Policy rules describe your own policy for a project, for example the terms of your affiliate contract. Every saved check is compared with your enabled rules, and each advertiser that breaks a rule gets one case you can assign, update and document.
Rule types
- Forbidden terms in ad copy: words or phrases, such as official site, in the headline, description or display URL.
- Brand used by an unauthorized advertiser: an ad that mentions your brand from a domain you have not authorized.
- Direct linking to your domains: an advertiser you have not authorized whose ad points to one of your own domains.
- Forbidden promo codes: codes you list, and optionally any other code written after the word code. Generic wording such as 20% off is never read as a code.
- Position limit: an advertiser you have not authorized in the top paid positions you choose.
- Unauthorized affiliate ID: an affiliate ID in the ad's destination URL that is not on your authorized list. This needs your affiliate URL parameter.
Your own domains never break a rule, except for affiliate IDs. Advertisers you classify as authorized retailers under Advertisers, and domains you list on a rule, count as authorized. Each rule can be limited to certain engines, devices, operating systems, countries or locations.
Add a rule
- Open Project settings and select Policy rules.
- Choose a rule type, name it and fill in its fields.
- Select Preview last 30 days to see what it would have matched. Nothing is recorded yet.
- Save the rule. From the next saved check on, matches open or update cases. To check ads you already have, use Evaluate saved ads for up to 92 days.
Work cases
- Open Cases in the sidebar. The number beside it is how many cases are open in the selected project.
- There is one case per rule and advertiser, and per affiliate ID for affiliate rules. New matches add evidence to the same case instead of creating another.
- Set the status to Investigating, Contacted, Resolved or Dismissed, choose an owner from your team, and add notes. Every change appears in the case timeline.
- A resolved case reopens by itself when a new matching ad is seen later, and Times reopened goes up. A dismissed case stays dismissed.
- Each case lists its evidence: when and where each ad was seen, its copy, destination and what matched, with a link to the saved ads.
A case is a lead to review. It shows that an ad was displayed for a search at a moment, not that a contract was broken, that money was spent or that a keyword was bought. No case does not mean no issue: only saved checks are evaluated.