Demand Gen campaign asset quality and policy requirements

By the end of January 2024, all of your existing Discovery campaigns will be upgraded to Demand Gen campaigns. As part of this upgrade, your Discovery campaign settings, budget and historical performance statistics will automatically transfer to your new Demand Gen campaigns with identical or comparable functionality. Once upgraded, Discovery campaigns will no longer be available to you in Google Ads.

Demand Gen campaigns give you the same benefits as Discovery campaigns, with new features, inventory and insights, plus an improved ad creation process to help you drive demand and purchase consideration. Learn more about Demand Gen campaigns.

 

Demand Gen campaign assets must meet very high standards of quality, as the campaign type serves ads on very visual, entertainment-focused surfaces such as Discover and YouTube.

Here are asset quality and policy requirements for Demand Gen campaign video and image ads.

Frequent and widespread violations of these guidelines may lead to a suspension from serving ads on Discovery and Demand Gen surfaces. We will regularly review new ads that you upload and if the number of ad violations reduces, you may be eligible to serve again.

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Video ad requirements

While all ads must comply with our advertising policies, this article outlines the additional requirements that your ad assets must meet in order for your campaigns to serve on YouTube.

If your asset is restricted or suspended, you can find more information about how to fix a disapproved ad. If you disagree with our decision or have fixed your asset, you can appeal the policy decision directly from your Google Ads account (if available). Alternatively, you can dispute policy decisions using the Disapproved ads and policy questions form.

Appeals may not be available in all circumstances (e.g. certain court ordered removals). You should receive more information about your appeals options in the notification that we send to you about your content or account.

Automated content policy decision

​To ensure a good experience for the user, we may conduct automated reviews of your campaign content. This preliminary review may trigger restriction or suspension of the assets. If necessary, Google may further analyse the assets to arrive at a final decision.

Quality checks

Assets that do not meet YouTube Ads quality requirements.

Examples:

• Assets that lack clarity, correct spelling and use of capitalisation or symbols
• Blurred, distorted or poorly cropped images

YouTube Ads must meet the Google Ads editorial standards.

Sensitive applications

Ads for applications that fall into one of the following categories:

• Social applications with adult content where the app contains nudity or sexual topics
• Social applications the primary purpose of which is meeting new people
• Social applications where the primary purpose is facilitating dating and relationships

Ads for sensitive application may be allowed if the following requirements are met:

• The application does not have live stream features
• The application is not a live chat with stranger application
• The application or ad does not have racy or suggestive content

Application ads must meet the Google Ads app ads policy.

Prohibited categories

Exaggerated or inaccurate claims

Assets that contain exaggerated or false claims about a product or service or that misleads users

• False claims related to money or overnight success (for example, ads that tell people how to get rich in a short time frame)

Examples:

Victims To Be Paid Millions For Using Baby Powder. Check If You Qualify Now. Time is Limited!	Online Language Tutoring Easiest Way To Master 45+ Languages Overnight – Schedule time with one of our tutors today!	Luxury Watch The finest luxury watch available for only $5. Bands in leather, metal, plastic, cloth, nylon mesh and rubber.

   

• False or exaggerated claims related to curing diseases

Example:

Less grey hair Reduce your grey hair with just some potato peels!

Negative events and imagery

Violent and criminal content that references graphic violence, weapons and illegal activity

Assets that include mentally-distressing, disturbing, repulsive or gross content; or scary content related to injuries, death and decay

Examples:

• Dangerous actions that could potentially result in bodily harm or encourage imitation of the action, such as dangerous challenges
• Dramatised or animated content that is excessively gory or realistic
• Funerals that show people weeping, mourning or screaming

• Videos designed to scare you intentionally or that contain footage of distressing accidents or natural disasters (enforcement applies to simulated or real content)

Allowed with limitations

• If an ad features content containing professional media – such as movies, TV shows, and video games – the above guidelines will be evaluated according to different criteria. Any ads containing professional media should clearly indicate the source of the media so the viewer understands what they’re watching.

Improper content

Assets that focus on specific body parts or health conditions

Examples:

• Medical or dental surgery procedures that show blood, guts, gore, bodily fluids or tooth decay
• Emphasising body parts (for example, zooming in on belly fat)

• Showing bodily symptoms (for example, fluids or rashes)

Assets with nudity or that include racy or sexually suggestive topics

Examples:

• Adult content promotions where the majority of the ad is focused on nudity or sexual topics
• Ads that promote dating using sexually-explicit imagery or language

Allowed with limitations

Examples:

• Ads for weight loss, hair loss, skin conditions or other health conditions are allowed as long as the imagery isn’t disturbing

• Promotion of products like swimwear or spa treatments are permitted as long as the content is not overtly sexualised

Assets that use inappropriate or offensive language

Examples:

• Assets containing obscene or offensive language, which may offend users
• Derogatory language that incites hatred against, promotes discrimination of or disparages an individual or group that is associated with systemic discrimination

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YouTube masthead content requirements

YouTube masthead ads are the ads that YouTube users see at the top of the YouTube homepage. This type of ad is the most prominent Google advertising placement available to advertisers. To ensure that we provide a high-quality consumer ad experience, YouTube masthead ads must comply with all Google Ads policies and YouTube ad requirements. We will review each YouTube masthead ad asset for compliance with the YouTube masthead ad content requirements listed below, which apply in addition to the Google Ads policies and YouTube ad requirements. The YouTube masthead ad content requirements may be more restrictive than the ad requirements for other platforms and surfaces, meaning disapproved YouTube masthead ad assets may continue to run on Google’s other owned and operated properties.

