Access & Navigation
Landing pages must be fully accessible and direct users to the promoted product or service without unnecessary barriers. Pages that fail to load, contain broken links, or mislead users about their destination will be denied.
Minimum Requirements:
- Offer pages must be accessible without requiring registration, payment, or downloads (when not intrinsic to the product).
- Users must be able to reach the promoted product or service within a reasonable timeframe (no more than two clicks through the funnel). For video sales letter (VSL) landing pages longer than one minute, a clear bypass option must be provided that allows users to reach the product without watching the video in its entirety.
- All links must resolve properly and lead to the expected content. This includes navigational links, footer links, social media icons, and any other clickable elements displayed on the page.
- Landing page elements must be compatible with and display properly across all targeted devices.
Prohibited Practices:
- Obstacles that prevent users from reaching the product, such as looping redirects or excessive interstitial steps.
- Aggressive pop-ups, forced redirects, or blank/empty ads.
- Landing pages containing malware, phishing, or other harmful/malicious practices.
- Any attempt to abuse, manipulate, or circumvent RevContent’s systems or policies.
- Mismatching the language between the ad creative and landing page.
Misleading Use of News Elements
Landing pages must not imitate or misrepresent themselves as legitimate news sources. Advertorials should be clearly distinguishable from editorial content.
Prohibited Practices:
- Using logos, layouts, or imagery associated with recognized news outlets or TV broadcasts.
- Featuring images of reporters, anchors, newscasters, or news sets.
- Including headings, titles, or references that mimic news brands or formats (such as, “News,” “Channel X,” “Times,” “Sentinel,” “Reporter,” “Special Report,” “Editor’s Note”).
- Presenting first-person “reporter-style” product reviews that are not authentic
- Misleading bylines or author attributions that imply journalistic objectivity when the content is paid advertising.
Disclosures
All advertorial landing pages must include clear and prominent disclosures to help users distinguish promotional content from independent editorial material.
Top of Page:
- Place a clear notice at the top center of the page that users see immediately, unblocked by pop-ups or overlays. The wording can be “Advertisement”, “Sponsored”, “Paid Content” or another clear term that shows the content is promotional.
- Disclosure text must be prominently displayed above the fold and easily visible to all users. Formatting should ensure sufficient font size and color contrast in accordance with WCAG 2.2 or the most recent version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
Bottom of Page:
- The following example, or a phrase closely resembling it, must appear clearly and conspicuously at the beginning of any disclosures (or by itself if no other disclosures are required):
- “THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT AND NOT AN ACTUAL NEWS ARTICLE, BLOG, OR CONSUMER PROTECTION UPDATE.”
- This phrase should be in all capital letters and formatting should ensure sufficient font size and color contrast in accordance with WCAG 2.2 or the most recent version of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.
Additional Guidance:
- Disclosures may not be hidden in fine print, expandable menus, or footnotes.
- Font, size, and placement must ensure disclosures are immediately visible and legible.
- Disclosures should be in the primary language of the intended audience or geography.
- When relevant, landing pages should include a clear and accessible link to your privacy policy, detailing how user data is collected, used, and protected in compliance with applicable laws.
- To ensure WCAG 2.0 compliance, advertisers can test color contrast using online tools such as: Snook Color Contrast Checker by entering the Hex codes of the text and background colors.
- Additional disclaimers may be required depending on claims made in ad verticals such as health, earnings, testimonials, or trial offers. (See Restricted Content)
Substantiation
If your advertisement or landing page refers to studies, laboratory testing, scientific research, or any other material that purports to substantiate your marketing claims, you must provide a direct link to such material on the page where the reference is made.
Minimum Requirements:
- Alignment with Claim - The study or evidence must directly confirm the meaning of the claim. For example, if you state a product is “clinically proven,” the referenced material must confirm that exact assertion.
- Product Specificity - The study must reference the same product or active ingredient that is the subject of your claim.
- Credibility - The study or testing must be conducted and evaluated in an objective manner by qualified persons, and be generally accepted within the relevant professional field as yielding accurate and reliable results.
- Transparency - Each referenced study, research, or test must disclose who conducted it, where it was conducted, and when it was completed.
Trial Offers & Billing Practices
All landing pages promoting trial offers, subscription programs, or recurring billing must be transparent, with clear disclosures and affirmative user consent. Advertisers are responsible for ensuring that users can easily understand the terms, costs, and cancellation methods.
Disclosures & Placement:
- Must include a clear and conspicuous disclosure that participation may require joining a subscription program, the user may be billed until cancellation, and other charges (like S&H) may apply.
- Disclosures must be in close proximity to the credit card submit field.
- If the purchase page does not contain an auto-renewal disclosure (and you don’t control it), the initial landing page must disclose the auto-renewal terms clearly and conspicuously.
- Billing terms and pricing must be clear, conspicuous, and easily located. They cannot be buried in links or presented in small print.
Minimum Transparency of Billing Terms:
- Must disclose trial length (if applicable).
- Must disclose shipping & handling fees.
- Must disclose price, billing interval, and cancellation method.
- Cancellation instructions must be clear and accessible.
Minimum Affirmative Consent Requirements:
- Users must consent to recurrent billing or subscriptions.
- Consent can be via a checkbox or button that clearly discloses subscription terms, placed near the billing details.
- Checkbox placement must be adjacent to the terms or a hyperlink to terms and conditions.
Prohibited Practices:
- No hiding or obscuring of auto-renewal terms.
- No claiming a product/service is “free” without immediately disclosing subscription details.
- No use of “risk-free” or “no obligation” unless fully accurate.
- No tiny-print billing information (not considered “clear and conspicuous”).
- No “failure to include” the subscription disclosure (called out explicitly in enforcement lists).
User Experience & Authenticity
Landing pages must present products and services honestly. Any use of fabricated content, false endorsements, or manipulative design tactics undermines user trust and will result in denial.
Minimum Requirements:
- Testimonials and endorsements must reflect genuine experiences and cannot be fabricated.
- Elements such as reviews, ratings, or comments must be truthful, current, and consistent with the product being promoted. If flagged, advertisers may be asked to provide documentation establishing the comments’ authenticity.
- Any “as seen on” logos or claims implying association with media outlets or brands must be verifiable.
Prohibited Practices:
- Use of fabricated social proof, including “social media” widgets, comment threads, or review sections, to imply false popularity or credibility. This includes comments that update dynamically via JavaScript, default to the current or recent date, appear static but always current/recent, or mimic Facebook comments without linking back to Facebook.
- Misleadingly implying association with reputable media outlets or organizations (like, Consumer Reports or recognized industry publications) without substantiation.
- Artificial urgency or scarcity tactics, including countdown timers that reset on refresh and/or fake inventory claims.