The Compliant
Growth Playbook
Plain English, real ASIC quotes, and examples you can copy. What the new rules actually say, what they mean, and how to keep marketing your practice without getting caught out.
Start here: what changed, who it affects, and what to do about it
If you read nothing else, read this. The rest of the guide just explains each part in more detail.
What changed: ASIC rewrote the advertising rulebook on 9 June 2026
ASIC updated Regulatory Guide 234 (RG 234), the rulebook for how financial products and services can be advertised. It is the first full rewrite since 2012. The old separate guide on past returns (RG 53) was rolled into it and scrapped.
Who it affects: anyone who markets a financial service, in any format
Every adviser and firm that promotes anything. Your website, your ads, your social posts, your seminars, your emails, your quizzes and your free downloads. ASIC says advertising is any way you present your services to influence what a person does next. So it is nearly all of your marketing.
When ASIC says "advertising," read it as nearly all your marketing, not just paid ads. Your website, emails, social posts, seminars, webinars and free tools are all caught. Everywhere this guide says "ad," read it as any piece of your marketing.
The one big idea: it now matters whether people understood your marketing
The old rule was basically "did you include the disclaimer somewhere". The new rule is "would a normal person understand the real picture after seeing this once". Burying the important bit in fine print no longer counts.
What to do: treat every ad like a client will read it once and believe it
- Make the headline true on its own, without needing the fine print.
- Put the warning or condition right next to the claim, not in a footnote or a later screen.
- Check anyone who finds leads for you. Their behaviour can become your legal problem.
This is general marketing guidance, not legal or compliance advice. It is our plain-English summary to help you have a better conversation with your licensee. Always get your marketing checked by your AFSL or compliance team before it goes live. Every ASIC quote in this guide is real and referenced at the end.
The big change: ASIC now judges whether people understood your marketing, not just whether you disclosed the detail
Understand this one idea and every rule later in the guide makes sense.
The test is the overall impression your ad leaves on a normal person the first time they see it.
"Consumers cannot be expected to study or revisit an advertisement, the most important consideration is the overall impression created by the advertisement when viewed for the first time."
RG 234.196(d)People glance at your ad once and move on. So ASIC judges it on the impression a first, quick look leaves, not on the careful reading you hope they give it. If the quick look is misleading, the ad is a problem, even if the small print sets it straight.
Risky: a big banner says "Grow your super faster" and the "returns are not guaranteed" line sits in grey 8pt text at the bottom.
Better: the main message itself is balanced, so the quick glance is honest, for example "A plan to help grow your super over time. Returns go up and down."
No. If the headline creates the wrong impression, a disclaimer underneath cannot rescue it.
"If a qualification is required, it must be published at the same time as the original message. Subsequent qualifying disclosures will not be effective as the misleading impression will already have been created."
RG 234.39The warning has to arrive at the same moment as the claim, not later and not somewhere the reader has to go looking. And some headlines are so strong that no disclaimer can fix them at all, so the headline itself has to be honest.
Risky: "Double your retirement savings*" with the asterisk leading to fine print further down.
Better: do not make the claim you then have to walk back. Say what you can actually stand behind, in the headline itself.
Sending people somewhere else to get the full story does not fix a misleading ad.
"Providing a facility for a consumer to access additional information cannot be used to correct a misleading overall impression in the advertisement."
RG 234.173 (internet advertising)A "click here for details", a QR code, or the product disclosure statement is not a fix. If the ad itself gives the wrong impression, it is already misleading before anyone clicks. The ad has to stand on its own.
Risky: "Guaranteed income for life. Learn more." with the real conditions only on the landing page.
Better: carry the key conditions in the ad itself, then link out for the finer detail.
At Growth Studio Agency we write the message so the quick glance is already honest: a balanced headline, the important part in plain sight, nothing that needs rescuing by fine print. Compliant on first read, not just on close inspection.
The four things that actually changed on 9 June 2026
Read these four headings and you know everything that is new.
All the rules about past returns moved into this one guide
The separate guide on advertising past performance (RG 53) was rolled into RG 234 and withdrawn. Everything about advertising is now in one place, and the wording of your returns warnings matters more (see the fifth rule below).
Social media, podcasts, influencers and AI are now clearly covered
The 2012 rules were written before any of this existed. ASIC has now named social media, online platforms and "finfluencers" directly, and says the rules apply "regardless of any specific technologies that may be used, including artificial intelligence (AI)".
