Keeping it transparent and other bits that readers should know
There's so much I'm reading about lately on FTC disclosure regulations on blogs and social media platform rules for bloggers and Instagrammers. It's lots of stuff to get through and a lot of work to keep up with the latest guidelines to make sure you're compliant. Sometimes the rules don't quite make sense to me or I don't quite agree with them, but they have to be followed and there's a reason that they're out there. It's to keep things transparent between any relationship between a blogger or influencer and a brand and it's probably aimed more at the biggies and celebrities who get a lot of money in exchange for promoting something. It seems like there really should be other rules that make more sense for the little guys, but everyone has to follow the same rules.
So, it's been close to eight years since my sister and I started this blog. We both had other full time gigs and started the blog as a hobby and just a way to share some of the recipes we made and the good meals we ate at area restaurants. We didn't intend for it to be a moneymaker and other than running little ads on our page, we didn't really know how it worked that people made money off of their blogs.
We were probably a year in when we got invited to our first media dinner. We joined along with several other foodies - some who were bloggers, some who were from print publications, some who ran websites, some who didn't do any of those but just had a Facebook page with a lot of followers. It was before there really were "influencers." I learned not long after that first media dinner that we were supposed to disclose when we got something for free and I started adding a statement at the end of such blogs saying that we received a complimentary meal or a complimentary product sample. Such a line at the end of the post was standard at the time. That's to let readers know that we got something for free to facilitate the blog post, but that we weren't paid and that our opinions were our own - not one's we were paid to share. Or if we did get paid, we'd indicate that.
It seems that statements like that are now supposed to be shared at the top of the post so people don't have to scroll down to find it. So starting with the next applicable post you'll see this disclosure at the top. I'll continue to state clearly if I received a complimentary product or meal, so that you, the reader are aware of it and that it's at the top and easier to spot. I'll do the same should I happen to receive compensation for that post. It doesn't change anything. We're always completely honest in what we share. You may notice that we don't do negative reviews on this site. The way I see it, there's enough negativity in the world. The people who made the food and served it to us put a lot of love and work into it. And negative things on social media seem to travel faster than good things. A bad review on a restaurant can have devastating effects to their business. I'm not a critic. In fact, I don't call our blog a review site. I just call it an informative blog of our foodie adventures. I'll never lie and say something was fantastic when it wasn't. And a free meal isn't going to sway me to say things that aren't true. If something isn't worth sharing, I don't share it. It's rare that I have a terrible experience in a restaurant. I can count on one hand the places I've been where it was truly a bad experience. However, I always give a place a second chance. Everyone has an off day and I have been pleasantly surprised on some occasions when I have returned to a place and the food has been 300% better or the service was way better than the first time. Anyway, bottom line is, no bashing on this page. If we didn't like it, we will keep it to ourselves and probably give it another try - and then share it if the next time we liked it.
My disagreement with some of the guidelines are that on social media, there's a blanket rule that whether you get something for free or you get paid to do a post, you must use the hashtag #ad or #sponsored. I wish there was more of a differentiation. I think it gives followers a very false misconception that we're getting paid to do these posts and I think there are a lot of bloggers and influencers who aren't getting paid at all or just getting paid in free products and followers don't understand that. #ad or #sponsored are the designated hashtags to indicate that there is some kind of relationship between the instagrammer and the brand, which can mean they got a sample of a food valued at a dollar or that they signed a contract to get paid thousands for their post or anything in between or beyond.
There are some blog posts I have been compensated for and some social media posts I have received a stipend for. However, they're more the exception than the rule. In the overall scheme of things, they probably equal less than one percent of the total posts. I do often receive a free meal or product sample or attend an event where complimentary food is served.
Most often, however, I'm visiting these places on my own dime - or even if am getting some complimentary food it is costing me money to go there in the way of parking, transportation, tips for valets, coat checks, bartenders and servers. I might get a free meal, but it can easily cost me $70 in transportation, parking and tips. And I'm supposed to label that as an "ad," which to me implies that I was paid for that post and that they made monetary payment for an advertisement, which is not true.
One other difficulty I see in blanket hashtags that show something as an ad is that I occasionally participate in media trips where I might get a free meal, but it isn't being comped by the restaurant, it is being paid in full out of the budget of a government tourism agency. So it's a little different than an #ad.
However, I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking I'd paid for all of it myself when I didn't. So, I'm following those rules. Just know that this blog is still primarily a labor of love and a hobby more than a source of income. For the most part, the money we've put in to attending dinners and events far exceeds any income that has come in. And that's not to mention all the precious time spent on the 2,400+ posts that have been written and what it would have brought in if we were getting an hourly rate to do so or spending that time on paid work.
Anyway, I'm doing my best to keep up with all the guidelines and comply as one of the little guys. If you don't see a disclosure statement at the start of a post, it wasn't a freebie. If part of it was comped, we'll let you know. On Instagram, where I'm most active and where I share the posts to other sites, you might notice "ad" or "sponsored" in the first couple lines of hashtags. All that means is that something complimentary was offered that is connected to that post - not that I was paid to post it. It might have been just a free cookie or a free bottle of salad dressing or it may have been a free steak dinner or I might have gotten a $15 stipend through an influencer network. You don't have any way to know why it's marked as an ad. But I assure you that any complimentary food or service or stipend we receive in no way alters anything you read on our blog. We'll be honest about how awesome the gnocchi was or how much we love the atmosphere or how we are still dreaming of that creme brûlée weeks after eating it. For us it's just about sharing foodie love - having memorable food experiences and passing them on to you, giving some coverage to small businesses that people don't know about, publicizing a place that deserves it, giving a little shout out to those in the food and hospitality field that work their fingers to the bone to give diners a good experience. That's why we are in this.
