3 Pinterest policy rules bear on agencies and in-house marketing teams

Platform rules are about ad approval and account risk, not law, and policies change. These are the Pinterest rules whose wording is about patient quotes, reviews, endorsements, tracking and audience targeting. They run when Pinterest is selected in the checker.

1. CG-PLT-008 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Pinterest does not allow ads for clinical trial recruitment. Google does not allow them in most locations. Microsoft Advertising and Amazon Ads list clinical trials and trial recruitment as prohibited. X, Nextdoor and Reddit allow them only with conditions (X prior authorization, no misleading expectations or claims of safety, registration on ClinicalTrials.gov and IRB oversight).

   Source: Pinterest Advertising Guidelines (healthcare products and services); Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy (clinical trial recruitment); Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy; X Ads healthcare policy; Nextdoor Ads Policy; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy

   Safer wording: Send people to the registry listing or the sponsor site instead of buying a platform ad, or check the platform and location rules and any IRB approval first.

   Nextdoor Ads Policy, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, Pinterest Advertising Guidelines, X Ads healthcare policy

2. CG-PLT-012 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Pinterest allows no weight loss language or imagery in ads, with the exception of approved healthcare advertisers promoting prescription GLP-1 medication in the US and Canada. It also bars references to BMI, testimonials about weight loss, and weight loss procedures.

   Source: Pinterest Advertising Guidelines (weight loss products and services)

   Safer wording: Describe the clinical service (nutrition counselling, metabolic health visits) without weight-loss outcomes, or get Pinterest approval as a healthcare advertiser first.

   Pinterest Advertising Guidelines

3. CG-PLT-015 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Snap does not allow ads that promote weight-loss supplements, and Pinterest does not allow weight loss or appetite suppressant pills, supplements or products claiming weight loss through something worn or applied to the skin. Amazon Ads prohibits fat burners and similar products that claim to increase metabolism or suppress appetite.

   Source: Snap Ads Category Requirements, Health (health and dietary supplements); Pinterest Advertising Guidelines (weight loss products and services); Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies

   Safer wording: Advertise the clinical service, not the supplement, or move to a platform whose policy allows the product with approval.

   Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies, Snap Ads Category Requirements, Health, Pinterest Advertising Guidelines

None of our sample wording triggers a Pinterest rule, so no example is shown. The rules above are still part of the set.

92 federal and general rules matched to agencies and in-house marketing teams run next to the Pinterest ones. The ones that weigh most:

1. CG-EFF-014 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Claims of instant, one-visit or universal results, or of working where all else fails, promise outcomes no clinic can substantiate.

   Source: FTC Act section 5; FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance; FTC Endorsement Guides, 16 CFR Part 255

   Safer wording: Remove the promise of speed or certainty. Say what the service is and that results vary.

   16 CFR Part 255 · Needs counsel review

2. CG-FTC-001 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Buying or selling fake followers, likes, subscribers or views that misrepresent influence for a commercial purpose is an unfair or deceptive practice under the FTC's consumer reviews rule. It applies to anyone who sells them and to a business that buys them.

   Source: 16 CFR 465.8 ("Purchase or procure fake indicators of social media influence that they knew or should have known to be fake")

   Safer wording: Grow followers and ratings from real people. Remove the offer, or the purchased numbers, from the page.

   16 CFR 465.8 · Needs counsel review

3. CG-INF-001 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   A free product, a commission or a code is a material connection that must be clearly disclosed, and a before-and-after claim by a paid endorser needs proof and a typical-results statement.

   Source: FTC Endorsement Guides, 16 CFR Part 255; FTC Rule on Consumer Reviews and Testimonials, 16 CFR Part 465; FTC Act section 5

   Safer wording: Put a clear disclosure of any payment, gift or commission at the start of the post, and remove unproven results claims.

   16 CFR Part 255, 16 CFR Part 465 · Needs counsel review

4. CG-OIG-001 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Paying or rewarding anyone for referring patients or for each prescription can violate the federal anti-kickback statute, and paying influencers without disclosure violates endorsement rules.

   Source: federal anti-kickback statute, 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b; OIG Special Fraud Alert on telemedicine arrangements; FTC Endorsement Guides, 16 CFR Part 255

   Safer wording: Remove payments tied to referrals or prescriptions. Pay marketers a fixed fee for services set in advance, and require clear disclosure of any paid endorsement.

   16 CFR Part 255, 42 U.S.C. 1320a-7b · Needs counsel review

Everything for the industry is on the agencies and marketing teams page, and all Pinterest rules for any industry are on the Pinterest page.