LINE Ads review process – everything you need to know

LINE, a digital messaging platform, is a great way to advertise in Japan. With over 95 million monthly active users, LINE is a marketing powerhouse that offers a large selection of advertising tools to boot. It can boost brand awareness and assist in taking your business to the next level.

Like other digital platforms, LINE Ads go through an extensive review process before launching. In this article, we will go through the do’s and don’ts of LINE Ads, and share our tips on how to ensure all your ads

Before you start

LINE is principally a messenger app used by all age groups, from children(LINE sets the recommended age for use at 12 years and older) to adults. As it is possible to reach a wide demographic, all LINE Ads campaigns must comply with LINE’s advertising guidelines, based on the following questions:

• What will the user think/feel when seeing the ad?

• Is the information/ad content presented in an appropriate manner?
• Can the ad make the user feel uncomfortable / cause negative emotions?
• Are all users able to safely use the advertised service or product?

Over the past years, LINE has also been making efforts to ensure the transparency of all marketing activities on the platform in response to misleading advertising conducted by some businesses in the past.

What is an ad content review?

All LINE Ads consist of the following elements:

• Ad creative (still image or a video) 
• Landing page (the web page users go to after clicking the ad)

Please see an example below:

Reminder: Depending on the ad placement within the LINE network, format (size, aspect ratio, etc) of a creative may differ. Make sure to check our guide on how to prepare a perfect LINE ad creative here.

Mandatory requirements:

• A clear & easy to understand subject

Ads must be easy to understand and users should be able to clearly identify the subject, which should be presented in a clear, visible manner. When using copyrighted materials, it is required to obtain the author’s consent, and include their name and relationship with the brand in the artwork or ad copy.

• A landing page

All landing pages must include clear information about the advertiser so the users can easily obtain their contact information in case of further questions or concerns about the ad content.

As a rule of thumb, the landing page should be the advertiser’s own website, and must display their business contact details (name, address, phone number, email address, etc). When outsourcing the landing page to a third party, the advertiser must obtain their permission and display this information.

Required advertiser’s information:

• Official business name
• Business address
• Business representative’s name
• Contact information (email address, phone number)

Advertising restrictions

Breaking any of the following LINE Ads restrictions will result in ads failing the verification process.

Low quality artwork

Ads of poor image quality which are not displayed properly or can cause user’s dissatisfaction are not allowed.

Examples:

Inappropriate language / explicit content

Ad creatives containing strong language and explicit content (excessive body parts and skin exposure) are not allowed. Ads containing expressions of violence and discrimination, encouraging hate speech, or anti-social behaviour are also not permitted on the LINE platform.

Examples:

Misleading information

Advertising services or products that purposefully claim to be better than they actually are, or misleading users into believing that they are cheaper than they actually are, is prohibited. Expressions like ‘world’s best’ or ‘number 1’ must be supported by further information including the name of the research institution and year the research was conducted, both in the creative and the landing page.

Gambling / get rich quick schemes

Advertisements promoting any kind of gambling activity or promising ‘get rich quick’ schemes are prohibited. Ad content that includes imagery of money or cash promising financial gain is also not allowed.

Examples:

Copyrighted content

Advertisers are not allowed to use copyrighted images, names and photos of celebrities, trademarks, TV program images, videos, etc. without the author’s consent.

LINE ‘friends’ and logo requirements

LINE ‘friends’

Businesses can build a LINE ‘friends’ community on their LINE Official Account, which allows for direct communication with customers. LINE Ads also offer campaigns targeted at increasing the number of ‘friends’, and it is important to incorporate proper Japanese wording into your creative or landing page. The Japanese language is quite tricky and it is possible to write the same word in a variety of ways: using kanji characters, hiragana or katakana syllabaries, or a mix of both.

 In this case「友だち」is the only correct spelling, that will allow you to use the ‘add friend’ option.

⭕️「友だち」

❌「友達」「ともだち」「お友だち」

LINE logo guidelines

All ad creatives that include the LINE logo must follow the official logo guidelines. You can find more information about the logo guidelines here.

Examples:

For products and services relating to health foods, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and medical equipment, please refer to further guidelines  (Japanese only).

Get started with LINE Ads     

Following the rules and guidelines mentioned above will ensure your LINE Ads pass the verification process and a smooth launch of yours.    

DMFA is the official overseas LINE representative, and our team of bilingual Japanese digital marketing experts offers full support and management of LINE Ads and LINE Official accounts. To get started with LINE Ads, please get in touch.