So, you want to run a Meta Ad for your iGaming brand, but you’re not sure how to reach players in regulated markets, or you’ve tried promoting in the past, but your ad was not approved. If either of these scenarios sounds like you, then you’ve come to the right place. Ever since Meta implemented its strict policy regulating the promotion of iGaming businesses on its platforms, most gambling brands have had issues with advertising their services on this network.
Meta adjusted its policy to allow appropriately certified iGaming brands to advertise online gambling on Facebook and Instagram, but even with that rule, this process is still not an easy one. From targeting the wrong demographic or using misleading sentences on your campaign creative, there a few things you could still do, that’ll piss of the network.
This article will teach you how to successfully run iGaming campaigns on Meta Ads that target regulated markets. We’ll break down the entire process in a way that’s easy to understand.
Can iGaming Brands Advertise on Meta?
Yes, iGaming brands can now advertise on Meta; however, there are a few policies you must abide by. We shared a few of them below, but you can visit Meta’s official website to view the whole thing.
- You must submit a formal request to Meta before running a gambling ad.
- Prove that your operations are licensed by a regulatory authority.
- Your target audience should be individuals above the age of 18. Meta strongly prohibits gambling adverts targeted at minors.
- Your campaign should promote responsible gaming and recommend professional help if players need it.
3 Advertising Challenges That Plague iGaming Brands
There are a few challenges that iGaming brands might encounter when using Meta Ads to run campaigns. We discuss them below.
1. Regulatory Issues
One of the major reasons why iGaming businesses dread using Meta to advertise their services is because of its complex regulatory environments, which differ by region. These regulations govern the type of ad content you put out, down to where and when your ads can be displayed. To beat this, you must be an A+ license holder who has minimal regulatory obstructions.
2. Audience Fragmentation
To effectively target your ideal audience, you need a marketing approach that segments them based on their preferences and behaviours. Segmenting your audience allows you to come up with a personalised message that both casual and seasoned players can relate to, despite their respective gaming experiences.
3. Saturated Market
It is hard to stand out amidst billions of other brands that are also promoting their iGaming brand. Due to this, you need to have marketing strategies that cut through the noise and reach your ideal audience.
5 Reasons Why Your iGaming Ad Was Rejected by Meta
There are a few reasons why your iGaming ad might be rejected by Meta:
- It didn’t comply with the licenses of the countries you’re advertising in and of Meta.
- The betting industry has a dynamic nature that requires you to change your campaigns regularly, which can cause outdated and generic ads if you don’t.
- You failed to comply with the laws of the country where your campaign is being shown.
- You didn’t get Meta’s approval for the ads.
- It didn’t follow the policy of not targeting underage individuals.
How to Set Up Successful iGaming Ads on Meta
If you’re having trouble promoting your iGaming brand on Meta, you can follow this step-by-step process.
- Create a Meta Ads manager account and set up payment options.
- Configure your platform to conform to the applicable national and international laws.
- Use Meta’s ad set tool to target and identify your ideal audience.
- Choose your bidding strategy and daily or lifetime budget.
- Create an engaging creative that conveys your brand’s message.
- When everything is set up, you can start running your campaign.
Steps for Creating Effective Ad Creatives for Your iGaming Ads
An effective ad creative is the centre of a successful iGaming campaign on Meta Ads. These creatives can come in different formats such as images,s (carousels or single image), video, and imagesudio. This is what will show up on your audience’s feeds as they scroll through Facebook or Instagram.
For your type of brand, your creative can feature three angles to resonate effectively with users:
1. Updates
This can feature the stories of people who have successfully hit the jackpot by using your products or services.
2. Winnings
You could put up a video of someone playing one of your online games and showing their wins from it.
3. Earnings
This features how much users can make or how they can earn money playing on your platform.
Dynamic Creatives For Betting Ads
Dynamic creatives are an important part of advertising your services on Meta, especially with the demand for iGaming advertisers to change their creatives regularly being one of the common challenges you’d face.