"Advertising" is defined very broadly, so more of your marketing is caught
It is not just paid ads. It covers your landing pages, your organic posts, retargeting ads that follow people around the web, and even a "free tool" that leads into your funnel. ASIC also lists intermediaries like lead generators as being in scope.
The guide is full of real enforcement examples, not theory
The new RG 234 uses examples drawn from cases ASIC has actually acted on since 2012. It is showing you the exact conduct it has already taken to court.
The five rules that now decide whether your marketing is allowed
Each rule is written as a plain instruction, then ASIC's exact words, then what it means, then an example.
The bolder the claim, the more the balancing detail has to sit right there with it.
"The more that a qualification is required to balance the information contained in the headline claim, the more prominently placed the qualification should be. The headline claim must not itself be misleading."
RG 234.34People read the big words and skip the small ones. So the big words have to be honest by themselves. If a claim needs a lot of "but actually..." to be fair, that "but actually" has to be just as easy to see.
Risky: "Low-risk way to build wealth" as the headline for a high-risk product.
Better: describe the product honestly up top, and give the risk the same weight as the benefit.
Tiny text, a wall of words, or a flash on screen does not count as a real warning.
"[Warnings, disclaimers and qualifications] should also have sufficient prominence to effectively convey key information to a reasonable member of the audience on first viewing... Information is less likely to be noticed and understood if it is in fine print, contained within a dense block of text, only shown... for a brief period, or placed where there is distracting content shown simultaneously."
RG 234.35A warning only works if a normal person actually notices and understands it the first time. Hiding it in fine print, cramming it into a paragraph, or flashing it on screen for a second all fail this test.
Risky: a 15-second video ad where the risk warning appears for half a second at the end.
Better: keep the warning on screen long enough to read, in text big enough to read, with nothing distracting over it.
Every sentence can be technically true and the ad can still be misleading overall.
"When determining whether an advertisement is misleading or deceptive, the overall impression given by the advertisement is very important."
RG 234.196You cannot defend an ad by pointing to each true sentence. If the overall feeling a person walks away with is wrong, the ad is misleading. Step back and read it like a stranger would.
Risky: an ad full of true statements, calm music and images of a happy retired couple that together imply "safe, easy, guaranteed".
Better: make sure the overall feeling matches reality, not just the individual facts.
"There was not enough room" is not a defence.
"Does the complexity of the product prevent it from being advertised clearly on the chosen channel or platform and, if so, how can the complexity be addressed by the promoter?"
RG 234.197(d)If a product is too complex to explain fairly in a tiny banner or a short post, the answer is not to leave out the risk. The answer is to use a channel with more room, or not advertise it there.
Risky: promoting a complex SMSF strategy in a punchy 10-word Instagram caption with no balance.
Better: use a format that has room for the full picture, like a landing page or a longer explainer.
ASIC now tells you which warnings work and which are too weak.
Stronger: "Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance" (RG 234.86). Too weak: "Examples of future performance warnings that are less likely to be effective include: 'Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance' and 'Future returns may vary'."
RG 234.86 and RG 234.88Say plainly that past returns do not tell you what happens next. "Not a reliable indicator of future performance" is strong. Soft lines like "returns may vary" are now called out as too weak, and never imply a return is guaranteed.
Risky: "Our fund returned 11% last year. Returns may vary."
Better: "Our fund returned 11% over [period]. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance."
Every headline, ad and page we build is written against these five rules before it ever runs: balance in the hook, warnings in plain sight, the right past-performance wording. Compliant by design, not patched up after a compliance knock-back.
How the five rules apply to each place you market
Same rules, shown in the specific spots you actually use. The heading tells you the rule for that channel.
"Social media influencers who discuss and/or promote financial products and services online (also known as 'finfluencers') must ensure that promotional material is not misleading and complies with other relevant financial [services laws]."
RG 234.179Do put the balancing detail next to the claim it belongs to, on the same screen. Watch out for a big hero headline that the body text quietly takes back.
Do apply the full rules to reels, posts and captions, and check any influencer's content before you share it. Watch out for punchy posts about SMSFs or "strategies" with no balance because "it is only a short video".
Do keep subject lines and hooks honest, since the overall impression begins before the email is even opened. Watch out for teaser subject lines that promise results you then have to caveat inside.
Do make sure your slides and your spoken script carry the warnings, not just the sign-up page. Watch out for a compliant invite followed by a loose, off-script pitch in the room.
