Copy Guidelines: Non-Negotiables
The following parameters represent baseline boundaries for all creative ad units deployed across mainstream web traffic channels. Any creative failing to comply with these rules will be rejected immediately.
These guidelines are subject to ongoing review. Our Ad Ops team may update, amend, or modify any section of this document as necessary to maintain compliance and operational alignment.
Advertiser Name Display Requirement
All banner creatives must prominently display a company/brand name.
Attacking Other Clients & Competitors
We reject any creatives containing direct or indirect attacks, disparaging depictions, or unauthorized usage of other clients’ names, logos, property, or mascots.
Banner Framing & Responsive Boundaries
Creatives must layout messaging to accommodate cross-device scaling:Hero and Search Banners
All critical text and primary imagery must fit within the tablet viewport framing boundaries.
Promo Tile Banners
All core graphics and text assets must fit within the mobile viewport framing dimensions.
Search Engine Results Page (SERP) Banners
All critical text and primary imagery must fit within the tablet viewport framing boundaries.
General Scaling Rule
The advertiser's brand name and promotional message must stay entirely inside both mobile and tablet safe-zones.
Explicit & Provocative Content Restrictions
Any offensive content featuring explicit sexual messaging, nudity, harm towards others, or provocative text are banned. Profanity must be censored.
No QR Codes, External URLs, or Third-Party Apps
Creatives must not incorporate QR codes, external domain hyperlinks, or mentions of any competing applications.
No Pure White Backgrounds
Not allowed to use white specifically the color #FFFFFF for your banner’s backgrounds.This is to prevent the creative from blending into the background of the site. Off white cream colors are permitted.
Trademark Enforcement & IP Protection
Direct rejection is required for any creative misappropriating trademarked text, designs, or logos. Common violations include:Major Sports Properties: NFL Super Bowl, NCAA March Madness, NBA Championships, MLB World Series, NHL Stanley Cup, FIFA World Cup.
Entertainment Franchises: Disney, Star Wars, The Simpsons.
Styling Appropriation: Altering a protected brand asset to look like your own brand design (e.g., mimicking the layout of the New York Knicks logo but swapping in a client name).
Vapes & Hardware Restrictions
In compliance with iOS guidelines, specific hardware descriptors and imagery are completely blocked.Prohibited Images:
Vapes, Cartridges, Batteries, Pods.
Outlines of vapes, cartridges, batteries, and pods.
Graphics of vapes, cartridges, and pods on packaging.
Suggested Alternatives:
Remove the vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods from your banner entirely.
Remove the outline of vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods from your banner entirely. Replacing the outline with a rectangular outline is acceptable.
Completely censor the vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods with a black rectangle.
Prohibited Words: Vapes, Cartridges/Carts, Pods, Pens, Batteries.
Suggested Alternatives: Tanks, 510s / 510 Thread, Disposables, Disposable oil, Disposable concentrate, Devices, Units.
Marketing to Minors Prevention Protocol
Creatives must be entirely devoid of themes, imagery, or stylistic elements tailored to attract underage demographics. The presence of cartoon/animated characters, schools, school buses, candy wrappers, juvenile slang, showing images of children, callouts such as "Kids love it", or celebrity references that are popular with minors or any marketing to children necessitates immediate rejection.
Unsubstantiated Health & Therapeutic Claims
Banners must not contain copy indicating that cannabis can cure, prevent, treat, or mitigate specific physical or mental illnesses (e.g., treating insomnia, chronic pain, or anxiety) unless explicitly backed by federal FDA authorization.Neutral, state-mandated consumer safety disclosures or patient onboarding alerts are allowed only when displayed without commercial emphasis.
Vape Policy and Suggested Alternatives
In compliance with iOS guidelines, specific hardware descriptors and imagery are completely blocked.
Prohibited Images:
Vapes, Cartridges, Batteries, Pods.
Outlines of vapes, cartridges, batteries, and pods.
Graphics of vapes, cartridges, and pods on packaging.
Suggested Alternatives:
Remove the vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods from your banner entirely.
Remove the outline of vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods from your banner entirely. Replacing the outline with a rectangular outline is acceptable.
Completely censor the vapes, cartridges, batteries, or pods with a black rectangle.
Prohibited Words: Vapes, Cartridges/Carts, Pods, Pens, Batteries.
Suggested Alternatives: Tanks, 510s / 510 Thread, Disposables, Disposable oil, Disposable concentrate, Devices, Units.
Suggested Alternatives
Flagged Terms (Not Recommended) | Suggested Alternatives |
Vape / Vapes / Vape Pen | Disposable / AIO (All-In-One) |
Cartridge / Cart / Carts | Thread / 510 / Tank / Disposable |
Pod / Pods | Unit / Device |
Battery / Batteries | Hardware / Hardware System / Device |
Pen / Pens | Disposable / AIO (All-In-One) |
Work Smarter: Try the In-Platform Creative Designer Tool
Don't want to build assets from scratch or spend time managing manual design layers? We highly encourage clients to leverage our built-in banner Creative Designer Tool located directly within Weedmaps Admin.
Automated Safe Zones: The tool handles all dynamic sizing for you, automatically locking your text and graphics into the perfect responsive mobile breakpoints without the need for manual overlay files.
Built-In Safeguards: It streamlines your creative workflow by guiding your background choices and formatting structure – instantly minimizing layout rejections or formatting hiccups before they can even happen.
Proven Higher Performance: Historical campaign data indicates that ads configured inside our in-platform designer consistently see significantly higher click-through rates (CTR).
It's the absolute fastest, easiest, and most reliable way to launch an optimized, high-converting banner campaign seamlessly!
How to Use the Template Overlays & Dynamic Breakpoints
Step-by-Step Guide to Using Overlays
Download the Right Overlay Template Select and download the template overlay, linked on the bottom of this article, that matches your chosen ad placement type. To ensure crisp display quality on high-resolution screens, always design at double-resolution (2x) using the specific dimensions below step 4.
Open Your Photo Editing Platform
Import your creative asset draft along with the downloaded template overlay file into your preferred external design software (such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Canva, or Figma).
Position Your Template Overlay
Place the template overlay as your topmost layer directly above your creative design. We’ve already made these templates semi-transparent for you, so you can see your underlying banner draft peeking through right away without needing to adjust any opacity settings!
Scale and Align Your Design
Check where your text, logos, and product graphics sit relative to the overlay guides. Scale and move your creative elements to guarantee everything vital sits comfortably within the mobile and tablet safe zone lines to prevent accidental cropping.
Placement Types & Recommended Background Dimensions
Placement Type | Recommended Background Dimensions |
Hero Banner, Savings Banner, Products Banner | 2880px x 800px |
Promo Tile | 2880px x 800px |
Search (SERP) Banner | 2880px x 480px |
Still Have Questions About Your Banners?
Balancing pixel-perfect mobile layouts with dynamic guidelines can feel like a lot to juggle. If you need a second look at your packaging imagery, BOGO copy, or mobile safe zones before submitting, don't hesitate to reach out!
Connect with our support team at [email protected] or your Weedmaps Representative for more information.