You put time and effort into making TikTok ad campaigns but your TikTok ads not approved? It’s probably due to some common reasons like intellectual property infringement, ad creative inconsistency, or inaccurate information. Be patient and don’t let it drive you crazy but rather let us lead you through all these ad rejection problems.
So what’re you waiting for? Jump into our article to get reasons for TikTok ads got rejected, what to do to fix & prevent it from happening again.
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How to recognize TikTok ads not approved?
When your TikTok ads get rejected, you will see the status of your ads as “video not approved”. It means that your ads didn’t pass the TikTok review process and will not be visible to other TikTok users. Now it’s time for you to uncover the reasons behind this frustrating situation.
7 reasons why your TikTok ads are rejected
Since TikTok is one of the world’s fastest-growing platforms, every day, even every minute, thousands of video ads are produced and posted on TikTok. However, not all of them can reach TikTok users due to community guidelines violations. The most common reasons for TikTok ads not being approved include:
- Misleading claims
- Prohibited products
- Inconsistent or irrelevant products & pricing
- Improperly displayed & incomplete websites
- Ads text & captions
- Video or audio quality issues
- Intellectual property infringement
#1 – Misleading claims
According to a TikTok report, in the second quarter of 2021, over 1,8 million TikTok ads were rejected for violating advertising policies and guidelines. TikTok requires that ads not feature an exaggerated performance or promise to ensure that the advertisements on the platform are truthful, factual, and not deceptive.
Exaggerated claims might also apply to pictures. Additionally, neither your creative nor your URL may make malicious comparisons to other brands or use invalid button gestures or text to demonstrate unsupported functionality.
For example, ads that made a claim like the following would fail to appear on TikTok:
- “Use this service and get married in 3 days.”
- “100% natural herbal cream cures all diseases.”
- “NO.1 app in the whole world.”
#2 – Prohibited products
Depending on each country’s laws and cultures, different products and services are prohibited from advertising. In general, advertising for the following businesses and industries is forbidden on TikTok:
- Animals, animal parts, or products
- Adult sexual products, services, and entertainment
- Casinos and gambling games
- Cigarettes and tobacco products
- Counterfeiting and piracy
- Drugs and paraphernalia
- Police/military gear and equipment
- Political and Issue-Based Advertising
- Unacceptable Business Practices (ex. Document falsification, forgery, misinformation, etc.)
- Unsuitable Businesses, Products, or Services (ex. Abortion services, Funeral services, etc.)
- Weaponry and weapon parts
If your ads contain content in one of these categories, TikTok will not publish them.
#3- Inconsistent/Irrelevant products & pricing
TikTok requires that your caption, text, images, videos, and call-to-actions are consistent with the product/service you are promoting to guarantee a good user experience. This includes ensuring the prices are the same on the promoted website.
For example, if you introduce product A in your creative but display product B on the website or you state a discount “up to 50% off” but on your website, there is only a discount “up to 30% off.”, the information is definitely inconsistent. Then, your ads would be rejected.
#4 – Improperly displayed & incomplete websites
When you include your website URL in your ads, make sure it is valid and has detailed information. Otherwise, your ads will not pass the review process by TikTok. Websites that are malfunctioning or display a 404 page likely cause ad rejection. Similar to mobile-unfriendly websites.
On the other hand, websites that do not contain contact info, do not state a clear privacy policy or refund & return policy also result in your ad’s disapproval.
#5 – Ad’s texts & captions
One typical reason that leads to rejected ads is the wrong usage of text and captions in your videos. Try to avoid the following mistakes:
- Spelling errors (ex. “rfom” instead of “from”)
- Excessive and distracting capitalization “S.a.L.e”
- Using symbols in place of letters like “[email protected]”
- Incomplete text in videos/images
- Grammar mistakes
- Text/logos covered by stickers/mosaic
#6 – Video or audio quality issues
Ads with the following video or images and audio quality issues would not compliant with TikTok policies:
- Low-resolution and blurry video/image.
- Video/image partially covered up with black bars or pixelation.
- No audio or sound in the video.
- Poor audio quality that is difficult to understand.
#7 – Intellectual property infringement
According to the 2022 Community Guideline Enforcement Report, there are over 73,000 copyright and trademark removal reports that were successfully approved by TikTok. This huge number of rejected ads means that intellectual property violation is a significant reason for TikTok ads not being approved.
The use of a copyright or trademark by others without proper authorization or legally valid explanation is likely to cause an infringement. Since TikTok respects the intellectual property rights of others, advertisers should do the same.
To prevent ad disapproval, avoid using any elements without required permission in both your ad and your landing page. Brands, hashtags, copyrighted media, imitations, and replicas fall under this category.
For example, ads that feature an unauthorized TikTok logo or claim the product is a “TikTok Bestseller” would fail review.
How to fix TikTok Ads not approved
Go through the ad review checklist
To ensure a safe and user-friendly environment, TikTok suggests an ad review checklist for advertisers to comply with. Before publishing your ads, make sure to meet the requirements for the landing page, ad messaging, or ad language.
Usually, it takes 24 to 48 hours for TikTok to approve an ad. You can check on the approval status of your ad from the Campaign tab on TikTok Ads Manager to know when your ads are approved.
Adjust ad details & resubmit
Do you know that some ads are rejected after they are approved? A formerly approved ad can undergo another review if it has been hidden, blocked, reported, or received negative feedback from TikTok users. In case the ad still violates TikTok’s policies after an additional review, it will be suspended and the advertiser will receive a notification.
When your ads get rejected due to non-compliance with the platform policies, look into the details of the disapproval to fix the situation and submit your ads for a second review.
To edit your TikTok Ads:
- Go to your TikTok Ads Manager dashboard > Notifications and check the details of the rejection. It will be shown in your Ad Group as suggestions.
- Recreate or edit your TikTok Ads with the information in the received notification.
- Remember to Save your change. Once saved, your TikTok Ads will automatically be submitted for review.
File an appeal or contact support
If you are unable to modify your TikTok ads or suppose they were mistakenly rejected, you can click on Customer Support to ask for a review of the decision. Just look for the “?” question mark icon in the top-right or bottom-right corner of your TikTok Ads Manager dashboard.
To submit an appeal:
- Locate the notification in your TikTok inbox.
- Tap the notification.
- Tap Submit an appeal.
- Follow the instructions provided.
Or
- Go to the video.
- Tap Community Guidelines violation: See details.
- Tap Submit an appeal.
- Follow the instructions provided.
Launch impressive TikTok Ads without rejection
TikTok ads not being approved can be frustrating but it’s just a piece of cake if you understand TikTok’s guidelines and avoid these mistakes above. While an ad rejection is somewhat disheartening, it’s also an opportunity to make necessary adjustments and enhance the chances of future ad approvals.
If you want to ensure a continuous ad creation process, try using an ad management tool like NestAds. No more worries and start posting awesome TikTok ads that sell!
