Hello! This is Stephanie, Kimberly’s daughter! As my mom’s publicist, I’m very excited to coordinate a blog/social media tour for her forthcoming release, Kadupul Flower (Green Writers Press, October 2025). As I begin planning, I also have some concerns in terms of navigating (United States) FTC guidelines. I would SO APPRECIATE feedback from publicity veterans. 🙂

Writers and Publicists of WordPress, I would so appreciate your help!

I’m treating this post as sort of a long Q+A forum thread, because I have several questions– and I know that a lot of people on WordPress have a lot of experience with this.

What I KNOW

As much as I’d prefer to load up on positive reviews, I understand the importance of soliciting honest reviews. I know it’s unacceptable to solicit positive-only reviews, and I know that it’s also unacceptable to ask reviewers to edit their feedback.

I know that reviewers would need to include an FTC disclosure (something along the lines of “I received a complimentary copy of the ebook from the author. Opinions expressed are my own”).

What I’d like to know

I’m a lot fuzzier when it comes to the “fun” parts of a blog/social media tour. Under FTC guidelines, what is acceptable in terms of book swag and giveaways?

1. Can I give away small book-related items (i.e., bookmarks, postcards, etc.) to blog/social media “hosts?”

• I feel like I read somewhere that the only item given for free should be the book for review purposes BUT I’ve been the recipient of occasional “influencer boxes” with related items, as well as simple book additions (like those mentioned: illustrations, postcards, bookmarks). As a reviewer, I honestly do get pretty excited about the additions, but I’m also aware that these add-ons should not influence the content of my review.
• I’m considering add-ons because they’re fun, and also because I’d really like to show some appreciation for people are willing to invest their time and support in promoting my mom’s book. This is especially important to me because review copies will be digital ARCs. I’d like participants to have some kind of tangible takeaway, even if it is very token.

2. Assuming that “add-ons” are an issue, is it at least okay to do thank-you cards for tour hosts? I don’t think that could be misconstrued as a “bribe” of any kind, right?

• My original inclination would be that thank you cards are fine, but I recently had an Amazon experience that kind of shook up my thinking:
  • I had to report a seller who offered me money to remove a negative review. The sad thing was, the seller’s customer service seemed great up to that point, and I’d already edited my review to reflect that. Of course, I knew that the offer of $50 to remove my review was crossing the line.
  • When I heard back from Amazon, I was surprised to read about the other things sellers should NOT be doing, in terms of influencing reviews. I read that they’re not supposed to give discounts, which makes sense to me, or REFUNDS. The latter part surprised me, as I’ve been offered refunds on several occasions and just considered it the seller “making things right.” I’m wondering now if there’s a fine line where a refund can be offered, as long as it’s not offered specifically in conjunction with a review, or whether sellers just should not be doing that.

3. What about giveaways? Is it okay to do a giveaway for just blog / social media tour participants? Or would any giveaway need to be open to ANYONE– in terms of avoiding “incentives” for reviews? (Giveaway prizes would be a little bigger than just paper items).

• Do I have a lot of leeway as long as I’m not actively transacting reviews (i.e., you get a prize for writing a positive review)?
• Or, would I be better off sticking with the digital review copies, plus a giveaway open to anyone, regardless of launch team status?

4. And what about the distinction between product reviews and general publicity? Does the FTC govern non-review publicity (i.e., social media posts intended to garner interest)? Am I freer to do giveaways for participants who post to social media– as something separate from reviewing?

In Summation

Ultimately, I think a lot of my questions boil down to this: Is the FTC concerned about any kind of “gifts/swag” (i.e., anything other than the book itself), or would the issue be with explicitly offering these add-ons as a reward for a good review?

I’d be so grateful to hear your thoughts on this subject! 

Thanks!

-Stephanie