SRC’s Stichting Reclame Code – Winner of the Silver EASA Best Practice Award

17 January 2025

The Best Practice Awards, held every two years, celebrate innovation and excellence in the field of advertising self-regulation. Each month, we will shine a spotlight on a different winning entry. This month, we feature our Dutch SRO Stichting Reclame Code (SRC), which earned the prestigious Silver EASA Best Practice Award for its Influencerregels.com.

SRC would like to express their gratitude to the ARPP, whose pioneering efforts in advertising self-regulation served as a source of inspiration for this initiative. Their contributions laid a foundation upon which projects like this can thrive.

A Unified Vision for Responsible Influencer Marketing

In the fast-evolving world of influencer marketing, maintaining trust and transparency has become a pressing challenge. Recognizing this, Stichting Reclame Code (SRC), the Dutch self-regulatory organization, launched, together with industry associations bvA and DDMA, Influencerregels.com: by uniting key players from advertisers to influencers, the initiative set out to establish a shared commitment to ethical standards, paving the way for a more credible and trustworthy ecosystem.

At the heart of this initiative was a comprehensive e-learning program, paired with a certification process that provided influencers with the knowledge they needed to communicate responsibly. The program also created a centralized platform where all stakeholders – advertisers, creators, agents, and platforms – could access relevant rules, resources, and advice. This unified approach not only raised awareness about the importance of self-regulation but also demonstrated how collaborative efforts could effectively address the challenges of influencer marketing. An important part of maintaining the credibility of the certificate is the regular monitoring by SRC of certified influencers with the help of a special A.I.-tool.

Overcoming Hurdles Through Collaboration

Launching Influencerregels.com required SRC to navigate significant challenges. Building trust and securing buy-in from major stakeholders, including advertisers and platforms, proved essential yet complex. For instance, initial hesitations from prominent brands were addressed through thoughtful dialogue and adjustments, such as implementing a transition period before requiring exclusive collaboration with certified influencers.

Another challenge was countering the negative portrayal of influencers in traditional media, which often focused on their missteps rather than successes. SRC reframed the narrative, emphasizing the program’s role in raising professional standards and providing tools to help influencers succeed responsibly.
Engaging influencers themselves also demanded a careful balance. To ensure authenticity and credibility, influencers were involved as educators and collaborators, though this process required time to assemble the right mix of participants. In addition, 30 management and media agencies have joined the initiative and are encouraging their influencers to obtain the certificate.

Finally, to encourage widespread participation, the certification exam was initially offered for free, lowering barriers and creating early momentum for the initiative. Due to the overlap between self-regulation and legislation in the field of influencer marketing and the confusion that sometimes arises about this in practice, cooperation was also sought with the Dutch Media regulator, which made a substantive contribution for the e-learning about the relevant legislation.

A new standard for the industry

The results of Influencerregels.com have been transformative. Within months of its launch, the initiative gained significant traction, with now over 2000  influencers successfully certified and many more in the pipeline. The program’s accompanying website became a go-to resource for influencer marketing rules and best practices, further solidifying its impact.

Beyond the numbers, the initiative strengthened SRC’s position as a key player in the influencer marketing space. Collaborative relationships with global platforms like TikTok, Meta, and Google deepened, enabling further advancements in monitoring and training. The initiative also caught the attention of Dutch government regulators, who expressed interest in adapting the framework for specific sectors, such as finance and health.

By addressing challenges head-on and fostering collaboration across the ecosystem, Influencerregels.com has set a benchmark for self-regulation in influencer marketing. It not only elevated professional standards but also reinforced the importance of trust and transparency in a digital-first world.

Tags: