Am I in violation of Google's Advertising Policy with Advertorials?

Dlewis78 · 05-21-2010, 11:32 AM

I am considering using Google's PPC platform to promote my products and have been carefully reading their advertising policies. One policy that has me confused is their "mimicking policy." It says "do not mimick news articles or features."

This has me a bit confused because I had planned on testing some editorial style ads and/or advertorials and now am wondering will I be in violation of the advertising policy if I do so. I mean, how is "mimicking a news article" defined? Any insight is welcomed.

Thanks!

paulgl · 05-21-2010, 12:42 PM

You've answered your own question. Don't do it.
There are big names that can get away with it.

Your ad, in short, must be looked upon as an ad.

When you make it appear something that it's not,
you are trying to fool a person into clicking the ad.
They see a news article and want a real news
article when they click, not an ad.

No matter how you slice it, you can't do that.

True, big names can get away with things we can't.

It does not say you can't advertise a "news" site.
The big news sites and magazines do it all the time.

Follow all rules, whether you like them or not, or
you will get your adwords account banned.

Don't even try and shmooze them. You will get
burned.

Example: "New Study Proves XYZ diet loses weight!"
What it should say:"Ditch your old diet and try our new XYZ diet."

In fact, this is what sets adwords apart from others. I call it the
google trustworthiness.

Paul

Dlewis78 · 05-24-2010, 07:45 AM

Thanks Paul for your reply. I actually contacted Google directly and asked them to clarify this policy. And here is what they said below:

"Per this policy your image ad cannot mimic news articles or text ads as this leads to poor ad quality. What this means is that, your image ad cannot be an image of a news article and they cannot be screen shots of text ads or search results uploaded into image ads format. The main content/purpose of image must be legible."

05-21-2010, 11:32 AM	#1
Dlewis78 Active Warrior Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 35 Thanks: 9 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Am I in violation of Google's Advertising Policy with Advertorials? I am considering using Google's PPC platform to promote my products and have been carefully reading their advertising policies. One policy that has me confused is their "mimicking policy." It says "do not mimick news articles or features." This has me a bit confused because I had planned on testing some editorial style ads and/or advertorials and now am wondering will I be in violation of the advertising policy if I do so. I mean, how is "mimicking a news article" defined? Any insight is welcomed. Thanks!

05-21-2010, 12:42 PM	#2
paulgl Plundering the Web War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: , , . Posts: 4,849 Thanks: 804 Thanked 1,199 Times in 886 Posts	Re: Am I in violation of Google's Advertising Policy with Advertorials? You've answered your own question. Don't do it. There are big names that can get away with it. Your ad, in short, must be looked upon as an ad. When you make it appear something that it's not, you are trying to fool a person into clicking the ad. They see a news article and want a real news article when they click, not an ad. No matter how you slice it, you can't do that. True, big names can get away with things we can't. It does not say you can't advertise a "news" site. The big news sites and magazines do it all the time. Follow all rules, whether you like them or not, or you will get your adwords account banned. Don't even try and shmooze them. You will get burned. Example: "New Study Proves XYZ diet loses weight!" What it should say:"Ditch your old diet and try our new XYZ diet." In fact, this is what sets adwords apart from others. I call it the google trustworthiness. Paul
	How to Make Money off Facebook: Login to your account. Deactivate your account. Get your butt to work.

05-24-2010, 07:45 AM	#3
Dlewis78 Active Warrior Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 35 Thanks: 9 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post	Re: Am I in violation of Google's Advertising Policy with Advertorials? Thanks Paul for your reply. I actually contacted Google directly and asked them to clarify this policy. And here is what they said below: "Per this policy your image ad cannot mimic news articles or text ads as this leads to poor ad quality. What this means is that, your image ad cannot be an image of a news article and they cannot be screen shots of text ads or search results uploaded into image ads format. The main content/purpose of image must be legible."