I think the Google Ads sales team is coaching competitor how to get around restrictions

[BakerStreet]

Hey, so I have a competitor who is in a restricted vertical. Their site should be restricted from running ads but I suspect, since they buy 1,000,000 clicks or more a month, Google Ads' sales team coached them on how to get around the restrictions. They basically made the site so that all banned words are missing but you can still understand what it is about.

Lets say its gambling niche. Instead of "20x bonus on gambling payouts" it will be "20 multiplier on play coins." You get the idea.

I heard that the ads sales team and the trust and safety team or two different team within Google. They both compete for power in the internal politics struggle. Ads has a quote for ads sales. Trust and safety needs to make the public trust Google. I really think Ads team got too much power now, because this competitor got through.

How do I report the ad to the trust and safety team? I tried the regular report button but it doesn't work and I heard that the regular report button actually gets comments tallied up and that's all. They won't take action until the complaints are really high I guess. I also heard that some competitors hire micro workers to complain about an ad of their competitors, but that's an expensive route.

I'd rather just write an email. Free and effective. Anyone know of a way? Or can we just write a twitter to someone on the trust and safety team? I heard that the T&S team listens to twitter too.

Thanks in advance!

 

[wikibum]

You are crazy to think that a Google ads rep actually know what they are doing, let alone give a competitor an edge. They can barely give their own clients an edge and they have no leverage to do anything beyond suggesting recommendations.

You can report the ads and wait for them to disapprove the ads. Your competitor might have also gotten a license of some sort to get around the restrictions. I would read more about their policies on your niche and if there is a certification or anything you need to get to by pass them.

 

[BakerStreet]

You are crazy to think that a Google ads rep actually know what they are doing, let alone give a competitor an edge. They can barely give their own clients an edge and they have no leverage to do anything beyond suggesting recommendations.

You can report the ads and wait for them to disapprove the ads. Your competitor might have also gotten a license of some sort to get around the restrictions. I would read more about their policies on your niche and if there is a certification or anything you need to get to by pass them.

I am getting my license. They don’t have it and are saying they are exempt. That’s how they got it. That’s why I’m upset. And no I’m not crazy to think they got some help from Google ads team because the Google ads team for another business I’m involved in helps us out with the rules.

Think about it. If a client can buy more ads, that’s better for Google.

 

[wikibum]

the Google ads team for another business I’m involved in helps us out with the rules.

You can't circumvent the rules. Most of Google Ads systems are automated. You can appeal things but no Google Ads support team is going to help you circumvent the rules. They will get sued, especially if the rules you are trying to break are set by the FTC. Worse yet, the EU.

If your competitor is getting away with it, it's not because they are getting insider help. It's because they know how to mend the rules and change the content to follow the guidelines. I work with some of the toughest niches (supplements, cbd, etc..) and none of them are banned or restricted. I know their competitors have a hard time getting approved but that's on them. Google Ads support is useless.

 

[BakerStreet]

You can't circumvent the rules. Most of Google Ads systems are automated. You can appeal things but no Google Ads support team is going to help you circumvent the rules. They will get sued, especially if the rules you are trying to break are set by the FTC. Worse yet, the EU.

If your competitor is getting away with it, it's not because they are getting insider help. It's because they know how to mend the rules and change the content to follow the guidelines. I work with some of the toughest niches (supplements, cbd, etc..) and none of them are banned or restricted. I know their competitors have a hard time getting approved but that's on them. Google Ads support is useless.

You won’t believe it but our sales reps will open tickets for us on their end and talk to people inside Google to get ads approved.

You need to be a major player in the industry to get this level of support. This isn’t regular Google ads support. We meet them once a quarter at their offices or at our offices.

Yes I’m angry about it too since I’m not benefiting from it in this other industry but I know it exists.

 

[eliquid]

It's not what you think...

See post https://www.buildersociety.com/thre...24-ongoing-discussion.7327/page-19#post-79643

If you want to report ads and complaints though, I can get you the URL.

https://support.google.com/legal/troubleshooter/1114905?sjid=12114350673974004326-NA#ts=2981967,2981971,12981969,13037070

It takes a while. It's not gonna be next day or next week. A lot of people run stuff through that URL so there is a backlog.

It works though, I report my competitors ads constantly. They go down. I don't have a timeline of how long it takes though. But I know it works.

 

[BakerStreet]

It's not what you think...

See post https://www.buildersociety.com/thre...24-ongoing-discussion.7327/page-19#post-79643

If you want to report ads and complaints though, I can get you the URL.

https://support.google.com/legal/troubleshooter/1114905?sjid=12114350673974004326-NA#ts=2981967,2981971,12981969,13037070

It takes a while. It's not gonna be next day or next week. A lot of people run stuff through that URL so there is a backlog.

It works though, I report my competitors ads constantly. They go down. I don't have a timeline of how long it takes though. But I know it works.

Thanks for the support!

That’s the same URL I’ve been using. I remember on my last meeting with Google ads sales team that they said the trust and safety team receives complaints through four channels. One was that form. Another was social media. I don’t remember the third or fourth way.

My next move, other than waiting for the wheels to turn, is to call Google out on this policy violation on social media. The blocker is that I don’t use social media personally. I’ll need someone with an account to post for me.

Also… does anyone know the third and fourth way to report a violation? Using all channels would help IMO.

I’ve also tried looking up trust and safety team members emails and emailing them but the email was not delivered. This might be another channel.