Financial promotions on websites
In 2019, the FCA released guidance on using financial promotions on websites. You can read the full guidance here:
Banner ads & homepage promotions
Banner ads
Digital banners or banner ads refer to clickable images embedded in your website. They can be featured at the top, bottom or sides of your web page and can link through to specific sections on or outside of your website.
As with any financial promotion, banners must follow the compliance guidelines set by the FCA:
- Show a representative APR where trigger words are used
- Provide a clear, balanced view of the risks and benefits of the product or service
- Include correct prominence in the banner design
- Be fair, clear and not misleading.
Financial promotions on the homepage
Balance and placement of information
With the ability to add various content to a website’s homepage, it can be challenging to know if you’re providing a good balance and fair placement of information.
Without realising, your homepage could overly emphasise the positives of your product or service, prioritising attractive offers and pushing any important risks or disclosures further down the homepage, making them less noticeable.
Customer testimonials
Under section 3.3 of CONC 3: Financial promotions and communication with customers, businesses using “false testimonials, endorsements or case studies are likely to contravene the clear, fair and not misleading rule.”
When featuring customer testimonials on the homepage, they must be authentic and reflective of the service or product you offer.
Compliant
“[Business A] provided excellent service throughout the entire process. They were always on the other end of the phone, ready to answer any questions I had. I would definitely recommend them.”
Non-compliant
“Wow! [Business B] gave me an amazing service! I dealt with [Business A] briefly and they were good, but [Business B] I couldn’t be happier with! Their online portal is super easy to learn and use.”
