According to Reuters, on March 30, the company Meta announced that it is rolling out a feature to help marketers determine ad placement, to prevent ads from appearing in controversial posts on Facebook and Instagram.
Meta’s new system will allow clients to choose from three levels of risk for ad placement. The safest option is not to place ads in posts with sensitive content related to weapons, sex, or politics
Through the advertising measurement company Zefr, Meta will provide a report to customers so they know what content the ad will appear near and how it should be classified.
Marketers have long advocated strict control over where ads are placed online. They complain that the social media giants are doing nothing to prevent ads from appearing next to posts that are offensive, fake or contain hate speech.
The problem culminated in July 2020, when thousands of brands joined a boycott of Facebook during a wave of anti-racism protests in the US. A few months later, the company Meta came to an agreement to develop a tool for better ad management.
Samantha Stetson – Vice President of Client Council and Public Trade Relations Meta’s business said the company will introduce more granular controls so marketers can choose where to place their ads.
Ms. Stetson said that initial tests showed that advertising costs and performance did not change significantly when using Meta’s new tool. However, costs may change in the future due to the auction nature of the Meta advertising system.
The feature that separates ads from harmful content will be available in English and Spanish-speaking markets, with possible expansion to other regions later this year