Guide
Social media for business
Advertising rules for promoting your business on social media.
The same advertising rules apply on social media as other channels. Disclose all paid partnerships and gifted items. Make truthful claims you can substantiate.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) enforces the CAP Code. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) enforces consumer protection law, with enhanced powers from 6 April 2025 under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024.
Disclosure requirements
If you receive payment, free products, loans, discounts, or any other benefit in exchange for posting content, you must disclose this clearly.
- Acceptable disclosure labels
- Use 'Ad', 'Advert', 'Advertisement', or 'Ad Feature'. The hashtag # is optional if the label stands out clearly.
- Unacceptable labels (insufficient)
- '#gifted', '#spon', '#collab', '#affiliate', '#BrandAmbassador', 'Sponsored', 'In association with', or brand mentions alone.
- Placement rule
- Put the disclosure at the start of your post, before any ''See more'' click. Never bury it in hashtags.
- Platform tools
- Instagram ''Paid partnership'' and TikTok ''Branded content'' labels are acceptable if clearly visible.
When disclosure is required
- Paid partnerships: Any money, commission, or payment for posting
- Gifted products: Free items sent to you (even without posting obligation)
- Loans: Products lent to you (cars, clothes, equipment)
- Affiliate links: Links where you earn commission on sales
- Brand ambassadors: Ongoing relationships with brands
- Discounts: Preferential rates not available to the public
Business responsibility for influencer content
If you hire influencers, brand ambassadors, or affiliates, you are responsible for their compliance. The ASA and CMA can take action against your business if influencers fail to disclose properly.
- Written agreements
- Include disclosure requirements in influencer contracts.
- Monitoring
- Review influencer content before and after posting.
- Corrective action
- Require non-compliant posts to be edited or removed.
Fake reviews (banned from 6 April 2025)
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 makes fake reviews a specific banned practice. The CMA can now take direct enforcement action without going to court.
- Banned practices
- Commissioning fake reviews, paying for positive reviews, offering incentives without clear disclosure, impersonating consumers, selectively publishing only positive reviews.
- Maximum penalty
- Up to £300,000 or 10% of global turnover (whichever is higher).
- Daily penalties
- Additional daily fines for continued non-compliance.
Online Safety Act 2023 - user-generated content platforms
If your business operates a platform that hosts user-generated content (reviews, comments, forums), you have additional duties under the Online Safety Act 2023.
You must:
- Conduct illegal content risk assessments
- Remove illegal content when reported
- Implement user reporting mechanisms
- Have clear community standards
Ofcom regulates compliance. Fines can reach 10% of global revenue.
Regulated by Ofcom. Penalties up to 10% of global revenue or £18 million (whichever is higher).
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Write a social media policy
Set clear rules for how your business and employees post on social media. Cover disclosure requirements, approval processes, and response protocols.
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Brief influencers in writing
Provide written guidance on disclosure rules. Include specific examples of acceptable labels and placement.
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Include disclosure in contracts
Add compliance clauses to influencer agreements. Require disclosure and give yourself the right to request edits.
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Monitor influencer content
Review posts before and after publication. Check disclosure labels are present and prominent.
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Audit your reviews
Check your review collection practices comply with the new fake reviews rules. Remove incentivised reviews that lack disclosure.
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Respond to complaints promptly
Address customer concerns on social media quickly. Public complaints left unanswered damage your reputation.