Facebook is constantly evolving to make their platform more effective and user friendly for advertisers. Since the beginning of (Facebook) time, advertisers have been limited to designing creative that contained no more than 20% text. In September of 2020, Facebook stopped penalizing ads that don’t follow the 20% text rule.

What is the “20% Text Rule”?

The 20% text rule was Facebook’s effort to keep the platform more visually appealing by restricting ad creative with too much text. Ads that didn’t follow the rule were penalized anywhere from decreasing the potential reach to being rejected and not eligible to run at all.

Advantages for Automotive

While we don’t have a crystal ball that shows us the future performance data from these new, more lax rules, there are some advantages to the change. One big advantage for the automotive industry is being able to include messaging in the creative that’s required for OEM compliance standards. Dealers will now have more room to include terms and conditions, make/model/trim and various callouts.

Dealers will also have more flexibility to include sales incentives on the creative, such as lease and payment options, holiday sales promotions, and more — allowing for more of a one-two punch when paired with the text. However, as we mention above, we still want to make sure that we tactfully include text in our creative. Too much text can quickly become distracting and take away from the intended message. A skilled designer will be able to achieve the right balance.

Facebook Still Recommends Adhering to the 20% Text Rule for Better Results

In the absence of the old restrictions, it’s important to remember Facebook and Instagram are visual platforms. It’s increasingly important to communicate your message effectively by serving compelling thumb-stopping ads that grab people’s attention. Pictures are still more likely to accomplish this than a bunch of words. Even though you can, try not to cram as much text as possible into every new piece of creative. The upside to this change is that it allows for more flexibility in design and messaging for advertisers.

The Need for Thumb-Stopping

Consumers scroll through their feeds at a rapid pace, only stopping when something catches their eye. Although advertisers will no longer be penalized for images containing more than 20% text, it’s still just as important to work with skilled designers and ad specialists to develop ad creative with the right blend of impactful images and text to entice action and yield optimal performance.

Is it Time For Advertisers To Rejoice As Facebook Moves Away From This Text Rule Completely?

Maybe… maybe not? This is yet to be seen. Because this switch is so new, there isn’t enough data yet to show the impact on performance. With a data-driven mindset at PureCars, we continue to keep close watch and assess platform changes on the health of our campaigns.

As we continue to monitor and measure the success of our campaigns for dealers, and as Facebook continues to monitor and measure the impacts of this change across the entire platform, we’ll share updates and recommendations that continue to drive success for dealers and the automotive industry as a whole.