Anyone who runs their own business belonging to the erotic industry knows very well that you can’t promote adult products or services on Facebook or Instagram. And yet, Poles who browsed Facebook recently had the opportunity to come across some interesting ads.
One of the readers of ErotisNews, sent us some time ago pictures of an ad she noticed while browsing her friends’ relations. “Aren’t such ads by any chance not allowed by fb?” she asked.
Although the layout of the ad is neat and at first glance it looks like an advertisement for women’s cosmetics, there was actually something not quite right. Reading through the advertisement and looking at it more closely one can notice several interesting elements. First of all, the advertisement clearly indicates that the product is intended to facilitate the reaching of an orgasm. Additionally, the advertised product itself is clearly described on the label as an intimate gel. More inquisitive people will also notice the presence of the clitoral stimulator Satisfyer Curvy 2+.
We wrote back to our reader that while this is indeed an ad featuring adult products, it was most likely approved by Facebook’s ad department by mistake and is an isolated incident that will not happen again, and most likely the ad itself will be taken down soon.
This made it all the more surprising when we received another message a few days ago with more ads from the same company:
This time the ads were located between the posts. While the first ad was very similar to the one that appeared previously and can be assumed to be part of the same Facebook ad campaign, the other ads on the other hand, advertised different products. Once again, it is hard to say that the ad glitters with eroticism. However, the sentence ‘My pussy needed extra care’ once again clearly suggests the purpose of the product.
It is the same with ‘Masturbation Course’. First of all, the phrase ‘The first and only in Poland‘ is not true and only takes advantage of the lack of knowledge and experience of the clients in an unfair way, but this can be omitted now. What is more important in this case is the fact that the graphics on the advertisement clearly show a naked woman and inform that it is a paid masturbation course. In this case, it is hard to approve the ad by mistake. Yet this was the fourth Facebook ad for the same company.
Unfortunately, the company publishing the ads did not want to comment on the matter.
New advertiser
However, the so-called icing on the cake in this case turned out to be an advertisement of a large Polish drugstore chain, which also decided to advertise… stimulators and vibrators (again Satisfyer)
Well it’s true that more and more adult toys are moving away from classic phallic shapes in favor of unique design, but again Facebook didn’t mind an ad featuring as many as 5 erotic toys! How can this be explained? That it is an ad of penguins? Ice cream? An eyebrow gripper? It is even hard to believe in such a mistake on Facebook’s part.
What does Facebook say about it?
Therefore, we contacted Facebook to find out why they are promoting adult products. The platform confirmed that the above ads are in violation of the Advertising Policies. These clearly states that “Ads may not promote the sale or use of adult products and services.” Specific examples are even indicated:
“Not allowed:
– Buy our erotic toys to taste adult pleasure
– Use our gel to significantly improve your sex life”
The only permitted advertisements referring to eroticism are those for products such as condoms or other contraceptives, for example. However, the condition in this case is that they must focus on the contraceptive properties of the product, not on sexual pleasure or sexual enhancement, and must be aimed at persons aged 18+.
Facebook spokesperson said that the enforcement of their own policies is never perfect, but they are always trying to improve their procedures so that such situations do not happen.
“Facebook has long had a policy that limits ads with adult content and adult products. We are constantly reviewing policies and taking feedback. When we are made aware of ads that violate our policies, we take them down as occurred in this case. Our enforcement is not always perfect but we are always improving. We also encourage people to report violating ads by tapping the three dots in the top right corner of the ad.” said Facebook spokesperson.
This means that the appearance of all these Facebook ads was merely the result of a mistake in judging their content. Additionally, Facebook said that while it regularly reviews its ad policies to best serve people and advertising partners, it is not currently considering changes for adult products and services.
As it turned out, Polish Facebook users still encounter ads for adult products.
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