Has your ad on Google just been disapproved? Are you struggling to fix it? You're in the right place.
There are numerous reasons why your ad may have been disapproved, and we know it can be frustrating if you’re not sure why.
So, let’s find out what it means for an ad on Google Ads to be disapproved, the reasons why they are disapproved, and how to fix them.
What Is a Disapproved Ad?
If you are unsure of what it means, Google defines a disapproved ad as an ad that “won't show because it violates the Google Ads policies”. We’ll explore these policies further down.
A potential consequence of leaving ads disapproved for too long or having too many at once is that it could lead to Google suspending your Google Ads account and pausing all your ads and activity.
If this happens and it goes unnoticed or you fail to make the changes to your ads to make them compliant, this could seriously impact your overall revenue and lead volumes.
Therefore, it’s always best to fix a disapproved ad as soon as possible to avoid any negative implications and continue to serve your ads.
Has my Google Ad Been Disapproved?
There are a few ways you can find out if your ad has been disapproved.
1. Email Alerts
Google should and normally does send you emails informing you about disapproved ads in your account.
However, these can be easily missed, or you may simply get distracted and forget about them. So, while checking for these emails is important, it is also good practice to regularly check for yourself in the account.
2. Ad Level: Filters
There are two ways to check your account for disapproved ads. The first is to check at ad level by clicking on the Ads & Extensions page, adding the filter ‘Policy Approval Status’.
Then tick the relevant check boxes. You can then find out why it was disapproved by reviewing the ‘Status’ column.
3. Policy Manager
The second way to check the account is to go to the Policy Manager tab in the Tools and Settings section.
Within this, click on Policy Issues to see the ads that have been disapproved or have been approved but are ‘limited’. This is a user-friendly dashboard that makes managing policy issues easier.
10 Reasons Your Google Ad Was Disapproved
Now we’ve looked at the ways you can find out if your ad has been approved or not, let’s explore the factors that are getting your ads disapproved.
1. Destination Not Working
This is a common disapproval and happens for a few reasons:
The landing page is not yet live or has been paused
The landing page has stopped working due to internal issues on your website
There is a misspelling in the landing page field and the ad takes the user to a URL that does not exist
This warning will appear in the Status column of the Ads page in Google Ads.
2. One Website URL Per Ad Group
To avoid disapprovals, make sure that you only have one website URL per ad group. This one makes a lot of sense as best practice suggests that ad groups should be made up of tightly themed keywords.
Therefore, having the same URL across all ads in an ad group helps ensure relevancy and consistency.
3. Capitalisation
Although it may seem like a good tactic to capitalise every character in your headline to draw the users’ attention to your ad (e.g. ‘SALE NOW ON), Google does not like this.
That being said, the instance in which you can use capitalisation like this is if you are emphasizing a promotional code (e.g. ‘10% off – use code: SALE10’).
4. Inappropriate Content
The following are examples of inappropriate content that will get your ads disapproved instantly: sexual content, gambling-related content, dangerous products, or illegal activity. Stay clear of this in your ad text if you want your ads to go or remain live.
5. Phone Number
A quick way to get an ad disapproved is to add a phone number to your ad text. This may be tempting as you think that it is a great way to increase your phone call lead volume, but Google thinks otherwise.
Fortunately, Google has created a feature named ‘Call Extensions’, which can significantly increase ad CTR and the volume of phone call leads you receive as the user can click straight on it.
6. Trademarks
An ad may get disapproved because it includes another brand’s name in the ad text without it being previously approved by Google. This is a common disapproval among resellers who sell other brands’ products.
However, if you are legally authorised to use another entity’s trademark in your ads, you can fill out this form from Google to request authorisation on its advertising platform.
7. Exclamation Points
The maximum number of exclamation points allowed in an ad is one so be careful not to exceed this. You also can not use exclamation points in the headlines of text ads, only in the descriptions.
8. Symbols
Google wants you to avoid using symbols for anything other than their intended use, for example using the ‘:’ and ‘)’ to make a delightful smiley face ‘:)’ will be treated with undelightful disapproval.
9. Ad Text Length
The maximum character length for headlines in text ads is 30 characters and descriptions are 90 characters. Exceeding this will cause your ads to be disapproved.
10. Inconsistent Root Domain
A root domain is the highest hierarchical level of the domain URL you are using. For example, this blog’s URL is https://www.adaptworldwide.com...
In Google Ads, you are not allowed to use different root domains in the destination URL and the display URL, they must be consistent.
How to Fix Google Ads Disapprovals
If you’re struggling to figure out how to fix these problems, have no fear! We’ll show you how to fix disapprovals and get your ads live again.
1. Amend
Find the disapproved ad that you want to fix on the Ads & Extensions page in Google Ads. Make the necessary change to your ad such as fixing its destination URL.
Once the change has been saved, it will be automatically resubmitted for review. You can check the results of the appeal in the Appeal History section in the Policy Manager, use this to see if it was successful or not.
2. Appeal
If you believe that your ad is compliant and should not have been disapproved, then you can request that Google review it by appealing.
You can do this by disputing the decision or telling Google that you have already made changes to comply with policy.
You also need to tell Google what ads you want the appeal to apply to, whether it’s to all the affected ads in that ad group, campaign or account.
Once you have appealed, you can review the status of the ad in the Policy Manager.
3. Reach Out
If you are really unsure or simply just want some guidance, you can reach out to Google’s customer support team.
You may also have to get in touch with the support team if you submit the same appeal too many times, as this will lead to you exceeding the appeal retry limit.
In this instance, you must contact them to help fix your issue. Check out this article if you are still struggling.
Final Thoughts
So, Google definitely has a few rules to adhere to in the online advertising space and you should always try to play ball. But disapprovals happen to every advertiser and it is not the end of the world.
If you follow the simple guidelines laid out in this article, amend your ads when disapprovals appear, and appeal them, your ads should be live again in no time.
Just remember to do this as soon as possible to avoid costly suspensions.