Just wanted to put all this out there for our readers who tell me what a dream job I have and assume that this is my true full time job and that I get every meal for free and get paid to write this blog. It's a wonderful little side gig, but not quite as glamorous as you might think. It's a lot of time and a lot of our own cash being put in to sharing all of this with you. Thanks, as always, for following and helping spread the foodie love.
So, it's been close to eight years since my sister and I started this blog. We both had other full time gigs and started the blog as a hobby and just a way to share some of the recipes we made and the good meals we ate at area restaurants. We didn't intend for it to be a moneymaker and other than running little ads on our page, we didn't really know how it worked that people made money off of their blogs.
We were probably a year in when we got invited to our first media dinner. We joined along with several other foodies - some who were bloggers, some who were from print publications, some who ran websites, some who didn't do any of those but just had a Facebook page with a lot of followers. It was before there really were "influencers." I learned not long after that first media dinner that we were supposed to disclose when we got something for free and I started adding a statement at the end of such blogs saying that we received a complimentary meal or a complimentary product sample. Such a line at the end of the post was standard at the time. That's to let readers know that we got something for free to facilitate the blog post, but that we weren't paid and that our opinions were our own - not one's we were paid to share. Or if we did get paid, we'd indicate that.
It seems that statements like that are now supposed to be shared at the top of the post so people don't have to scroll down to find it. So starting with the next applicable post you'll see this disclosure at the top. I'll continue to state clearly if I received a complimentary product or meal, so that you, the reader are aware of it and that it's at the top and easier to spot. I'll do the same should I happen to receive compensation for that post. It doesn't change anything. We're always completely honest in what we share. You may notice that we don't do negative reviews on this site. The way I see it, there's enough negativity in the world. The people who made the food and served it to us put a lot of love and work into it. And negative things on social media seem to travel faster than good things. A bad review on a restaurant can have devastating effects to their business. I'm not a critic. In fact, I don't call our blog a review site. I just call it an informative blog of our foodie adventures. I'll never lie and say something was fantastic when it wasn't. And a free meal isn't going to sway me to say things that aren't true. If something isn't worth sharing, I don't share it. It's rare that I have a terrible experience in a restaurant. I can count on one hand the places I've been where it was truly a bad experience. However, I always give a place a second chance. Everyone has an off day and I have been pleasantly surprised on some occasions when I have returned to a place and the food has been 300% better or the service was way better than the first time. Anyway, bottom line is, no bashing on this page. If we didn't like it, we will keep it to ourselves and probably give it another try - and then share it if the next time we liked it.
My disagreement with some of the guidelines are that on social media, there's a blanket rule that whether you get something for free or you get paid to do a post, you must use the hashtag #ad or #sponsored. I wish there was more of a differentiation. I think it gives followers a very false misconception that we're getting paid to do these posts and I think there are a lot of bloggers and influencers who aren't getting paid at all or just getting paid in free products and followers don't understand that. #ad or #sponsored are the designated hashtags to indicate that there is some kind of relationship between the instagrammer and the brand, which can mean they got a sample of a food valued at a dollar or that they signed a contract to get paid thousands for their post or anything in between or beyond.
There are some blog posts I have been compensated for and some social media posts I have received a stipend for. However, they're more the exception than the rule. In the overall scheme of things, they probably equal less than one percent of the total posts. I do often receive a free meal or product sample or attend an event where complimentary food is served.
Most often, however, I'm visiting these places on my own dime - or even if am getting some complimentary food it is costing me money to go there in the way of parking, transportation, tips for valets, coat checks, bartenders and servers. I might get a free meal, but it can easily cost me $70 in transportation, parking and tips. And I'm supposed to label that as an "ad," which to me implies that I was paid for that post and that they made monetary payment for an advertisement, which is not true.
One other difficulty I see in blanket hashtags that show something as an ad is that I occasionally participate in media trips where I might get a free meal, but it isn't being comped by the restaurant, it is being paid in full out of the budget of a government tourism agency. So it's a little different than an #ad.
However, I don't want to mislead anyone into thinking I'd paid for all of it myself when I didn't. So, I'm following those rules. Just know that this blog is still primarily a labor of love and a hobby more than a source of income. For the most part, the money we've put in to attending dinners and events far exceeds any income that has come in. And that's not to mention all the precious time spent on the 2,400+ posts that have been written and what it would have brought in if we were getting an hourly rate to do so or spending that time on paid work.
Anyway, I'm doing my best to keep up with all the guidelines and comply as one of the little guys. If you don't see a disclosure statement at the start of a post, it wasn't a freebie. If part of it was comped, we'll let you know. On Instagram, where I'm most active and where I share the posts to other sites, you might notice "ad" or "sponsored" in the first couple lines of hashtags. All that means is that something complimentary was offered that is connected to that post - not that I was paid to post it. It might have been just a free cookie or a free bottle of salad dressing or it may have been a free steak dinner or I might have gotten a $15 stipend through an influencer network. You don't have any way to know why it's marked as an ad. But I assure you that any complimentary food or service or stipend we receive in no way alters anything you read on our blog. We'll be honest about how awesome the gnocchi was or how much we love the atmosphere or how we are still dreaming of that creme brûlée weeks after eating it. For us it's just about sharing foodie love - having memorable food experiences and passing them on to you, giving some coverage to small businesses that people don't know about, publicizing a place that deserves it, giving a little shout out to those in the food and hospitality field that work their fingers to the bone to give diners a good experience. That's why we are in this.
Just wanted to put all this out there for our readers who tell me what a dream job I have and assume that this is my true full time job and that I get every meal for free and get paid to write this blog. It's a wonderful little side gig, but not quite as glamorous as you might think. It's a lot of time and a lot of our own cash being put in to sharing all of this with you. Thanks, as always, for following and helping spread the foodie love.
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