• Influencers need to be aware of the various laws and regulations that surround advertising.
• These include clearly labelling advertising and not colluding with other influencers.
• Fines for contravening the COMESA Competition Regulations of 2004 can amount to 10 percent of your annual turnover.

Being able to amass a large number of followers online can be very tempting to advertisers and as such influencer marketing began to take shape.

Truth be told, influencer marketing isn’t new but its scope was broadened thanks to social media and the rise in popularity of homemade video content. Now advertisers can throw money at a popular personality and have them make a video rather than spending millions on making their own content.

However, there are rules when it comes to advertising and as an influencer, those rules need to be observed. As many of the regulations and laws surrounding advertising are older than influencer marketing, interpreting this without a lawyer can be tricky. As such, a lawyer or legal counsel is definitely worth investing in if you are looking to be an influencer.

To give a rough outline, senior associate for Competition Law practice at Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyer, Reece May has outlined which pieces of legislation African and South African influencers should be aware of. We should point out that this is not legal advice but more of an exercise in education.

Much of what May points out refers to the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Competition Regulations of 2004 which apply to everybody including businesses.

These regulations, specifically Article 28 stipulate that content can’t mislead the viewer into them thinking they have a sponsor when it doesn’t. Similarly, if a piece of content is advertising, it must be labelled as such.

The Article that May highlights that drew our attention, however, is Article 19. This stipulates that collusion is out of the question entirely. This comes down to something called an undertaking.

“Although competition law is usually associated with companies and other juristic persons, the Regulations (and particularly the provisions condemning cartels) apply to ‘undertakings’. Undertakings are defined broadly enough to include any person involved in the provision of services. This would include influencers and the advertising services they provide. This understanding seems to coincide with the COMESA Competition Commission’s approach where it recently stated that Visa-processing companies acting on behalf of public bodies should be regarded as undertakings for the purpose of the Regulations,” explains May.

Influencers can be defined as undertakings and as such, they have competing interests. Building off of this, this means that influencers can’t collude to fix prices or refuse to work. As influencers are also unlikely to be defined as employees, they are also not able to take advantage of provisions such as collective bargaining.

And ignoring these rules can be costly. Aside from the reputational damage, COMESA could fine you up to 10 percent of your annual turnover for breaking these rules. Remember, ignorance is no excuse in the eyes of the legal system.

To sum up then, label advertising as advertising and don’t collude with other influencers as per the regulations.

This is very entry-level stuff though and if you’re serious about leveraging your fame for reward, then we highly recommend you read up about the laws and regulations you need to follow.

Alternatively, as we mentioned you can consult a legal professional. Sure it costs money, but so does contravening regulations and at least you have some control over the cost of a consultation.

[Image – CC 0 Pixabay]