Agencies and marketing teams / Reddit
4 Reddit policy rules bear on agencies and in-house marketing teams
4 rules come from Reddit policy and match the wording agencies and in-house marketing teams use. None of them is exclusive to Reddit. The rest are shared with the policies of Amazon Ads, Microsoft Advertising (Bing) and X. None of them block approval; all 4 warn. Of the 7 platforms with a page for this industry, it has the 2nd most rules.
What Reddit policy adds
Platform rules are about ad approval and account risk, not law, and policies change. These are the Reddit rules whose wording is about patient quotes, reviews, endorsements, tracking and audience targeting. They run when Reddit is selected in the checker.
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
CG-PLT-026 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text
Taboola rejects ads that discourage or compare to conventional medicine, such as "Forget the pills", "You don't need surgery" and "Better than medicines". Amazon Ads bars discouraging customers from seeing a qualified medical professional, Microsoft bars claiming a supplement can replace prescribed treatment, and Reddit bars implying a supplement is as effective as or better than an FDA-approved drug.
Source: Taboola Policy FAQ health and beauty; Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy; Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies; Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy
Safer wording: Present the product as a complement to professional care and leave out any suggestion of skipping or replacing treatment.
Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies, Taboola Policy FAQ health and beauty, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy
CG-PLT-027 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text
Amazon Ads bars products that improperly claim to be FDA cleared or approved or that use the FDA logo, and bars regulatory endorsement claims on healthcare products. Microsoft bars statements that misrepresent regulatory approval or review, and Apple bars deceptively expressing or implying regulatory approval for a dietary supplement. Reddit requires FDA approval for the drugs and devices it allows.
Source: Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies; Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy; Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Apple Advertising Services policies; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy
Safer wording: Supplements are not FDA approved. Say what the product contains and add the standard statement that the FDA has not evaluated the claims, or leave the FDA out.
Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies, Apple Advertising Services policies, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy
CG-PLT-030 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text
Meta lists anabolic steroids, chitosan, comfrey, DHEA, ephedra and human growth hormone as unsafe supplements. Reddit bars supplements with anabolic steroids, codeine, ephedra, HGH or opioids, Outbrain bars anabolic steroids, ephedra and HGH, Amazon Ads bars supplements with ephedrine alkaloids or Salvia divinorum, and X bars supplements that contain or reference anabolic steroids.
Source: Meta Advertising Standards, Unsafe substances; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy; Outbrain Advertising Guidelines; Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies; X Ads healthcare policy
Safer wording: Take the ingredient out of the ad and the product, or do not advertise the product on these platforms.
Meta Advertising Standards, Unsafe substances, Amazon Ads sponsored ads policies, Outbrain Advertising Guidelines, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, X Ads healthcare policy
What the checker flags with Reddit selected
None of our sample wording triggers a Reddit rule, so no example is shown. The rules above are still part of the set.
The federal rules that still apply
92 federal and general rules matched to agencies and in-house marketing teams run next to the Reddit ones. The ones that weigh most:
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
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
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
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 Reddit rules for any industry are on the Reddit page.
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Pick Reddit in the checker's ad platforms picker and every flag cites the rule and source listed above.