Do hold retargeting creative to the same standard as a first-time ad. Watch out for shrinking the message to fit the small format and losing the balance with it.
Do be upfront about who you are and what happens after they submit. Watch out for "free health check" style hooks that hide a sales funnel. This one is big enough that it gets its own section next.
We run education-led, opt-in campaigns across these same channels, so the message stays balanced whether it is a landing page, a social post or a retargeting ad. One standard, everywhere your firm shows up.
The lead-gen trap: the mistake that can put your licence at risk, not just your ad
This is the one that matters most for advisers, because the risk attaches to your name, not just your ad.
"Free help" hooks that are really built to push people into switching their super.
"Lead generators may offer a free 'super health check' or to find your lost super. These can be sales tactics designed to pressure consumers into switching superannuation, even when a super fund is performing well."
ASIC media release 26-029MR, Feb 2026A "free super health check", a "find your lost super" offer, or a "retirement readiness" quiz can look like neutral help but be built to funnel people toward switching, whether or not switching is good for them. That is the exact pattern ASIC is hunting.
Risky: a quiz titled "Is your super failing you?" that always ends with "book a call to switch".
Better: a genuinely useful tool that gives an honest result even when the answer is "your current setup is fine".
Because ASIC says the licensed adviser shares the risk of the lead generator's behaviour.
"ASIC warns that lead generators that mislead consumers, utilise high pressure tactics or provide financial services without a licence will risk contravening the law. Licensed persons or entities that engage the services of lead generators acting in this way, share this risk."
ASIC media release 26-029MR, Feb 2026If you pay a lead shop and that shop misleads people or pressures them, you can be on the hook too. This is tied to the Shield and First Guardian fund collapses, where more than $100 million went to lead generators. Cheap leads can become an expensive legal problem with your name on it.
Risky: buying leads from a third party on ASIC's published list, with no idea how they were generated.
Better: run your own client acquisition, so you control and can stand behind every step.
You do not have to give up lead magnets. You just have to build them the right way.
Quizzes and scorecards work because people genuinely want the answer. Keep them honest and they are a strong, compliant way to grow.
- Be upfront about who you are. Make it clear a licensed financial adviser is behind it and what happens after they hit submit.
- Give real value first. The tool has to be useful on its own, even for someone who never books a call.
- No scare hooks. Skip "your super is failing" style fear. Help people, do not frighten them.
- Balance every claim. Show the risk clearly, never imply a guarantee, and be honest about what a result means.
- Own your funnel. Build and control your own client acquisition so you never rely on a shop that might end up on ASIC's list.
Good: a "retirement readiness scorecard" that clearly says it is run by [Firm], a licensed adviser, gives a genuinely useful score, and offers a chat only as an optional next step.
Growth Studio Agency is not a lead generator. We build compliant client acquisition systems you own: an education-led, opt-in approach where the right people raise their hand for genuinely useful content. No rented lists, no hidden hooks, nothing that lands you on ASIC's list.
Good vs risky: the same message, rewritten to pass
Read the right-hand column for a set of patterns you can copy straight into your own marketing.
Writing the right-hand column is most of what we do. We take the message you want to land and rebuild it so it converts and passes the new test at the same time.
Check your own marketing: 10 questions to ask before anything goes live
Go through your current website, ads and posts and answer each question honestly.
- Does every headline stand up on its own, without needing the fine print to be true?
- Does each warning or condition sit right next to the claim it belongs to, on the same screen?
- If a stranger saw it once, would they walk away with an accurate impression?
- Do your past-returns warnings use "not a reliable indicator" wording, and are they easy to see?
- Have you removed anything that implies a guarantee you cannot actually give?
- Do your social and short-form posts carry the same balance as your website?
- Are your retargeting ads held to the same standard as your first-time ads?
- Do your quizzes and free tools make it clear a licensed adviser is behind them, and what happens next?
- Have you checked every lead generator you use against ASIC's published list and how they behave?
- Has your licensee or compliance team signed it off before it went live?
That is normal, and it is fixable. Most firms built their marketing under the old "did we disclose it" mindset. The work now is simply to read it again through the new lens and adjust. That is exactly what the assessment below is for.
Where Growth Studio Agency fits: education-led client acquisition, compliant before it launches
Everything in this guide is how we already work. Here is what that looks like in practice.
