How To Fix Facebook Ad Rejected For Social Issues

Javier -

Meta is very cautious when it comes to addressing Social Issues on its platforms. Any misinformation could get your Facebook ads banned due to its ad policy on Social Issues. Before we get started, are you running ads about social issues?

If your answer is NO, do refer to This Section on how to stop Facebook from flagging your ads for the wrong reason.

If your answer is YES, then read on.

We require people to confirm their identity and create a disclaimer to run ads about social issues. Your ad may have been rejected if it mentions sensitive social issues that could influence public opinion.

Your company has been promoting apps or initiatives to help people take action on certain Sustainable Development Goals. It's common for the ads to be around topics like climate change, human rights, and other social issues, so you often get flagged for your ads being about social issues and hence requiring a disclaimer.

To get authorized, there are a total of 5 items on the checklist:

  1. Special Ad Category - Select "Social Issues, Elections or Politics" under Campaign > Ad Category, else your ad will be rejected.
  2. Confirm Identity - Verify your identity using your personal ID documents, e.g. Personal Identity Card or Driver's License.
  3. Disclaimer - Create a disclaimer. It will appear on all social issues ads you run and include information on your organization or individual responsible for the ad. You may refer to Meta Business Help for country-specific instructions.
  4. Authorized Country - Specify which country you're running ads for.
  5. Page Ownership - Assign an Organization as Page Admin who will be paying for the ads. If you plan to run ads in more than one country, it is recommended to assign an ad agency that has approval to set up disclaimers worldwide. The identity of this organization will be displayed in the Facebook Ad Library for transparency purposes.

Make sure you complete the above setup before publishing another social issues ad, or else you risk getting your ad account disabled for "Unacceptable Business Practices".

However, what if you do not intended to run Social Issues Ad at all?

Your Facebook ads are being disapproved because the algorithm thinks your ads relate to social issues, even though your ads are nowhere close to these topics.

  • My ad has nothing to do with social issues. It is literally a photo of a candle on a table.
  • All I said in my primary texts of my ads were "Come check out these biodegradable products, it's sustainable and helps the earth!". No matter how I changed my slogans, they were just rejected on and on again.
  • My FB ads that are selling beer are getting flagged and rejected for social issues. What can i do?

It's quite frustrating that Facebook didn't give specific guidance on why and where the ads went wrong. All it says is that you must not exploit crises or controversial social issues for commercial purposes.

Even though you got a disclaimer and confirmed your identity with Facebook, but your ads are still getting flagged by Facebook for "Social Issues", and getting rejected again and again.

To help you with the above, I have compiled 3 strategies for getting around being flagged for social issues:

1. Verify Your Business Account

In normal situations, you won't need to do a Business Verification unless you want to access certain developer features or APIs. However, completing this step will prove the nature of your business, and save you time talking to Facebook support via Live Chat or emails.

Having a verified BM also allows you to create more than 3 ad accounts under the same BM. Not only can you use different ad accounts for different niches, but it also helps to reduce the probability of your ad account getting banned for "no reason".

2. Switch To A Neutral Name

Your company or website domain name could also be triggering Facebook to deny your ads. Avoid using names such as GreenergyShop[dot]com (anything that is related to solar, wind, or hydro) as they are the ongoing hot topics on Facebook right now and having trouble getting approved.

Even if you're trying to sell eco-friendly toothbrushes, Facebook AI may be confused that you are selling solar panels, not eco-friendly products.

3. Be More Subtle With Your Copy

This usually happens when you put up ad text or creative emphasizing diversity, equal rights, or human trafficking, otherwise claiming your product to be biodegradable, sustainable, green energy etc. All these keywords could be flagged for environmentalism and societal causes.

You can reword your sentences using Semantic phrases. Check out the example below, and how they manage to get up to 270 ads running concurrently.

Do not limit yourself to just 1-2 ad copies, always A/B test different ad messaging and creatives to get around the 'Social Issues' flag.

Are you constantly getting ad rejections or facing ad account restrictions on Facebook Ads? You wish it was a mistake, but after appealing, what the reviewer team did was just keep asking you to take a look at Facebook's e-learning Blueprint module - But it doesn't change your fate!

After months of intensive research, I managed to narrow down the key actions that pull the trigger for ad rejection and account restriction. I'll be sharing my findings in my E-Book - The Ultimate Guide In Mastering Ad Policy.