A connection that starts after the quote
When a Customer Joins Your Company
The testimonial was honest when it was given: an ordinary customer, no ties to you. Then you hired them, signed them as a contractor, or they put money into the company. The words have not changed, but the reader is now looking at praise from someone with a stake in you. Go through the checklist for each quote whose author crossed that line.
- What changed, and when, for one quote
- Disclosure wording that names the new tie
- Where the label has to travel with the quote
Status change checklist
Check one quote whose author now has a stake in you
Tick each line for a single testimonial. Lines with a source summarise the FTC text they cite; this is a summary, not legal advice.
Ticks stay in this browser tab and are not sent anywhere.
The problem, solved
Why status changes slip past, and how StoryProof helps you catch them
- Problem 1
Nobody connects the new hire to the quote
HR knows who joined, marketing knows who gave testimonials, and the two lists never meet.
How StoryProof solves it
Tag the testimonial with a connection tag the day the tie begins, so the quote is easy to find later. Tags, moderation and roles are on every plan, including Free.
- Problem 2
We need it off key pages today
Until someone decides on wording, the quote keeps running on the homepage as if nothing happened.
How StoryProof solves it
You choose which approved testimonials appear in each widget, so the quote can be taken out of the homepage widget while the decision is made.
- Problem 3
The quote needs a note about the new role
Rewording the testimonial yourself to add the disclosure changes what was given to you.
How StoryProof solves it
Write the disclosure in your page markup beside the widget, or ask the author to resubmit through the collection link with the tie stated in their own words.
- Problem 4
They want to give a fresh one now
Enthusiastic new colleagues offer an updated quote, and it reads like a company line.
How StoryProof solves it
Anything they submit stays private until you approve it, so you can decide whether it belongs on the site at all, and with what label.
- Problem 5
Their quote is already in social images
Images made months ago carry no label, and they get reshared after the hire.
How StoryProof solves it
From Pro, the social image designer turns an approved testimonial into a branded image. Make a new one with the disclosure in it and stop using the old file.
Which tie, which label
Starting points drawn from the FTC text read for this page, for US businesses. Your counsel may draw the lines differently.
In StoryProof
Make status changes part of the routine
- 1
Check new ties against the author list
When someone is hired, contracted or joins the cap table, search your testimonials for their name or company.
- 2
Tag and pause
Give a matching quote a connection tag and take it out of widgets on key pages until the checklist is done.
- 3
Run the checklist and agree the label
Settle the wording with the author, write it beside the widget in your page, and update any images or emails that use the quote.
- 4
Put the quote back with its label
Return it to the widgets you chose and confirm the disclosure sits next to it on the live page.
What happens next: When the tie ends, run the checklist again. A former employee’s quote raises its own questions.
Before you start
What this page does not settle
What this does not cover, and what to check on your side. Better to know now than after launch.
- 01
Not legal advice
This summarises 16 CFR 255.1, 255.5 and the FTC Endorsement Guides FAQ as read on the date shown, for the US. Other countries have their own rules.
- 02
Timing is not spelled out
The FTC text read here does not discuss a tie that begins after the endorsement. The checklist applies its general rule on connections readers would not expect to a quote that keeps running.
- 03
No disclosure field in StoryProof
This page relies on no field for a connection label inside the widget. The label goes in your own page markup next to it, or in the author’s own words.
- 04
Securities rules are separate
Mentioning investors in marketing can raise questions this page does not cover. Ask counsel if the investor is named.
FAQ
Questions people ask
Short answers to what usually comes up next.
Do we have to take a testimonial down when we hire its author?
Not necessarily. The FTC text read here centres on disclosing a connection readers would not expect, not on removal. Many teams label the quote, or move it off sales pages and replace it with one from an unconnected customer.
The quote was honest before the hire. Why does it matter now?
Readers judge a quote by who is giving it at the time they read it. Praise from someone on your payroll weighs differently, and 16 CFR 255.5 lists business relationships among the connections that can need disclosure, with an employee among its examples.
What should the label say?
The nature of the tie, plainly, next to the quote. “Now works at {company}” or “later invested in {company}” tells a reader what they need. A vague word such as “affiliate” does not.
Can the new employee write a fresh testimonial?
They can share their view, but it is now an employee speaking, so it needs the label from the first line. Quotes from customers with no tie to you usually carry more weight.
Does StoryProof flag authors who joined the company?
No. StoryProof does not know who you hire. Tag the quote yourself when the tie begins, and you can find every connected testimonial in seconds.
Still have a question? Ask the StoryProof team or book a demo.
Know where every quote comes from
Tag testimonials by relationship, control what each widget shows and approve every new submission first.
Sources
- 16 CFR 255.5: Disclosure of material connections, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Checked 2026-11-12.
- 16 CFR 255.1: General considerations, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School. Checked 2026-11-12.
- FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking, Federal Trade Commission. Checked 2026-11-12.
Last updated 2026-11-12.