Facebook has over 2.8 billion monthly users and has grown so big that lawmakers are trying to work to break up their power. Despite these efforts, Facebook (and Facebook ads) are still very popular.

You can spend as little as $1 a day on Facebook ads, making them an affordable marketing option, especially for small businesses.

However, if you are going to dip your toe into Facebook advertising, you need to follow the guidelines and avoid common mistakes.

If you make any of these mistakes, you run the risk of Facebook rejecting your ad or even banning your Facebook account altogether.

Read on to learn more about Facebook’s advertising policies and the types of ads they will typically reject.

1. Ads That Include “Get Rich Quick” Schemes

Ads promising that you’ll make hundreds of dollars in a week or two with little or no effort on your part seem too good to be true, right? That’s because they typically are and Facebook knows that.

Facebook has a number of policies addressing ads like this, including a multilevel marketing (MLM) policy that prohibits any ads that promote income opportunities that offer “quick compensation for little investment, including multi level marketing opportunities.”

The prohibited financial products and services policy also forbids ads promoting products or services “frequently associated with misleading or deceptive promotional practices.”

2. Ads With Poor Grammar and Profanity

If your ad is riddled with bad grammar and punctuation, you can be sure that Facebook will reject it. If you use any of the following, your ad will be rejected:

• Excessive punctuation
• Special symbols
• Misused capitalization

Facebook is clear that no profanity is allowed in their ads, so don’t try to get around this policy by using special symbols to spell out profane words.

Make sure your ads are free of any spelling and grammar errors, contain no profanity, and don’t try to circumvent Facebook’s rules by hiding profane words in them.

3. Personal Attributes

One of the most important things to avoid in your Facebook ads are any phrases that state or imply the personal attributes of a person.

If your ad contains verbiage that implies something about sex, race, gender identity, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, political party, criminal record, disability, medical conditions, etc. it will be rejected.

Any language that has “you” or “your” in it should be avoided if it’s used to identify an attribute. For example, saying something like “are you looking for other single moms to meet up with” is not ok, but saying “meet single moms to network with” is.

The second phrase is acceptable because you’re not calling out single moms, you are simply stating that they can use your product or service to meet single moms. There’s no implication that the person you are targeting is a single mom themselves. Instead, they self-identify.

Consequences for These Forbidden Phrases and Ads

The less serious punishment for these mistakes is having your ad rejected. Facebook will reject your ad and you will have to go back to the drawing board to fix any of the above mistakes or any other violation of their guidelines.

At the more serious end of the spectrum, though, Facebook may outright ban your account. If you get banned or shut down, you’ll have to appeal that decision and request reinstatement, which is not guaranteed and is very difficult to maneuver.

Avoid These Facebook Advertising Mistakes

The last thing you want to do is get your account banned from the platform and waste precious time trying to get reinstated.

Avoid these Facebook advertising mistakes and ensure you review Facebook Advertising policies thoroughly to avoid common mistakes.

If you need help, consider hiring a professional company. The pros know the ins and outs of Facebook’s advertising guidelines and can help you avoid these mistakes.

Contact Tyche Digital Media today to book a Facebook Ads consultation discovery call. There is no obligation and the discovery call is a great way to learn if digital marketing is a good fit for you.

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Grab this guide if you need effective techniques to minimize your Facebook ad costs.

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Results-driven, dynamic Director of Sales & Marketing turned Certified Master Marketer, Tammy uses all of her digital marketing smarts for good…she has managed millions of dollars in top-line revenue and hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising spend while consistently generating a 2:1 return inside the Facebook & Google Ad platforms. Follow Tammy on Facebook & Instagram.