Here are a few of the key points of the new rule and how they impact some deceptive review practices happening in the multifamily industry.

Fake Reviews and Testimonials:
AI generated reviews, or reviews from anyone who did not have actual experience with the businesses' products or services, or who misrepresents the experience of the person giving it, are considered fake of false consumer reviews, according to this rule.

• There are Reddit threads, Facebook groups, and other forums where hundreds (maybe thousands) of multifamily representatives (leasing agents, maintenance technicians, etc.) are explicitly asking employees of other companies in other states who have never had experience at their communities to write positive reviews for their communities and employees (often to "push down" negative reviews or to meet a quota for review bonuses in place at their company). This is a direct violation of this Rule. If you do not have compliance policies or training procedures in place that discuss this violation and its impact on the reputation and monetary damage this could cause your company, NOW is the time to get one in place. I assure you it is happening frequently.
• There are multifamily reputation providers who are telling their clients that it is ok to ask their suppliers, mail delivery carriers, etc. to leave them positive reviews online. While this could potentially be a gray area in this rule, do you want it to come to that? Fines are millions of dollars. Do you even want your company's name and reputation to be associated with an FTC Rule violation for fake reviews? Taking the smart road of generating authentic and real reviews from real renters will ensure you do not put your reputation at risk.

Incentivized Reviews:
While the FTC has had guidance on the solicitation of reviews in place for years as part of the FTC ACT, this rule focuses on the incentivization of reviews. Now that this rule is official, it is more important than ever to educate your employees on your company's policy for incentivizing reviews.

• When incentivizing reviews, it is prohibited to ask for reviews of a particular sentiment (ie positive or negative). It may be important to be aware of your imagery and text when using an incentive in correlation with a review request. For example, using 5-stars in the image or using verbiage that suggests "leave a review about your great experience for the chance to win..." or "tell us why you love our community to enter..." could create a sentiment influence that may put your company or community at risk.
• While this rule does not specifically address the need to disclose incentives for reviews, per the FTC Endorsement Guide, it is advisable to disclose when reviews have been influenced to uphold transparency and credibility with consumers. "The reason is obvious: Knowing about the connection is important information for anyone evaluating the endorsement."

Review Suppression:
Suppressing a product's negative reviews deprives consumers of potentially useful information and artificially inflates the product's average star rating.

• It's important to note that if you are using a 3rd party app or partner that is not publicly displaying ALL of your reviews - and you are not disclosing or providing a link or notification to 'See All Reviews,' you could be in violation of misrepresenting that the reviews shown represent all or most of the reviews submitted.
• Be aware of how employees are requesting for renters to change or remove a negative review. If the request suggests any form of intimidation, the possibility of non-renewal, or a negative impact on the level of service they receive in the community, this could be a direct violation of this new rule.

"By strengthening the FTC's toolkit to fight deceptive advertising, the final rule will protect Americans from getting cheated, put businesses that unlawfully game the system on notice, and promote markets that are fair, honest, and competitive," said FTC Chair Lina M. Khan.

According to the press release, the rule will become effective 60 days after the date it's published in the Federal Register. Reach out to your legal counsel to review your organization's reputation guidelines if you have any questions about the FTC release to ensure your employees are up-to-speed and in compliance on this new rule to mitigate your reputation risk.