Growth Studio Agency builds compliant client acquisition systems for Australian financial planning firms. Not lead generation, and not rented lists. We build the infrastructure you own: an education-led, opt-in approach where the right people raise their hand for genuinely useful content, then move toward a conversation on their own terms. Every asset is checked for ASIC and AFSL compliance before it goes live.
The difference in one look
- Hides who is really behind it
- Uses a scare hook to force a click
- Pushes a switch no matter what
- Leads are rented from a third party
- The goal is the click
- Says clearly a licensed adviser is behind it
- Earns attention with genuine value
- Gives an honest result, even "you're fine"
- The funnel is yours and you control it
- The goal is to help; booking is optional
The kind of assets we build for clients
A short quiz that gives a genuine score and a clear next step, upfront about who is behind it.
A resource like the one you are reading. It earns the opt-in by being genuinely useful on its own.
A teaching session that builds trust and lets the right people put their hand up to talk.
An interactive tool that shows a real number and invites, never pressures, a conversation.
On-brand emails that look the part in the inbox, with disclaimers and opt-out built in.
Value-based emails that teach and build trust over time, so the right people come to you ready.
Real conversations with your happy clients, filmed as proof that does the selling for you.
Short, credible client testimonials you can use across your site, ads and social.
Your colours, voice and core messages in one place, so everything you put out looks and sounds consistent.
Compliance baked into every asset
- Comprehensive, plain-language disclaimers on every piece we produce, not only the big campaigns
- Prominent risk warnings and the correct past-performance wording, every time
- Clear identification that a licensed adviser is behind the message
- Working opt-out and consent on every email and message, as the law requires
- Full ASIC and AFSL review before anything goes live
What we deliberately don't do
Just as important as what we build is what we leave out. These are the lines we do not cross, and they are the same lines the new rules care about most.
- We don't talk about specific products. That is your advice to give, not our marketing to make.
- We don't make performance claims or imply guaranteed returns. No "beat the market", no promises about the future.
- We don't make claims we can't back up. A line like "your super is failing" is not a fact, it is a guess, because we don't know your client's situation. No manufactured problems, no false urgency.
- We don't rent leads or buy lists. You own your audience, and we know exactly how every contact came in.
- We don't try to attract everyone. The copy is written to draw your ideal client and gently put off the rest, so you get better-fit enquiries, not just more of them.
You own the infrastructure
The system belongs to you, so you are never exposed to a third-party lead shop on ASIC's list.
Balance built in
Every hook, ad and page is written to pass the new "overall impression" test, not just to convert.
Checked before launch
Nothing runs until it has been reviewed against ASIC's rules and your licensee's requirements.
Would your current marketing pass the new RG 234 test?
Book a genuine 60-minute, no-obligation working session directly with Allan. We will look at where your firm actually stands under the new rules, and how to grow your client base without the compliance risk. No junior consultants, no pre-recorded pitch. Pick a time below.
Financial services firms only. Every campaign we build is reviewed for ASIC and AFSL compliance before launch.
Built by someone who knows your industry from the inside
Allan Whatmore is not a marketer who learned about financial services. He is a financial services professional who built a marketing system specifically for it.
That means understanding compliance boundaries before writing a single word, and speaking the same language as your clients, your team and your licensee. It is why compliant-by-design is the starting point at GSA, not something bolted on at the end.
Allan Whatmore · Founder, Growth Studio Agency
Sources: every quote in this guide comes from ASIC's own material
Do not take our word for it. Read the originals.
- RG 234 Advertising financial products and services (including credit), ASIC, published 9 June 2026. The paragraph numbers in this guide (for example RG 234.39) refer to this document. asic.gov.au
- ASIC updates guidance on advertising financial products and services, ASIC news item, 9 June 2026. asic.gov.au
- 26-029MR ASIC commences new review of advice licensees that use lead generation services, February 2026. Source of the "super health check" and shared-risk quotes. asic.gov.au
- 26-125MR ASIC expands list of known entities involved in lead generation, 2026. Source of the named-entities figures. asic.gov.au
This guide is general marketing information prepared by Growth Studio Agency. It is not legal, compliance or financial advice, and it does not replace guidance from your licensee or your own reading of RG 234. Quotes are reproduced from ASIC's published documents and may be shortened for space, with the paragraph reference given so you can read the full text. Regulatory positions can change. Confirm the current requirements with ASIC and your compliance team before acting.