Facebook’s Advertising Rules and Restrictions - adMixt - eCommerce Marketing Specialist
Navigating the rules around what Facebook deems acceptable for ad approvals can be a daunting task. At adMixt, we run some of the most successful Facebook e-commerce campaigns, for some of the world’s biggest brands, so we decided to break down a few rules to help you navigate the process.
Facebook’s policies provide advertisers with guidelines that determine which ads are acceptable. Ads that are unacceptable risk being disapproved by Facebook. Here is an overview of some of the rules and restrictions to help you out.
Language
The copy must reflect the product being advertised in an accurate, non-misleading way. Any description in the copy should be reflected in the landing page.
Additionally, the landing page must be fully functional, match the product and service promoted in the ad, and comply with Facebook’s advertising policies.
A quick way to get your ads rejected, and potentially have your account banned, is to change up your landing page after an initial approval. If Facebook feels like the landing page was purposefully changed to bypass their normal approval process, they can be swift in permanently deactivating accounts.
Prohibited Content
Although Facebook allows advertisers to create ads about most topics, they prohibit content that includes some of the following:
- Tobacco products
- Drugs and drugs-related products
- Illegal products
- Controversial content
- Before and After images
- Profanity
On top of that, Facebook will reject any ads containing false, deceptive, or misleading language, or ads that appropriate third party (copyrighted) content. Facebook has pretty strict rules over what they consider deceptive. They’ll even reject ads for having bad grammar, so make sure to write goodly.
Restricted Content
In addition to the prohibited content that absolutely cannot be in ads, there is also a grey-area in which Facebook allows for certain kinds of content given their exceptions. For instance, Facebook allows ads that feature subscription services given that the ad makes it clear that a subscription is required and it must target people 18 years and older.
Some restricted content includes the following:
- Alcohol
- Dating
- Real Money Gambling
- Online Pharmacies
- Supplements
- Financial Services
- Branded Content
To run campaigns for these types of products and services, it often required to get prior approval from your Facebook representative before launching your campaigns. Without that, your ads will automatically be rejected.
Facebook Text Rule
Previously, Facebook’s enforced a policy limiting the amount of text on an ad to less than 20%. Ads with more than 20% text were be rejected. They developed this tool to help advertisers measure the amount of text in their images. Recently, Facebook relaxed this rule, allowing advertisers to use as much text as they want, but there’s a catch! Ads with more text are penalized their delivery auction, and often see reduced performance. So while the rule is now more flexible, it can be harder to predict how an ad with text will perform. If Facebook decides the ad has a bad user experience, they may stop serving it completely, even though the ad is not officially rejected.
Appeals
Sometimes it’s difficult to tell why an ad was rejected. Facebook offers an appeals process if advertisers are confident their ads are compliant. But it’s important to be familiar with Facebook’s policies to effectively appeal Facebook’s decisions.
Expert Advice
At adMixt, we have years of experience designing, launching and optimizing e-commerce ads on Facebook. Our team of dedicated experts help our clients navigate the maze of Facebook’s policies and launch campaigns designed to put their goals in line with Facebook’s, and their customers.
Our complementary creative services give clients the creative depth they need to reach consumers in the most effective way possible. We optimize every component of our clients’ ads to insure we’re reaching the right people, at the right time, in the right way.
Interested in learning more? Contact us here.
Sources:
https://www.facebook.com/policies/ads/
https://www.facebook.com/business/help/223106797811279