Marketing Matters | Review of May 2026

Welcome to this month's edition of Marketing Matters, where we look at advertising and marketing (A&M) trends in the retail and consumer sector.

We will be looking at:

• Some of the key takeaways for A&M departments following April ASA rulings.
• Other top ASA stories.
• CMA news for the same period.

ASA Rulings – key takeaways

Misleading discounts and inaccurate prices

Four well known retailers have had online adverts banned for giving misleading impressions about savings and discounts. In each case, the adverts claimed that a product was discounted against a previous price which was not genuine. The key takeaways are:

• If you imply that a price is discounted from a previous price, the ASA will expect the product to have genuinely been sold at the higher price for a substantial period (in line with the Chartered Training Standards Institution Guidance for Traders on Pricing Practices). They will also expect you to be able to support this with detailed sales information and/or pricing data. The product having been available at the higher price at some point is unlikely to be enough.
• If you operate as a marketplace facilitating sales by third-party businesses, you may still be responsible for their misleading marketing. In one of the cases, the ASA ruled that where the retailer "hosted offers from third-party sellers on its website, we considered that they were responsible for ensuring those offers represented a genuine saving".
• Three of the four rulings resulted from a proactive ASA investigation, started by their AI-powered Active Ad Monitoring system. Misleading pricing is likely to be a key target for Active Ad Monitoring, so retailers should be aware that the ASA might investigate their price-related ads even if no complaint is made.

Marketing communications – a tough nut to crack?

A social media post for a pair of nutcracker-themed cushions was deemed to be an advert, and was not obviously identifiable as such. Key lessons for retailers (and social media influencers) include:

•  The definition of "marketing communication" is wider than you might think. Here, there was no relationship between the retailer selling the product and the influencer promoting it and the influencer had bought the product themselves. However, providing an Amazon affiliate link to those who commented on the post meant that it was "directly connected with the supply of goods" and was therefore an ad.
• Social media posts that are adverts (including affiliate links) must be clearly labelled. A common approach is to include #AD (or similar) in the title or main body of the post. Here, the post wasn't clearly labelled as an advert, and the fact that the influencer's Amazon storefront indicated that they earned commission from sales through their affiliate link was insufficient.

A rum do for alcohol advertising

Two adverts for alcohol – one from a wine brand, the other from a chain of alcohol retailers – have been banned. Retailers who sell alcohol should remember that the rules around advertising are strict, and should consider that:

• Adverts implying that alcohol has therapeutic or mood-altering qualities are not allowed. Drawing any parallels or links between alcohol and positive mental health is going to result in the advert being banned.
• Alcohol adverts must also not encourage excessive drinking. Any sort of reference to alcohol being used to forget, or as a tool to lift someone's mood, are likely to be caught by this.
• Context is important. An advert might be less appropriate at certain times of the year – here, humorous references to alcohol as an alternative to romance were inappropriate in the run-up to Valentines Day.

Top ASA stories last month

Tobacco Advertising: Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026, becoming the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 (the 'Act'). The Act, amongst other things, bans the sale of tobacco to anyone born on or after 1 January 2009 and introduces tighter restrictions on advertising tobacco, vaping and nicotine- related products.

It amends the existing definition of 'tobacco product' to now cover any product "consisting wholly or partly of tobacco and intended to be smoked, sniffed, sucked, chewed or consumed in any other way." Because of this broader definition, more products - including heated tobacco devices and nicotine pouches – are now likely to fall under existing advertising prohibitions. The Act also makes it a criminal offence for a person, acting in the course of business, to publish, design, print or distribute, or cause the publication or distribution of an advertisement in the UK whose purpose or effect is to promote tobacco, vaping, nicotine or herbal smoking products and cigarette papers. 

The Government's intention is for this to come into force across the UK from 1 June 2027. Follow the link for more detail  

Goals for World Cup Ads

One of football's biggest events, FIFA World Cup, has begun. Such a major international sporting event, which will place football at the centre of public attention for several weeks, offers valuable marketing opportunities. The ASA outlines some key takeaways that may arise in relation to World Cup-themed advertising and how advertisers can stay compliant:

• No misleading links to the World Cup: ads can reference the tournament, but must not imply official sponsorship, endorsement or association where none exists. This includes incorporating FIFA's and the FIFA World Cup 26's Official Intellectual Property into any ad content you generate.

• Extra caution for gambling ads: football tournaments often cause spikes in gambling advertising. Such ads should not feature people who would be considered as having strong appeal to young people. Ads should also avoid portraying gambling as a solution to financial concerns or as a way to enhance social or professional success.

• Strict age requirements: gambling and alcohol ads must not prominently feature individuals who are under 25 years old or appear to be under 25.

• Follow alcohol advertising rules: ads must not encourage excessive drinking, suggest drinking in inappropriate situations or imply that alcohol improves physical performance.

Follow the link for more detail

Swiping Right on ASA-compliant dating adverts 

The ASA provides the following guidance for adverts by dating apps/websites:

• Avoid outdated gender stereotypes: ads should steer clear of sexist or unequal portrayals in textual or visual cues. For example, a social media ad for a dating app sought to highlight small gestures of kindness performed in relationships depicted all the gestures by performed by the woman as domestic chores, which was not reciprocated by the man. The ASA concluded that the ad perpetuated harmful gender stereotypes, which are not mitigated by using humour.

• Handle sexual content with care: suggestive imagery or language must be used carefully, ensuring that ads are targeted and not used in mediums likely to be seen by children. Mild, non-gratuitous affection may be acceptable, but provocative content risks being found irresponsible and likely to cause widespread offence.

• Be clear about pricing: claims that a dating app or site is "completely free" must be accurate. If key features require payment, this must be made obvious, and any pricing or savings claims should be substantiated.

• Don't mislead users: those in the dating game often search for partners who share the same views. Dating ads should not exploit this by claiming their dating app/ website is exclusive to only specific grounds if this is not the case. For example, a dating site that gave the impression that it was for Catholic people looking to meet others of the same faith but was in fact open to other users as well was found to be misleading. 

Follow the link for more detail

Recent CMA Activity

The CMA has decided to launch a strategic market status (SMS) investigation under its digital markets powers into Microsoft's business software ecosystem, focusing on its strong position across widely used products such as Windows, Office, Teams and AI tools like Copilot. The review will assess whether practices including product bundling, limited interoperability, default settings and software licensing can restrict competition, making it harder for UK businesses to switch providers or integrate Microsoft tools with competitor software. The investigation will gather input from businesses, competitors and other stakeholders, with a decision expected by February 2027. This is the fourth SMS investigation opened by the CMA since the UK's digital markets competition regime came into force in January 2025.

Follow the link for more detail