And these types of creatives are good because:
- They boost the relevance of your ads by showing users personalised offers tailored to their tastes.
- They follow a workflow automation that saves you time and the need to build creatives or run new campaigns daily.
- You can use them to create two different ads at once and hit your objectives with both.
Some ways you can use dynamic creatives for betting ads are through:
1. Pre-Match Ads
Promoting games on the day they are scheduled.
2. Live Ads
Promote ongoing live matches.
Dynamic Creatives For Casino Ads
You can make your casino ads stand out by using dynamic ads that showcase different aspects of the games available in your casino.
1. Automating Individual Games
You can use the dynamic creative option on Meta to automate promotions for individual games like poker, blackjack, or roulette.
2. Split Games Into Categories
You can categorise your games into mobile, desktop, new or popular, and use that information to create multiple ad formats like carousels, videos, images, or stories.
There are 3 stages in Facebook automating creative moderation:
Stage 1
The algorithm checks the file name, weight, and duration. It determines if that creative has been used before. If it has, it’ll prohibit the file and assign the tag to a new creative. This will then cause the account to be suspended, or its credibility will decline.
Stage 2
In stage 2, the algorithm will compare the sequence, colour and combination of pixels and their locations. You can add more filters, elements, and change the backdrop of the creative. The plan is to create something different from anything on your site, even down to its requirements.
Stage 3
Finally, Facebook’s AI will search your creative for 18+ content and other illegal components.
Setting Up Feeds And Pixels For iGaming Ads
To set up your workflow automation for promoting different offers daily, you need two key elements, which are data feeds and Facebook Pixel.
Data feeds are the data source, which you’ll use to automate the entire process of media buying and creative production. This is also where you’ll add all the information you want in your ads.
You can use Facebook pixel to track a user’s behaviour for a specific action.
How to set up feed data
When setting up feed data, some relevant information you can include in it is:
- The target audience for your campaign.
- The starting and ending dates for your ad.
- The offers and incentives users can expect to get.
- For matches, you can include the logo of the teams playing, the time, and the game name.
How to set up Facebook Pixel events
Facebook Pixel is the tracking that Facebook uses in its algorithm. You need to add it to your landing page to track the marketing performance of your ad. Here are the events you can track with it.
- Page view – every time a user visits any page on your website.
- View content – when a casino game with a game ID parameter is opened.
- Complete registration – for users who registered or activated.
- Add to cart – For when a user adds a deposit to their account. You can include an amount parameter to track it.
- Purchase – When a user buys a ticket, chips or bets on a game. It can also be tracked with the amount parameter.
Bonus: Tips To Effectively Target Players In Regulated Markets
To effectively target players in regulated markets with Meta Ads, you must comply with Meta’s policies, get prior permission from the network and follow specific targeting restrictions. Here are other tips to follow for a smooth iGaming campaign.
1. Get Permission From Meta
Request written permission from Meta before running online games or gambling ads. To get one, you’ll need to provide evidence that the gambling activities you oversee are licensed and legal in target countries.
2. Follow Governing Policies
Meta’s Online Gambling and Gaming Advertising Policy outlines rules for advertisers.
3. Adhere To Targeting Restrictions
Do not target audiences under 18 or 21 (depending on location) for campaigns entailing online gaming, sports predictions, and similar activities.
4. Don’t Show Misleading Ads
Your campaigns should be truthful and not mislead users.
5. Target Countries Where iGaming Is Legal
Target the countries where iGaming is legal and any other places.
6. Choose Relevant Audiences
Ensure that you target users who fall within the demographics, interests and behaviours of people who are interested in iGaming brands. This ensures that your ad is shown to the right people.
7. Promote Responsible Gaming
Every ad must have information that promotes responsible gaming. You can add a hotline phone number or link.
8. Add Responsible Gaming Information To Your Landing Page
Your landing pages should also provide information about responsible gambling.
