ReferenceGoogle Ads disapproval
Business name not relevant
Google disapproves a business name asset when it is not the domain name or the legal name verified in advertiser verification. