Facebook Removes Text Limit on Ads | Modern Driven Media

It's certainly a headache when you have spent hours on what you thought was the perfect ad for your business, just to find out Facebook has rejected your ad from being displayed for reach due to the amount of text in the ad image.

Until recently, Facebook advertisers text usage was limited to no more than 20 percent in their ad creative. Previously, ad images with higher amounts of text were penalized and would not be shown to the public or would have a smaller reach.

The rule has now been removed to correlate with Facebook’s goals to constantly improve the quality of ads on their platform. Buyers were notified directly by Facebook regarding the update.

Facebook provided a Text Overlay Tool to verify that your ad aligns with the 20-percent restriction. Since the announcement, the tool has also vanished as Facebook eases the restrictions on text in ad images.

Facebook continues to encourage creators to keep their ad image text under 20-percent as they claim short and concise content performs best. However, longer text in ad images will not result in a penalty. The ads will be displayed as normal and reach the same amount of people as any other ad.

This is a big win for marketers - or is it? We look further into this update below.

What is ad image text?

Image text is exactly what it sounds like, any text that exists on your ad creative. This text could be added through popular photo editing software like Photoshop or Canva. Ad copy, headlines, and descriptions do not count in this overall percentage.

The restrictions on text on ad creative encouraged advertisers to seek out lifestyle photography rather than cultivated graphics. It also may have helped advertisers optimize any text they did place on the images as the real estate for text was so very limited.

History of the “20-Percent” Rule

Facebook claims that clear and concise ads perform best and get the message across more effectively, but is this the truth for all companies? The purpose of the tool was to minimize noisiness on Facebook feeds. Facebook Ads are primarily text and images, so when an advertiser adds more text atop of an image, it creates a more overwhelming experience.

Text Overlay Tool

In the past, Facebook gave no warning if your ad was in violation of the 20-percent rule. As a result, your ad would simply never run or run to a limited audience. This had caused major frustration for advertisers pushing Facebook to eventually create the Text Overlay Tool. The tool allowed advertisers to upload their images and receive immediate feedback if their ad will lose distribution based on text conditions. It even gave a rating of low, medium, or high text to image ratio.

Previous Exceptions

Historically, previous exceptions to the 20-percent rule included infographics, book covers, movie posters, event postings, legal disclaimers, and comics.

Should Creators Still Avoid More Than 20-Percent Text in Images?

Facebook’s removal of text restrictions can benefit creators, depending on their approach.

Facebook Advises Against More Text:

The goal of an ad is to grab the attention of your targeted audience, fast. As you scroll through feeds, quickly scanning for posts you want to consume, it’s not the wordy ads that stop your index finger in its tracks. The ads with bright colors and imagery tend to grab your attention first.

Science proved many years ago that our brains introduce images and headlines first, followed by bolded words. Our minds consume block text last. According to this science, Facebook believes it's crucial to continue the practice of restricting your image text under 20-percent to perform best.

Facebook also has added tips for avoiding too much text in your ad images. See below:

• If you need to include text in your image, try using fewer words and/or reducing the font size of your text. Keep in mind that if your text is too small, it may be difficult to read.
• Make sure most of the text you use is in the body text instead of directly on the ad's image.
• Avoid spreading text all over the image.

Marketing Professionals Continue to Avoid Text:

In response to the update, many marketers are continuing to limit text on their ad creative. Although the rule is lifted, it seems the general consensus is that this doesn’t make text free for all. Continue to push limits as marketers should, but also be cognizant of results from previous campaigns and what has worked. Don’t forget to test before making any big decisions on how your ads will change.

Think About Your Audience: Depending on who you are trying to reach, the removal of the rule could benefit you. The banishment of the rule allows for content creators to personalize advertisements geared toward their target audience. No need to worry if your ad isn’t going to make it through the 20-percent threshold, it will reach just as many people as any other campaign. While viewers seem to enjoy posts with less text, there is no longer actively enforced that you must do so.

Optimizing Your Facebook Ad Creative with and without Text

Updates will be made on this topic as Facebook discloses them. For now, you can take advantage of the text you want to include on your ad image. With businesses being closed during the crisis of COVID-19, some rely on advertisements to keep their customers updated and require longer text in ad images to do so. Keep in mind that clear and concise typically gets the job done, but it doesn’t hurt to get creative and see where it takes you!

If your team is looking for additional information on building Facebook ads or other social media advertising, contact us to see how we can help.