How To Use Facebook’s Grid Tool For Better Ad Images

 In Marketing

Facebook’s ad approval algorithms can cause confusion. We’ve had several clients ask us about the process, and most of the time it’s because they’ve tried to boost a post that includes an image with text on it. So… how slight can image differences be between an approved and rejected ad?

Check out these two images we uploaded to the Facebook Grid Tool:

Rejected by Facebook’s Grid Tool at 32%
How To Use Facebook's Grid Tool - Before
Approved by Facebook’s Grid Tool at 12%

 

Are you surprised at all by the 20-point difference between the two images?

We only had to edit our image slightly to make a relatively drastic change in our text percentage. We didn’t have to remove text, and we just barely had to edit the sizing of some of the text. That’s because the Facebook Grid Tool is more about placement than sizing.

Start by bookmarking this link: THE FACEBOOK GRID IMAGE CHECKER

  1. Upload your image file, wait for it to be displayed in the grid tool.
  2. Select each grid square that has even a partial piece of text within its boundaries.
  3. The squares should turn blue as they’re selected, and the corresponding percentage will appear in the second paragraph you see to the right of your image.

Here’s an example of our first image once uploaded to the Facebook Grid Tool:

Facebook Grid Tool rejected our image

Once your image is uploaded, Facebook asks you to select each grid square that contains text. As you can see in our original image, The top of “Wharton County Freedom Fest” and the first and last letters of “OPEN CAR SHOW” land just barely inside of their own grid boxes. This causes our text to take up 8 total grid boxes, leaving us with a score of 32%. For a passing score and the ability to Boost your Facebook post or ability to use this image in any ad campaign, Facebook requires a score of 20% or lower.

Next, take a look at our tweaked image. Notice we only had to shift the text banner down about 10 pixels and then decreased the sizing of the “OPEN CAR SHOW” text by a few points.

Using Facebook Grid Tool to get ads approved

With these changes, the Facebook Grid Tool now tells us our image scores 12%. Great! We didn’t need to cut down on any text, our message is still getting across, and we can now use this image in a Facebook Advertising campaign without receiving a message about our text-to-image ratio.

Our grid square count went from 8 squares to 3 with the smallest of changes! We find that most our clients opt for an image with no text once they receive a notification their ad has been unapproved, and the original message can be lost when that image is swapped out for an alternate.

Next time you’re using an image with text to promote your brand on Facebook, use the Grid Tool to test the image. If you’re over 20% coverage, first try to reposition and resize your text before removing text or using another image altogether. You too can become a master of the Facebook Grid Tool for your boosted posts and ad campaigns.

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