ChChChChanges! New Ways to Follow and New FTC Guidelines

This is going to be a quick, dirty, and very likely boring post. Not even any pictures! 

First of all, I'm sure you've heard by now that Google Reader is retiring as of July 1st. This means that any and all blogs that you follow, including mine, via GFC will be lost, unless you port them to a new reader. There are many options available with a quick search. I, personally, as well as many of the blogs I follow, have moved to Bloglovin'. It's free and supereasy to simply port all of the blogs you currently follow with Google Reader to Bloglovin- one click and you're done! I ported all of my blogs several days ago, when the hoopla first surfaced, and, while I keep forgetting to use it, I do like it. It even shows me which posts I've already read, so that I'm not reading them over again- which I have a tendency to do when I fall behind by a day or two :)

I have added both a Bloglovin' and a Follow by Email widget to the side of my page.

The second big shakeup in the blogosphere this week involves sponsored posts and products received for free in exchange for a post. The FTC has changed their guidelines regarding these types of posts. It pretty much boils down to: If I receive a free product, and post a review of it, I must disclose clearly and before any links to that product, that it was sent to me by that company for review. I have always added a disclaimer at the bottom of my posts if I was given the product, and I will continue to do so. For clarity, I will also now state, at the bottom of each post, if I purchased it myself. I will also be announcing right up front in any post in which the product was sent to me for review. 

For more information, both more in depth and more understandable, please visit Colleen at Beauty and Fashion Tech, who does a wonderful job describing both what the new regulations mean and how the will impact both bloggers and blog readers. If you want to read the actual FTC Disclosure document, it can be found here.