use an ambiguous hashtag like #ee or even #employee.
- Be clear about the employer-employee relationship with us, such as:
- For receipt of free products:
- Statements about the material connection should identify the nature of the connection, such as:
- The below are guidelines for each social media platform on which a Sponsored Endorser may require a disclosure:
Platform
Placement
Facebook & Twitter (X)
- Disclosures should appear in the body of the post, prior to any links
- Disclosures should appear in the first 2 lines of the body of the text, prior to any links, so that it is visible without clicking “more”
Snapchat & Instagram Stories
- Disclosures must appear on the screen
- Exceptions:
- Disclosures may be given verbally if the endorsement is also only provided verbally (no images, visual references to the sponsor/product/campaign on screen)
- o disclosure is necessary for talent takeover on a sponsor’s Snapchat or Instagram account
- Disclosures must appear in the main communication, prior to clicking
Blog
- "Disclosures must be provided at the beginning of the body of the post, prior to any mentions of the sponsor, product, or campaign
- Example:
- “This blog is brought to you by/sponsored by Boll & Branch”
- “I partnered with Boll & Branch to bring you this blog post”
- “I worked with Boll & Branch to make this blog”"
YouTube & Other Videos
- Disclosures should appear:
- In the video description AND on screen or verbally as part of the script at the beginning of the video
- Prior to any mention of the sponsor/product/campaign
- Additionally, you must make the same disclosure, verbally, at or near the beginning of the video itself (prior to any mention of the sponsor or products)"
Live Stream
- Disclosures must appear several times on screen to ensure that viewers see the disclosure no matter when they begin streaming
Podcast & Broadcast
- Read at a cadence that is easy for listeners to follow and in words listeners will understand
- If the podcast is long and the sponsor/product/campaign reference occurs throughout the podcast, the notice of the connection should be repeated
- Example:
- “This podcast is brought to you by/sponsored by Boll & Branch”
- “I partnered with Boll & Branch to bring you this podcast”
- “I worked with Boll & Branch to make this podcast”
TikTok
- Depending on the nature of the media, follow the above guidance
- When sharing a video directly from TikTok to certain other social media platforms, the description of the video and any hashtags—including any disclosures that may have been added—do not migrate with it. Only the TikTok watermark and the creator’s username remain. Thus, a “disclosure loophole” is created when TikTok users share their TikTok content to another platform, such as Instagram, resulting in no disclosure when the video is viewed on the latter platform. This problem does not appear to exist when migrating to Facebook.
- OBTAIN APPROVAL
- Depending on your contract with Boll & Branch, Social Media Posts may require approval by Boll & Branch prior to any content being published
- All claims about Boll & Branch must conform to the list of approved claims provided by Boll & Branch (if any).
- Your Social Media Posts should not mention any third party without Boll & Branch’s prior written approval.
- CONTENT GUIDELINES
- Your Social Media Posts should not: (a) be profane, violent, sexually explicit, derogatory; (b) promote alcohol, illegal drugs, weapons, or political agendas; (c) be obscene or offensive; (d) violate the rights of any third party; or (e) convey a message or image that is damaging to Boll & Branch’s positive image.
- If you receive or become aware of information about Boll & Branch or its products that is not known to the general public or is subject to a Non-Disclosure Agreement, do not include such information in your posts. If you have any question whether information is confidential, contact Boll & Branch before disclosure or do not disclose the information.
- Your Social Media Posts must be your own original work, created solely by you, and must not infringe the copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity, or other personal or proprietary rights of any person or entity.
- All Social Media Posts that include any copyrighted materials (e.g., photos, recordings, images, videos, or other content, background music captured from a passerby, lyrics from a song, costume of a prominent Disney character, etc.) must be licensed from the copyright owner(s).
- As a general rule, NO POPULAR MUSIC SHOULD BE INCLUDED IN ANY SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS.
- All Social Media Posts that include any other brands (e.g., logos, trademarks, etc.) must be cleared by the trademark owner.
- You must have a release for all Social Media Posts that include any persons (other than you) that can be heard or seen in the post.
- WE MAY REQUIRE THAT YOU PROVIDE US WITH PROOF OF A LICENSE FOR ANY THIRD-PARTY IP INCLUDED IN YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS (e.g., third-party copyrighted materials, third-party trademarks, etc.).
- PLEASE CONSULT WITH AN INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ATTORNEY TO ENSURE THAT ANY THIRD-PARTY IP LICENSED TO YOU AND INCLUDED IN YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS CAN BE USED AS INCORPORATED BY YOU AND IN COMPLIANCE WITH ANY AGREEMENT YOU ENTER INTO WITH BOLL & BRANCH.
- THE PROVISION OF THESE AMBASSADOR GUIDELINES DOES NOT ESTABLISH AN ATTORNEY CLIENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOU AND REVOLVE AND BOLL & BRANCH IS NOT PROVIDING YOU WITH LEGAL ADVICE.
- MONITORING AND RESOURCES
- Boll & Branch reserves the right to review and monitor your compliance with these Brand Ambassador Guidelines, and to require that you modify or take down any content created in connection with a campaign.
- Boll & Branch reserves the right to require substitute performance from you if any of your Social Media Posts violate these Ambassador Guidelines.
- Please review and familiarize yourself with the following guidance materials from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission:
- The FTC’s Endorsement Guides – What People Are Asking: https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/ftcs-endorsement-guides-what-people-are-asking (2023)
- Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers: https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/blogs/business-blog/2019/11/disclosures-101-new-ftc-resources-social-media-influencers (2019)