Social Media Guidelines

Revised: January 9, 2017

Social Media & Digital Marketing Guidelines

A. Use of Company Marks and Copyrights

Affiliates can use Social Media Sites and online channels to market their PrimeMyBody business; however, there are advertising guidelines that are to be followed when marketing your business on these channels. Social Media includes any form of online marketing, discussion and community building, including but not limited to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Youtube, Blogs, Forums, Chat Rooms, etc.

Many people use Social Media for personal purposes, but the moment you mention PrimeMyBody in your profile, wall posts, status updates, bio, etc., you are now using that account to market your PrimeMyBody business and it falls under our Advertising and Marketing Policies and Procedures. You must either keep your business and personal accounts separate or clearly state mandatory disclaimers every time you make a statement on a personal account/profile/website regarding PrimeMyBody, its products, business, affiliates, events, etc.

PrimeMyBody is a values-based company. Complying with our basic guidelines can help all of us retain the character and integrity of our company and our most valuable asset, you, our Affiliates.

  • IMPORTANT! Before you proceed, be sure to read PrimeMyBody’s Disclaimers document found in your Virtual Office.
  • Always identify yourself as an Independent Affiliate of PrimeMyBody and state highly visible disclaimers (product and/or opportunity as set forth). Prevent any perception of representing PrimeMyBody Corporate. Affiliates are not corporate representatives.
  • On any account/profile/website, you must disclose your full real name, not a user name. Use a real photo of yourself and not an avatar. Use only the PrimeMyBody Affiliate logos found in your Virtual Office.
  • Do not use PrimeMyBody in URL’s in Social Media groups, sites, blogs, usernames, and email addresses.
  • Make sure what you are posting does not violate FDA or FTC rules or other federal or state laws, rules or regulations, or our Policies & Procedures.
  • Conduct yourself professionally.
  • NEVER MAKE INCOME CLAIMS or PROJECTIONS! This is a huge violation of our Affiliate Policies & Procedures.
  • Do not use testimonials that cannot be or have not been scientifically validated, or otherwise not in compliance with federal and state laws. If in doubt reach out to support@primemybody.com for clarification.
  • Always place approved PrimeMyBody disclaimers close to text testimonial (if video, state full name of person and use a product or earnings/income disclaimer in the video in close proximity to the video placement).
  • All personal written and video testimonials must be approved by PrimeMyBody’s compliance department. Please forward any of these assets to our Support Department for approval.
  • In order to protect your PrimeMyBody business, it is very important to abide by our Affiliate Policies and Procedures, as well as federal and state laws. There are serious consequences for Affiliates that do not comply, including the freezing of commissions, termination of an Affiliate Agreement and/or possibility of legal recourse.
  • PrimeMyBody Affiliates are welcome to share experiences online, but shall observe and operate within the Policies & Procedures and other written guidelines of PrimeMyBody.

IMPORTANT - No statement can be made that implies that any PrimeMyBody Product is intended to treat, prevent, cure or mitigate a disease or to affect the structure or any function of the body. If such a claim is made, the Food and Drug Administration (the “FDA”) will consider the product an unapproved drug or medical device.

B. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

The following are examples of statements prohibited by the FDA:

  • Implicit or explicit statements that the products diagnose, treat, cure or heal a medical condition and/or disease;
  • Implicit or explicit statements that the products have an effect on signs or symptoms of a disease or medical condition;
  • Statements that the products can replace or supplement a drug or any item used to treat a disease or medical condition;
  • Statements that the products have a role in a body’s response to a disease or medical condition.
  • Additional Examples of Improper Statements

A specific disease does not have to be mentioned in order to be considered an improper claim. For example, “I had stabbing pains in my back, but they stopped when I started using the products,” is an improper statement.

Avoid statements that talk about taking medicine or using other medical treatment and then stopping such medicine or treatment once you are using the product. For example, do not say “I used to take over-the-counter medicine or a specified treatment to help me, and now that I use the product I don’t have to take or use them anymore.”

Avoid statements that discuss an activity or action that you couldn’t do before you used PrimeMyBody’s product(s) if it implies a helpful treatment or cure. For example, “I use to walk with a cane and now, since I’m using the product, I no longer need to use the cane.”

Even though a disease is not mentioned, it does not mean an improper health or medical claim is not being made, according to the FDA and FTC. For example, insomnia is considered a medical condition. An improper claim would be “I can’t fall asleep at night and the product helps me fall asleep.”

Be CAREFUL when using words like: “relieve,” “prevent,” “heal,”, “treat”, “cure”, “diagnose”, “control,” “improve,” “help,” or “assist.”

C. FTC Substantiation

The FTC requires that statements be truthful, not misleading and substantiated. Do not exaggerate or misstate the results of your experience. Make sure your statements and results are those that you and PrimeMyBody can substantiate, and are in compliance with PrimeMyBody’s Policies & Procedures and state laws, rules and regulations.

See the FTC ruling on product testimonials here.

D. Third Party Consent and Publications

Be sure you have prior written consent of any third party you mention in your testimonial or blog. Download a Testimonial Release Form in your Virtual Office Marketing Resources section and submit it to our Support Department for approval prior to publication. Please note that a testimonial submission does not guarantee it will be approved, so do not post or publish it until approval is given from PrimeMyBody. PrimeMyBody reserves the right to screen and select appropriate testimonials at its sole discretion.

According to the FDA, excerpts or specific quotes from Third-Party Publications are not explicitly allowed. Third-Party Publications should be reprinted in its entirety, and must link to the actual study quoted in its entirety, not to a summary of the study or article about the study.

