Update to Destination requirements Policy

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In March 2022, we will reorganise and update our Destination requirements policy for improved clarity. As a result, certain policy actions and corresponding messaging to Google Ads advertisers will include updated policy names. These changes will not impact what is currently restricted or prohibited per our policies.

What’s changing:

• We are clarifying the guidelines for 'Insufficient Original Content' policy under Destination requirements with updated language and clear examples. Additionally, error messages such as 'Site under construction or coming soon' that were previously enforced under 'Destination Not Working' policy will now be enforced under the 'Insufficient Original Content' policy, specifically the guideline related to 'parked domains' for improved policy alignment. Updated language will read as:

  • Destinations that display a message of the destination not providing any services

    Examples: A parked domain, a site that is only intended to reserve a web address, displaying 'Under Construction', 'Coming Soon' or similar messages

• We are introducing a new independent policy called 'Destination not accessible' under the Destination Requirements category for ads related to a destination’s access limitation. This policy will also provide self-service appeals management for advertisers. Ads caught under this policy may include those with error messages such as 'This site is not accessible in your location' or 'down for maintenance' that were previously enforced under the 'Destination not working' policy. The new policy language will read as follows:

  • Destinations that are not accessible in the targeted location

    Examples: A site that displays a location based access limitation message in the targeted location (e.g. 'This site is not accessible in your location'); a site that displays other messaging related to access limitations in the targeted location (e.g. 'you do not have permission to access this page').

• We are updating the examples under the 'Destination Not Working' policy for improved clarity and understanding. Updated language will read as:

  • Destinations that don't function properly or have been incorrectly set up

    Examples: A site that returns an HTTP client or server error code; a site that returns an authentication error; a site that doesn't work on common browsers and devices.

We will begin enforcing the policy updates on 21 March 2022.

(Posted in February, 2022)