What is the ASA and what role does it play in prize promotions?
The ASA – or Advertising Standards Authority – is the independent body that regulates all forms of advertising in the UK, including prize promotions. If you’re running a prize promotion you must comply with the ASA’s CAP Code for non-broadcast advertising (broadcast advertising must follow the BCAP Code).
What does the ASA do?
The ASA is funded by the advertising industry and operates at no cost to the taxpayer. It monitors all forms of advertising to make sure the CAP Code for non-broadcast advertising, which includes prize promotions, and the BCAP Code for broadcast advertising are followed.
The ASA investigates consumer complaints about advertising, including marketing communications such as prize promotions. It publishes its findings online and if it decides that the CAP Code has not been complied with it can impose a range of sanctions.
Most companies are keen to avoid reputational damage, so comply with the CAP Code and any instructions issued by the ASA if it finds a company or brand guilty of contravening the code.
What role does the ASA play in prize promotions?
Promotional compliance is key and all prize promotions must follow the ASA’s CAP Code. The primary objective of the CAP Code is to protect consumers. In terms of prize promotions, the CAP Code aims to ensure that all prize promotions are administered fairly.
The CAP Code covers issues such as the information you must make available entrants and how to conduct prize draws that produce genuinely random results. It also makes it clear that all prizes must be sent out.
If a consumer makes a complaint about a prize promotion they entered, the ASA investigates and publishes a ruling. If the ASA finds that the prize promotion did not adhere to the CAP Code and upholds the complaint, it tells the company or brand what it must do to address the issue and what it must do differently in future.
For example, the CAP Code states that prize promotions must not exaggerate entrants’ chances of winning. In an instant coffee prize promotion, Nestlé claimed that 100 magazine subscriptions were available to be won every day. A consumer complained to the ASA that this exaggerated the chances of winning. When it investigated the mechanics of the prize promotion, the ASA found the claim was misleading – Nestlé had exaggerated entrants’ chances of winning – and it upheld the complaint.
What sanctions can the ASA impose?
If a company persistently runs prize promotions that don’t comply with the CAP Code, the ASA can:
- Add the company to a public list of non-compliant advertisers
- Use SEO to ensure the complaint against the company appears at the top of search engine results
- Ask search engines to remove paid-search ads for the company
- Place the ASA’s own paid-search ads featuring the company and highlighting its non-compliance
- Work with social media platforms to remove the company’s non-compliant content
What are the key points about the ASA and prize promotions?
- The ASA or Advertising Standards Authority regulates all advertising, including marketing communications such as prize promotions, in the UK.
- You must comply with the ASA’s CAP Code for non-broadcast advertising if your company or brand is running a prize promotion.
- The ASA can deploy a range of sanctions against your company if your promotion does not follow the CAP Code.
Prizeology specialises in running prize promotions. It understands how the ASA works and has the expertise to ensure your prize promotion complies with the CAP Code.
