Compliance basics: content labeling
In India, the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) requires you to clearly label any content where you earn commission on a sale. It's not corporate politeness — it's the industry norm, and it usually works for you, not against. This lesson is a gate: until you pass a 5/5 quiz, you can't publish posts with product-links on Trendweave.
What counts as 'paid' content
If you earn commission on a sale through your link, it's promotional content. It doesn't matter that you wrote 'I genuinely love this product', that the brand didn't pay you directly, or that you picked the item yourself. Money flows from the sale to you — that's enough for ASCI to require disclosure.
Which tags work
Minimum — #Ad, #Sponsored, #PaidPartnership, or #AffiliateLink at the very top of the caption, before the body, not at the end and not buried in 30 hashtags. In Stories — a 'Paid partnership' sticker or #Ad in the first frame. In Reels — voiced or on-screen text in the first 3 seconds. Hiding it in comments, using grey-on-grey text, or writing '#A_d' doesn't work — ASCI's tools catch it.
Why labeling works for you
When a viewer sees an honest #Ad, they don't feel tricked — and they click more readily on your next post too. Brands notice this: creators with a clean compliance record are first in line for premium campaigns (the Special offers from brands section in Trendweave shows exactly these offers from retailers).
What about other SEA countries?
Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines — each has its own rules, and on average they're stricter than India's. If your audience is in those markets, follow the disclosure standard of the destination country. Today all active retailers in Trendweave's catalog are Indian, so ASCI is the primary gating standard.
Key takeaway: One correct tag at the top of your caption is five seconds of work that opens the door to premium campaigns. Compliance isn't a barrier — it's the pass.
Next step: Pass the required 5/5 quiz at the end of this lesson. After that you'll be cleared to publish your first post with product-links — the action from Lesson 4.
- Learning outcome
- You know the disclosures required in your country (ASCI / local rules).
- Action in product
- Accept the labeling policy (explicit consent) and pass the quiz 5/5.
- Success metric
- 100% (gating).
- Unlock / Reward
- Permission to publish shoppable content.
- Format
- 2-min video + mandatory quiz.