This is something that has happened to many marketers and entrepreneurs: they prepared an ad for Facebook™, double-checked everything…and it remained with the status “pending”. After a while, the status changed to “rejected”. The most frequent reason why Facebook™ rejects ads is because they do not comply with the ratio 80% photo or video and 20% text. Of course, you cannot measure everything down to the last pixel, but it is quite visible if most of your ad is an image, or a bunch of text.
In reality, there are many more rules which marketers are breaching, sometimes without realising it. Facebook™ has reviewed its rules for ads several times, and if you forgot to get up to date with the latest regulations in force, your ad will continue to get rejected. So, in this article we will try to help you eliminate some of the most frequent mistakes which people usually make when they are preparing Facebook™ ads.
Without further introduction, you should check your ads for these inconsistencies with Facebook™ rules before you launch your campaign:
1. Do Not Make Reference to Facebook™ Itself
Some marketers believe that, if they are allowed to post ads on Facebook™, the social media giant approves and endorses your products or services. This is absolutely false and you should never attempt to gain goodwill for your business by associating it with the Facebook™ name or logo.
This is a surefire way not only to have your ads rejected, but also your account suspended.
2. Your Ads Use Ambiguous Language
Some words may be acceptable in an informal conversation, or maybe you do not consider them particularly offensive. However, they may be hurtful to certain groups of people. If your ad gets flagged a number of times for abusive language, your ad will be banned and the next ones you prepare will be subject to a closer inspection before they are allowed.
Always remember to use standard dictionary meanings of words, be friendly but courteous, and never attempt to become too familiar through the use of jargons.
3. Destination URL
Some marketers think they are smarter than Facebook™ and cloak their destination URLs, leading people to a PDF or Word document. This practice is forbidden by Facebook™. All the people who click on your ad links must be taken to the same landing page, see the same type of content and not have their computers targeted by malicious software (such as Trojans and other type of malware).
4. You Promote Regulated Products or Services
Facebook™ prefers to avoid any kind of trouble. For this reason they accept ads promoting alcoholic beverages and offline gambling under strict conditions. Online gambling is allowed only in certain countries, while ads for prescription medication are completely forbidden.
You should go to the Facebook Community Centre and ask questions related to the products or services you wish to promote and you will receive accurate answer directly from Facebook’s™ staff.
5. You Use Words in All Caps
Given the fact that you are only allowed a few words in a Facebook™ ad, you may be tempted to put them in all caps and even add a few exclamation signs at the end. This is the classic look of a spammy ad which Facebook™ will reject. You do not need all caps to get your message across to people. Just imagine how you would react if you saw such an ad. Would you trust the company posting it? Would you click on the link?
In the end, what Facebook™ is trying to do with these rules is keep the social media platform nice, pleasant and friendly for everyone – people of all ages, cultures, and beliefs. If you play by the rules, your ads will not get rejected and you will gain a lot of happy and loyal customers.
6. Bonus Tip. Did you notice that we used the ™ symbol when referencing the tech giant? If you want to avoid more than an ad reject, consider doing that too for them or any other ones with a team of lawyers that you’re mentioning.