How to Avoid Copyright Infringement in Marketing Campaigns
Soundstripe Team
Sep 26, 2019
Internet and social marketing campaigns are important ways for every brand to reach new and existing customers – and they have become increasingly common ways for companies to spend their marketing budgets. And, as anyone who has put together a social media marketing campaign before can tell you, there are tons of things that go into making an effective one.
From posting strategy to scheduling to finding the right royalty free background music, there are lots of landmines you’ll need to avoid if you want to get a successful social and/or digital media marketing campaign off the ground.
The Importance of Online Marketing Campaigns
It’s 2019 and consumers are spending more and more of their time on the internet. According to BroadbandSearch.net, people spent an average of 144 minutes per day on social media in 2018 – it’s vital that brands capture as much of their customers’ attention as possible with striking content and well-planned marketing campaigns.
More and more, that means creating effective videos for your social media marketing campaigns. Social media videos are easy to make, right? Just grab some images from a Google search and don’t worry about finding royalty free background music, it’s that simple, right? Social media is just a casual pastime, right?
Wrong. Over the past several years, brands are spending more and more on social media marketing, and if you want to compete, you’ll have to spend real time and resources on creating effective social media videos. And one of the most important things to keep in mind as you create your next digital marketing campaign, is avoiding copyright infringement at all costs.
Each Platform Is Different
For your campaign to be really effective, you’ll want to create content that is specific to each of the different social media platforms. That means understanding how Facebook video specifications are different than Twitter video specs are different fromInstagram video specs. The same is true for each platform’s rules around copyright infringement and using royalty free background music in your videos.
Make sure you research the guidelines on each platform around who is ultimately responsible for user content and each individual platform’s penalties for violating copyright. Each platform has different terms laid out as they pertain to content ownership. Asan example: if you share someone’s post or image without their consent, will you be held liable for infringing on their copyright? It varies from platform to platform.
Since so much gets shared on the internet every single day, it can be tempting to just take existing content and use it for your campaign. But that can put your entire campaign in jeopardy, and you risk all your hard work being taken down by the platform with a single copyright infringement notice. We always recommend being absolutely certain that everything you post is fully in the clear– i.e. use stock photos, original video, and royalty free background music that you own the rights to use.
How to Avoid Copyright Infringement
In a perfect world, every company has a big enough budget to create all original content for their videos. They can hire a crew to capture original footage, actors to embody the perfect mood, and musicians to create all original background music. But, we live in the real world where budgets are limited, and we often end up having to throw together videos on a tight budget and even tighter schedule.
With all that pressure, how can you avoid using copyrighted music and visuals? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Obviously, as a music source, we specialize in helping marketing teams find the perfect royalty free background music for any campaign, but we’ve also got some tips and tricks for finding other kinds of quality content without violating an existing copyright.
Sharing someone else’s post. If someone posts something that would be a perfect addition to your campaign, the simplest way to use it is to ask for their permission directly. People are typically excited to have their content featured by a brand they love, so chances are they’ll let you use it free of charge. Once you have their permission, you’re good to go.
When sharing existing content, it’s common practice to credit the original creator. Plus, it is a good look to give credit where credit is due and it’s more likely the creator will share within their own networks if they are credited. If you can’t contact the original creator and still decide that you need to share, always make sure to credit the original source.
Sharing something from an online article. If you ever need to quote or feature something from an article published online, don’t just copy and paste. That can get you into hot water. It’s always better to summarize the content in your own words and then link to the source.
How to Find the Best Royalty Free Background Music
Background music is a vital part of every video and as you develop an online marketing campaign you can’t just use your favorite track off the internet or radio. Your best bet to avoid copyright infringement is always going to be finding good royalty free background music from a reputable source.
There are a lot of different places to find copyright free music, but you’ve got to be careful with which ones you use. Some tracks with a “Creative Commons” license seem like they’d be okay to use, but actually are only licensed under specific circumstances: i.e. non commercial use (which wouldn’t work for a marketing campaign) or with the creator’s specific permission (to name a couple).
Your best bet when looking for quality royalty free background music is choosing a reliable source with a history of supporting artists and one that is committed to providing thousands of original tracks at an amazing price, i.e. SoundStripe. You get the benefit of being able to find the perfect music for any video and campaign, all without the headache of ever worrying about violating copyrights or having your campaign taken down by a social media platform.
If you’re ready to take your digital marketing campaigns to the next level with better royalty free background music, check out our incredible library of completely royalty free music.
Further reading
Interested in reading more top resources and getting our best filmmaking tips and tricks? Here are a couple of our most popular articles from across the Soundstripe blog: