The Advertising Association promotes the role and rights of responsible advertising and its value to people, society, businesses and the economy. We represent UK advertisers, agencies, media owners and tech companies on behalf of the entire industry, acting as the connection between industry professionals and the politicians and policy-makers.

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The Advertising Association focuses on major industry and policy areas that have huge ramifications on UK advertising. This section contains our work around public health, gambling advertising, data and e-privacy, trust, the digital economy and more.

Credos is the advertising industry’s independent think tank. It produces research, evidence and reports into the impact and effectiveness of and public and political response to advertising on behalf of UK advertisers in order to enable the industry to make informed decisions.

Front Foot is our industry’s member network of over 90 businesses across UK advertising. It aims to promote the role of responsible advertising and its value to people, society and the economy through a coalition of senior leaders from advertisers, agencies and media owners.

We run a number of events throughout the year, from our annual LEAD summit to the Media Business Course and regular breakfast briefings for our members. We are also the official UK representative for the world’s biggest festival of creativity – Cannes Lions.

AA comment on new Covid-19 restrictions

/ September 22nd 2020 /
Coronavirus Response

Following today’s (22 September) statement by the Prime Minister regarding new restrictions in the wake of increasing rates of COVID-19 infections, Advertising Association Chief Executive Stephen Woodford has made the following statement.

“Advertising is a driver of economic activity and growth and with business and consumer confidence so fragile, we call on the Government to match further restrictions on economic activity with measures to alleviate their impact, particularly to continue to support jobs and businesses that are hardest hit, like many of the media sectors dependent on advertising. This is particularly important, given the indication that such restrictions will be necessary over the next six months, coming as they do during the biggest quarter annually for ad spend in the run-up to Christmas.

“Advertising can play a major role in both helping the national public health effort and the recovery and the AA has proposed an advertising tax credit for consideration in the Chancellor’s autumn statement as a means to stimulate the broad economy. More specifically, we ask Government to look again at aspects such as business rates relief on office premises and out-of-home poster sites, plus sectoral support for the most challenged areas of the advertising economy including entertainment, leisure, travel and hospitality, as well as the extension of help for SMEs and freelancers and other means to support employment as the furlough scheme comes to an end.”