Influence Campaign on LinkedIn: can the marketing agency change influencers midway through your communication?
Once the agency has announced their names, it can only do so with your express agreement. Otherwise, the marketing agency risks contract termination at their fault.
This is indeed the decision we obtained from the Paris Commercial Court on behalf of one of our clients, who disagreed with the final proposed marketing operation.
Our client, a platform connecting companies and IT service providers, had entrusted a marketing agency with its influence campaign. The contract stipulated that the marketing agency committed, on behalf of four specifically named influencers (an important point), to implement a campaign on the LinkedIn accounts of these opinion leaders.
However, the marketing agency went back on its commitments and proposed substituting one other leader for two of the four opinion leaders…whose follower count was much lower than that of the two “replaced” leaders!
The client, who had made their choice based on the influence of the four presented opinion leaders, refused the substitution proposed by the marketing agency…and notified the contract termination, at the agency’s fault.
The agency, for its part, disputed these grievances, refused to return the advance payment, and declined any conciliation.
At an impasse, our client was forced to take the case to the Paris Commercial Court to recover their funds.
The judgment, now final, is doubly interesting because:
- it recognizes the intuitu personae nature of the contract, acknowledging that the personalities of the opinion leaders were decisive for the client’s consent;
- it reminds us that: “a formal notice is not mandatory when the facts are established and cannot be repaired (…)”, which was the case here since the two influencers had withdrawn from the campaign.
This decision comes a year after the law of June 9, 2023, aimed at regulating the activity of influencers on social networks, and it will be interesting to follow its interpretation in future disputes, particularly regarding the principle that the agency is responsible for the influencer, which has not yet led to jurisprudence.
Whether you are launching a communication campaign or planning a collaboration or partnership with an influence agent or influencer, Aurele IT Law Firm advises and supports you to:
- understand your rights and obligations and comply with the new legislation
- anticipate risks, assert your rights, and protect your interests.