Bookstagram and UK Advertising Rules: How to Review Gifted Books Legally

Bookstagram runs on goodwill. A publicist offers a proof, an author sends a signed copy, and one photograph in good light reaches more readers than a print advert ever would. Nothing wrong with that — until the free book arrives with a gentle ask attached, and the post goes up without a word about it. The UK's advertising rules care far less about your follower count than about what changed hands. Here's what that means for reviews, photos and Reels.

Who the rules apply to (yes, including you)

The Advertising Standards Authority enforces the CAP Code, the rulebook written by the Committee of Advertising Practice. It covers marketing communications in UK media, and social media counts — as do blogs, newsletters and YouTube channels.

Two things surprise people. Account size is irrelevant; the ASA has ruled on accounts with a few hundred followers. And the rules apply to hobbyists as much as to full-time creators. If a brand gains a commercial benefit from your post and you were paid in some way, it is advertising.

The Competition and Markets Authority polices the same ground from a consumer-protection angle. Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, it can act directly against traders that mislead consumers rather than going to court first. Reviewers are rarely the target — the brands briefing them are — but the duty to disclose sits with whoever presses post.

It helps to think of it this way: the rules follow the relationship, not the follower count. A tiny account reviewing a gifted proof can be advertising. A huge account reviewing a book it bought itself usually is not. What matters is whether something was given in exchange for coverage, and whether the brand had any say over what that coverage looked like.

The test that decides everything: payment and control

Most disclosure questions come down to two of them.

Was there payment?

Payment means money, but it also means free copies, early proofs, event invitations, or a discount code that earns you commission. A book counts.

Ask yourself: did the book, proof, audiobook code, bookmark bundle or event invite arrive because someone hoped for coverage? If yes, treat it as payment. It does not matter whether money reached your bank account. A free finished copy has value, and publishers send it for a reason.

Was there control?

Control means the brand had a say in the content: an agreed posting date, a required hashtag, a brief asking you to mention the audiobook, a request to see the caption before it goes live, or simply an understanding that a review will follow.

Control can be formal or informal. A written contract is obvious. So is a publicist who says, “We'd love a feature in the week of publication.” Less obvious is the publisher who sends a proof with a polite “no pressure” note, then follows up asking when your review will be live. The follow-up creates an expectation. Once there is an expectation, there is usually control.

Where both exist, you have an ad, and the CAP Code requires it to be obviously identifiable as one. A few scenarios:

• An unsolicited proof lands on the doormat. No email, no conditions, and you post a photo because you liked it. Not an ad under the CAP Code, since there was no control. Still worth saying the publisher sent it.
• A publicist emails to say they'd love a feature in the next fortnight, and posts the book. There's an expectation, so there's control. Label it.
• You're on a publisher's early-copies list and are occasionally asked to post. Treat the asked-for posts as ads; the others as you wish, with a quiet note about where the book came from.
• You buy a book yourself and tag the publisher. No payment, no control. Not an ad. Tagging is not the issue; the commercial relationship is.
• You use an affiliate link to a bookshop. You earn commission if someone buys. That's payment, and while the review might be your own, the link is advertising. Disclose it before the link.
• A publisher sends a proof with a press release and says there's no obligation. No control if you are genuinely free to ignore it. If they later ask for a post, that request creates control.

Useful rule of thumb: if you'd feel awkward spelling out exactly what you agreed to, that's your answer.

Labels that work, and labels that don't

The ASA wants something a stranger could understand in half a second. Plain words work. Abbreviations usually don't, especially when the reader has to decode them.Photo: DariuszSankowski / Pixabay