Once upon a time, Facebook required you to keep your text to 20% or less on your graphics when running Facebook ads. It was a drag to really convey the essence of your ad, as well as a time-suck to make minor revisions until it passed Facebook’s guidelines. Facebook realized how limiting this rule was and eliminated it years ago. It’s since been replaced with many other advertising guidelines, but you no longer need to worry about how much text is on your ad. You do still need to make it visually appealing and images/videos are much more eye catching. Also remember that a majority of people will see your ad on a mobile phone, which means the text on your graphic is going to be tiny and hard to read if too small!
A Look Back on a Few Ads Designed for 20% Rule – Back in the Day!
Nostalgia is fun, so here’s a few of how we worked around when Facebook had the 20% rule!
Facebook’s intent is for you to put most of your text in the update bar and leave the images clean and simple. You may have as much content in your Facebook update as you need, but try to limit it to the essential information and call-to-action. When possible, blog about your ad, contest, initiative, event, etc and link to it. People who are interested can get all the details on your website/blog where there is much more space to elaborate.
If you are thinking of running a contest or giveaway on Facebook, be sure you know the rules. One common mistake we see is requiring people to “share” in order to win, and that’s a no-no.
