The Marketing Rule Ad Review Checklist

Start by deciding whether it is an advertisement

The Marketing Rule's definition sweeps in most communications offering advisory services to prospective clients or new services to current clients, plus any compensated testimonial or endorsement. Extemporaneous live oral communications and certain one-on-one materials are treated differently, and the distinction changes which requirements apply.

Broker-dealer material runs on a parallel but separate track under FINRA Rule 2210, with retail communication approval, filing, and content standards. Dual registrants need both tests, and the checklist runs them side by side.

• Advertisement scoping decision with the two prongs separated
• One-on-one and extemporaneous live oral treatment
• FINRA 2210 correspondence / retail / institutional classification

The general prohibitions do most of the enforcement work

Untrue statements, unsubstantiated claims, omitted material facts, unfair benefit-versus-risk treatment, misleading references to specific advice, unfair presentation of performance, and otherwise materially misleading content — these seven prohibitions are the basis for most Marketing Rule enforcement, not the exotic performance provisions.

The practical requirement is substantiation: you must have a reasonable basis for believing you can substantiate material statements of fact upon SEC demand. The checklist forces a substantiation citation for every claim and keeps it in the review file.

• Claim-by-claim substantiation log with source citation
• Benefit-and-risk balance test for each stated advantage
• Cherry-picked example and specific-advice reference check

Testimonials, endorsements, and ratings

Client testimonials and third-party endorsements are permitted with clear and prominent disclosure of client status, compensation, and material conflicts, plus adviser oversight and, for compensated promoters, a written agreement and disqualification screening.

Third-party ratings require that the questionnaire not be structured to produce a predetermined result, that the rating period be current, and that the disclosures about the rating's creation appear with it. The checklist covers placement: 'clear and prominent' means in the ad itself, not only in a linked footnote.

• Clear and prominent disclosure placement test by medium
• Promoter agreement, oversight, and disqualification screening
• Rating date, period, and methodology disclosure conditions

Performance advertising, gate by gate

Any presentation of gross performance must be accompanied by net performance with at least equal prominence, calculated over the same period and using the same methodology. Most performance presentations require one-, five-, and ten-year (or since-inception) periods with equal prominence.

Hypothetical performance — including targets, projections, model, and backtested results — is only permitted where the adviser adopts policies to ensure relevance to the likely financial situation and objectives of the intended audience, provides the criteria and assumptions, and supplies sufficient information to understand the risks and limitations. Extracted performance and predecessor performance each carry their own conditions.

• Gross/net pairing with equal prominence and identical methodology
• Prescribed one-, five-, ten-year period presentation
• Hypothetical performance audience-relevance policy and assumption disclosure
• Extracted performance and related-portfolio conditions
• Predecessor performance portability tests

Prove the review happened

Books and records requirements under Rule 204-2 mean the review itself is examinable: copies of the advertisement, the substantiation, the performance calculation support, promoter agreements, and evidence of who approved what and when.

The checklist closes with an approval workflow and retention grid — the same structure our RegReview and ADScanner workflows automate for firms that review high volumes of material.