Cryptocurrency Advertising In 2022: What We Learned After Spending $10,000 On Crypto Ads

In 2018, the crypto sector finally began to enjoy its long-awaited growth. People worldwide have begun to notice the benefits and usefulness of blockchain technology.

Some crypto exchanges and businesses began providing initial coin offerings (ICOs) and began running large-scale digital advertisements on major social media platforms such as Google Ads and Facebook to attract investors.

While many initial coin offerings were credible, the rise of various get-rich-quick schemes and frauds prompted major social media platforms such as Google Ads, Facebook (now Meta), Twitter, and Linkedin to place a cryptocurrency advertising ban to protect their platform users.

78% of ICOs were found to be scams by Bloomberg in 2017, with the top offenders being scams like Bitconnect, Pincoin, and ACChain. Because of these restrictions, genuine crypto companies had a hard time running advertisements for themselves.

However, there was some good news from these advertising regulations.

• The frequency of scams decreased as scammers struggled to promote their schemes.
• As the need for crypto advertising increased, a new advertising category emerged (continue reading to learn more).
  

Moving forward to 2021, the sun began to shine somewhat brightly for crypto advertising. Platforms that had previously banned crypto ads began to relax their rules due to increased demand and an improved understanding of the crypto philosophy.

So, how can you run crypto ads (the right way)?

Google Ads

In August 2021, Google decided to resume cryptocurrency ads, but with a condition. To run crypto ads, you must be Google-certified and follow Google's crypto ad regulations. Furthermore, the products offered, landing pages, and advertisements must comply with the local legal regulations of the nation you intend to execute your ad campaigns.

Google Ads prohibits advertisements for broker evaluations, crypto trading signals, financial advice, or DeFi trading protocols.

Meta (Instagram and Facebook)

In December 2021, Meta also made it easier to run crypto advertisements on Facebook and Instagram by expanding the eligibility requirements for crypto-related businesses to run ads on Instagram and Facebook.

Meta now allows you to run advertisements on its platforms for events, crypto education, news portals, NFTs, and crypto-wallets without any prior approval. Pre-approval and relevant legal requirements will be needed for running ads related to crypto exchange and platforms, software programs, or items that allow crypto lending and borrowing.

However, Meta is hesitant to allow advertisements for specific products and services such as crypto mining devices and crypto wallets that allow customers to purchase, sell, trade, or stake their crypto tokens.

Reddit

Although it was once impossible, Reddit now allows crypto ad placements. Like other platforms, advertisers must comply with relevant federal, state, and local legal requirements, rules, regulatory frameworks, and industry regulations.

Advertising related to decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges, cryptocurrencies or related products and services on Reddit should be pre-approved, and advertisers have to work directly with a Reddit Sales Representative.

When it comes to social media, Reddit is a good option, but you'll need to spend some money (around $5000) to get the most from your ad account. For those who aren't willing to spend a lot of money, it's advisable to hire a marketing agency that can execute low-budget Reddit ads.

Twitter

Until November 2021, only publicly traded crypto exchanges and wallets were permitted to run Twitter ads. However, In the fall of 2021, Twitter introduced a new policy allowing certain NFT-related ads and began allowing more crypto businesses to run paid ads. Only with Twitter's prior approval can cryptocurrency goods or services be promoted.

Crypto prepaid cards, crypto staking providers, cryptocurrency exchanges and wallets, are among the businesses that require prior authorization. Twitter prohibits advertising for DeFi trading protocols, initial DEX offerings, token liquidity pools, etc.

Crypto ad networks

Even though crypto ad networks are still relatively young, they are among the best options for advertising. Coinzilla, Bitmedia, and other crypto ad networks cater to a specific audience. This means that crypto advertisers can have ad destinations on cryptocurrency-related platforms.

For businesses, the benefit of placing advertising on these platforms is that you can promote your cryptocurrencies or related products and services to an already familiar audience with blockchain technology.

Furthermore, these platforms allow you to run advertisements for nearly any type of authentic cryptocurrency product. We've created a list of the best crypto ad networks to save you time.

What's next?

Cryptocurrency is an ever-changing industry, and platforms will continue to tweak their advertising policies. To get the most out of your advertising dollars, it is best to work with advertising professionals or established marketing agencies that are well-versed with these policies.