Prohibited categories

Elections and political content

• Assets related to elections or politics

Gambling

• Assets that depict or reference gambling-related content, including offline gambling, online gambling, online non-casino games and social casino games

Exception: Assets related to sports betting, provided they meet the requirements set out in the Gambling and games policy.

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Image and text ads requirements

You can view any asset-level disapprovals in your Demand Gen campaign asset report.

Prohibited categories

Regulated goods

Assets that depict or reference regulated goods or substances, including (but not limited to) recreational drugs and tobacco.

 Allowed

• Assets that depict alcohol are able to serve in Demand Gen campaigns

Weapons or criminality

Assets that depict or reference images of weapons or criminality, including (but not limited to) guns, firearms, ammunition, explosives, the sale of fireworks, knives, prison, criminals or arrests.

Example:

 Allowed with limitations

• Assets that depict or reference the above prohibited categories in a scene from a fictional work of entertainment (video game, TV-show, movie and others). 
• Assets that depict or reference the above prohibited categories but not in a violent or criminal context, including (but not limited to) kitchen and utility knives, historical artifacts or halloween costumes

Cash giveaways content

Assets that depict cash sweepstakes or cash giveaways, including (but not limited to):

• Cash rewards without legitimate user action

• Paid surveys and questionnaires

• Cash sweepstakes or cash giveaways

Improper content

Assets that depict or reference racy or adult content, including (but not limited to):

• Sexually suggestive content
• Unnecessary focus on body parts
• Sexual merchandise and entertainment

 

Assets that depict invasive medical procedures.

Example:

 

Assets that depict content that could cause discomfort, including (but not limited to) bodily fluids and waste

Negative events

Assets that depict negative life events including (but not limited to):

• Divorce, breakups or family separation, home foreclosures, financial difficulties, accidents and personal injuries (non-exhaustive examples include sport, professional/work, medical and general accidents and injuries) or damage to objects or property (non-exhaustive examples include vandalism or destruction of personal property)

Assets that depict or reference natural or man-made crises.

Assets that depict or reference behavioural addiction recovery, including rehabilitation facilities and products that aid in recovery from addiction.

Assets that depict death or death-related content including but not limited to:

• A dead person or animal
• A funeral home, mortuary, cemetery, mausoleum

Assets that depict trauma or pain, including (but not limited to) a person grieving or crying.

Assets that depict content presented in a way that is likely to trigger a negative reaction.

Assets that depict discrimination or encouragement of discrimination against people based on their personal attributes.

Assets that promote actions that violate other platforms’ terms and conditions.

Examples:

 Allowed with limitations

• Assets that reference services, including (but not limited to) funeral homes, mortuaries, cemeteries, mausoleums, memorial services companies, family and divorce services (law offices/counselling), insurance or event support services, as long as they are neutrally or positively framed
• Assets that depict or reference the negative events listed above in a scene from a fictional work of entertainment (video game, TV show, movie, etc.)

Dating-related prohibitions: users’ personal attributes

Assets that depict or reference dating services or matchmakers by asserting or implying a user’s personal attributes, including (but not limited to) race, ethnic origin, nationality, religion, age or sexual orientation.

Implied interactivity

Assets that feature visual elements depicting non-existent functionality (such as a 'Play' button that cannot be clicked).

Assets that tease the user into clicking the advertisement with sensational language, misleading claims or intentionally withholding necessary information.

Example:

Assets that promote an advertorial and tease the user into clicking the advertisement, making it unclear who the advertiser is.

Assets referring to personal identifiable information including (but not limited to) insurance cards, driving licences, cheques and credit cards with no context or business offer.

Assets that illustrate that someone is trying to contact or has matched with the user while advertising a dating site.

Example:

Selfie image

Assets that contain selfie images for dating-related content.

Example:

Unclear image

Blurry

Images that are blurry or unclear.

Examples:

 

Distorted

Images that are oddly skewed or shaped visually, morphed, upside down, distastefully out of focus, colour-inverted, excessively filtered, distorted or contain watermarks.

Example: 

 

Poorly cropped

Images that are critically cropped or contain even minimally cropped text overlay.

Example:

 

Offensive language

Assets containing obscene or offensive language, including (but not limited to) profanity and sexual innuendo.

Confusing text

Assets that use placeholder text, distasteful formatting such as nonsensical punctuation or capitalisation, incomplete sentences or don’t use commonly accepted spelling or grammar in a way that makes the subject of the asset difficult to understand.