22/01/2021

By Leonardo Neri

The use of social networks is certainly not a recent habit in our culture. However, the way people use them and the purpose for which they access social networks are factors that are constantly changing.

In this sense, considering the current context of use of social networks, digital influencers have emerged, also known as bloggers, who produce content on certain subjects, aimed at a specific audience of followers who are interested in the content produced.

Considering the large reach of people that digital influencers have and, mainly, the influence they exert over their audience, being able to reach millions of users, the advertising of products and services through this channel has become the new trend in advertising, which has proven to be quite effective.

However, as with any other advertising medium, it is essential to select the target audience in order to make the advertising more assertive and, consequently, save resources. To do so, digital influencers need to know the profile of their followers. The more information they have, the more assertive the advertising will be, which will generate more business.

Personal data has therefore become a precious resource for digital influencers. However, in order to use it, they must comply with the General Data Protection Law (Law 13,709/2018), in force since September 2020.

According to the LGPD, influencers, as data operators or controllers, must adopt a transparent data collection and processing process, informing data subjects about their rights and, mainly, about the purpose of the collection.

Given the large proportion that this new advertising method has taken, CONAR (National Advertising Self-Regulation Council) approved the Digital Influencer Advertising Guide, providing guidance on the application of the rules of the Brazilian Advertising Self-Regulation Code in view of the current digital scenario.

The trend is for compliance with the LGPD to be a requirement made by advertisers to digital influencers, as a condition for hiring. This is because demonstrating that the rights of data subjects are being respected, in addition to reducing risks to the business, also guarantees greater credibility with consumers. Therefore, compliance should be a differentiator for influencers who are already in compliance with the legislation.