The Facebook 20% Rule: What Is It and Why Does It Matter?

Facebook has millions of users today. The numbers are continually growing as more people create online profiles. Therefore, it is no surprise that business owners and marketers turned to this social media platform for advertising and marketing.

Still, there are a few guidelines that make advertisements and marketing materials more effective. Facebook knows this which is why they created the Facebook 20% Rule.

Follow The Facebook 20% Rule To Improve Ad Performance

The Facebook 20% Rule

The 20% Rule is one of the most popular guidelines. It states that Facebook advertisers can cover their ads’ images with no more than 20% text.

Facebook introduced a unique tool for advertisers to use to enforce the rule and educate advertisers. It lets them see how much space they can take up on an image for text. If advertisers take up more than 20%, the ad would initially go inactive. However, this has been modified such that the ad will now reach fewer users.

The rule does not include texts outside the ad image, such as description and CTAs. There are also a few other exceptions, such as images of book covers and some product images.

Why The Rule?

The rule brought a lot of frustrations from advertisers. It was limiting, and there was no clear explanation of why Facebook got the rule to existence. Luckily, it was later explained its purpose and why users and advertisers needed it.

According to the Facebook Product Marketing Manager Afsheen Ali, the rule was put in place to improve how users engage with ads. According to research, people have a preference for ads that have less text. Ads will less overlay texts perform better than images with a crowded text.

Therefore, the rule was put in place to improve user experience and give advertisers room for flexibility and creativity.

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Why Is It Important?

The Facebook 20% Rule could initially cause you frustrations. However, once you understand its purpose, you will find several benefits that you had not yet considered.

For starters, the rule is essential for marketers and advertisers to meet their target audiences better. Merely following the rule will ensure that your ad reaches the target audience. While the temptation to add important information on an image is real, it impacts your ad altogether. It may not go inactive, but it will appear to a limited audience.

This rule compels advertisers to employ creative and well-thought-out tactics to advertise to users. This goes a long way in improving the quality of adverts that users see. Because high-quality ads will always speak for themselves, your ad will inspire engagement with users.

The 20% Rule is also important to users. It ensures that their timelines are not filled with disruptive advertisements. This creates cleaner and more attractive newsfeeds that will encourage users to maintain and visit the platform. They know that any ads that come their way are of high quality and worth engagement.


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