The journal
FTC Endorsement Guidance Makes Review Requests a Governance Practice
NEWS / SOLUTION
FTC guidance explains endorsement and disclosure principles; local review routines should avoid steering feedback toward favorable outcomes.
What the FTC guidance covers
The FTC’s endorsement guides Q&A explains that endorsements must reflect honest opinions and experiences and addresses material connections between endorsers and advertisers. It also discusses when disclosures may be needed to avoid misleading consumers.
The guidance does not prescribe one universal review-request script or certify a business’s practices. Specific facts, incentives, relationships, and platform rules can matter; the document should be read in its actual context.
Keep feedback requests impartial
A responsible local review routine asks genuine customers for honest feedback without conditioning the request on a positive rating. If an incentive or other material connection exists, teams should not hide it and should obtain appropriate guidance.
Avoid selectively inviting only satisfied customers to public review sites while diverting unhappy customers into private channels. That approach can distort the impression consumers receive and may create separate platform-policy concerns.
Give the process an owner
Local Market Dominator can establish who requests feedback, how the request is sent, what language is approved, and who handles responses or sensitive complaints. Staff should know how to protect customer privacy in public replies.
The agency interpretation is to treat reputation work as a governed service habit, not a ratings-growth hack. FTC materials are a useful reference, but a business should consult counsel on specific obligations and changing circumstances.