E. Structure / Function Claims

A “structure/function” claim should not be confused with a “health claim”. Health claims describe the relationship of a substance to a disease or health related condition.

A structure/function claim cannot state that the nutrient treats, cures, or prevents any disease. No structure/function claim about an ingredient of a product can be made unless it is pre-submitted to the FDA.

Note: Some PrimeMyBody products fall under the same guidelines as dietary supplements.

F. Physician Claims

The fact that a licensed physician makes a medical or health claim does not stop it from being improper or illegal. You may use PrimeMyBody products in your practice, but if you are a PrimeMyBody Affiliate you cannot advise, post, endorse the product in a way that even implies PrimeMyBody products are treating, curing, diagnosing or preventing a medical condition or disease with PrimeMyBody products….why?

Because PrimeMyBody products do not treat, heal, prevent, cure any disease or medical condition.

When In Doubt... If you have any questions about whether a statement you make orally or in writing could be a medical or health claim or require substantiation from PrimeMyBody, always contact the Company before making the statement or publishing anything in writing. You are liable for any improper claims.

G. The FTC and Financial Claims

The FTC and certain states regulate the making of financial or earnings claims. Section 5 of the FTC Act prohibits unfair and deceptive trade practices. If a statement about potential earnings exceeds the earnings normally received by a company’s sales force, the statement violates Section 5. An Affiliate does not have the information to make any earnings claims. Therefore, all earnings claims not approved in writing by PrimeMyBody are prohibited. Earnings representations and income testimonials of any type are prohibited by Massachusetts and Wyoming law and are regulated by certain other federal and state laws.

Generally, earnings claims cannot be made unless the earnings represented are those of a substantial number of individuals during a stated time period. Affiliates do not have access to earnings of other Affiliates so as to properly make the earnings claims.

PrimeMyBody’s Policies and Procedures Guide specifically state that:

“Because PrimeMyBody Affiliates do not have the data necessary to comply with the legal requirements for making income claims, an Affiliate, when presenting or discussing the PrimeMyBody opportunity or the PrimeMyBody Compensation Plan to a prospective Retailer, may not make income projections, income claims or disclose his or her PrimeMyBody income (including the showing of checks, copies of checks, bank statements or tax records)”.

H. The FTC and Financial Claims

No financial or earnings claim can be made by an Affiliate unless the information is provided directly from PrimeMyBody in writing for such purpose. This prohibition includes all types of financial claims, including unsubstantiated earnings claims, lifestyle claims and testimonials, earnings disclosures and Rewards Plan descriptions.

Examples of Prohibited Financial Claims

Earnings Disclosures. Earnings disclosures are statements of what an Affiliate personally has earned or other Affiliates have earned. They can be made orally, in writing, or by showing actual income checks or bank deposits. Examples of prohibited claims are as follows:

  • "I earned $100,000 last year."
  • "John Smith earns $20,000 a month."
  • "I got 35 customers on the first month."

While these statements may be accurate and truthful, what one Affiliate makes may not be what the majority of other Affiliates make and therefore can be deemed deceptive or misleading.

I. Lifestyle Claims and Testimonials.

Lifestyle claims address the wealth an individual has earned or potentially can earn or the success he or she has achieved or could achieve, by discussing or showing expensive cars, jewelry, homes or exotic vacations. These types of statements are deemed implied claims. Examples of prohibited claims are as follows:

  • "Travel the world first class."
  • "I earned enough for a new 6,000 square foot house with a swimming pool."
  • "I drive a Cadillac Escalade SUV and you can too."

Lifestyle claims and testimonials also can be completely truthful statements but since they may not represent what the majority of Affiliates have earned or achieved they can be deemed deceptive or misleading.

J. Compensation Plan Description

Compensation plan claims are made when explaining a Rewards Plan that is not authorized by the PrimeMyBody to a potential recruit. These claims include discussing how easy it is to achieve or how quickly one can achieve success in the Rewards Plan or only highlighting the top levels of the Rewards Plan. Examples of prohibited claims are as follows:

  • "Recruit one hundred Affiliates that purchase the Premium Pack in one month and earn $10,000 a month."
  • "It's easy to achieve the Diamond level and earn a $25,000 bonus."

While some individuals at certain levels of the Rewards Plan do have significant earnings, only limited individuals achieve those earnings. Only written PrimeMyBody-issued examples, if any, should be used.

K. Unsubstantiated Earnings Claims

These are claims where there is no verifiable basis or support for making the claim. Some examples:

  • "Earn $130,000 annually by making just one sale per week day."
  • "By simply selling products to a few people and getting a few people to do the same, you can earn up to $100,000 a year."
  • "One quick phone call and you can choose how much you want to earn this year. $30,000, $100,000, $500,000, $1 million."
  • "$10,000 a month in income for one hour per day of work."

L. Final Guidelines to Consider

Remember that even if the statement is accurate and true, it may not be representative of what most Affiliates earn and is, therefore, an improper earning claim under the law.

Financial or earnings claims include statements made through any media, such as oral presentations, websites, social media, blogs, emails, advertisements and other written materials.

Use only PrimeMyBody-produced materials when describing the Rewards Plan.

Never use specific dollar amounts.

When recruiting new Affiliates do not make implicit claims of success, such as discussing large homes, luxury cars, or exotic vacations.

Never show a compensation check or bank statement.

When recruiting new Affiliates always remind them that their actual success and earnings are dependent on their individual efforts and skill and time devoted to their business and will differ from Affiliate to Affiliate.

When In Doubt... If you have any questions about whether a statement you make orally or in writing could be a financial or earnings claim or require substantiation from PrimeMyBody, always contact the Company before making the statement or publishing anything in writing. You are liable for any claims you make.