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The second comment on "Grass planting notes" on people.net 3: Don't "set up a set" in the name of sharing

Lin Liorio
December 2, 2021 08:28 | Source: People's Daily Online - Viewpoint Channel
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Painted lipstick recommended by beauty bloggers and wanted to buy it; saw an unpacking video and wanted to place an order; read the experience of a treasure mother and wanted to experience... It can be said that now you can be "planted grass" by all kinds of information as long as you open your mobile phone. "Grass planting economy" has permeated every scene of life. It is often difficult for consumers to distinguish which of them is real sharing and which is commercial marketing.

"Grass planting" has a long history. It was first popular in beauty forums and communities of all sizes until the mobile Internet era began to spread to social media platforms. With the rise of various forms of grass planting communities, "grass planting" has become a common practice. However, more and more "grass planting" deviates from the original intention of sharing, and instead carries out advertising marketing in the name of sharing.

The "Grass Planting Notes" with accurate touch can easily stimulate the purchase desire of users through experiential recommendation and high traffic content bombing. From the perspective of commercialization, it is not impossible to realize, but this model cannot be at the cost of deceiving consumers; it is not impossible to promote, but these practices must be conditional on consumers' knowledge. As "grass planting", sharing and advertising marketing are not clearly defined, and consumers' rights and interests are more likely to be damaged.

In fact, many platforms have been involved in the scandal of content fraud, forging the "grass planting notes" of ordinary people. In fact, it is the so-called consumption experience of recruiting writers to write and distribute on behalf of original content by taking advantage of people's trust in original content. Many "grass planting notes" contain false propaganda and exaggeration, which makes consumers suffer and fall prey to.

At present, it is urgent to clarify the boundary between pure sharing and advertising marketing. An important judgment basis between sharing and advertising is whether the publisher of the "grass planting" content has signed a contract with the business to charge fees for publicity and promotion. Whether it is a simple person or an online celebrity, a big V, a key opinion leader (KOL), a key opinion consumer (KOC), publishing personal consumption experience, or friendship promotion without charging any fees, it cannot be defined as advertising. However, if the business has signed a contract with the information publisher of "grass planting" and paid him endorsement fees to promote the product for the enterprise, it belongs to advertising. Relevant publishers must perform the relevant obligations stipulated in the Advertising Law, check the relevant supporting documents, and check the advertising content. Advertisements with inconsistent content or incomplete supporting documents shall not be published.

However, it is difficult for consumers to distinguish whether the "grass planting" information publisher has signed a contract or received money. According to the Interim Measures for the Administration of Internet Advertising, Internet advertising should be identifiable and clearly marked "advertising". At present, some grass growing communities can see the content clearly marked with "advertisement", which is convenient for consumers to distinguish. However, there are still some "grass planting" information that contains a lot of shared content. Whether it can be defined as advertising needs further improvement and clarification of relevant laws and regulations.

It can be said that the original intention of the platform may be simple sharing, but in the process of rapid growth in the number of users, due to the involvement of capital and business, both the platform and users may deviate from the original intention. Let the sharing belong to the sharing, and the business belongs to the business. Never mislead consumers by marketing in the name of sharing.

[Related Reading]

One of the three comments on "Grass Planting Notes" on People's Daily Online: How can truth follow one's inclinations

(Editor in charge: Tong Zongli, Fu Long)

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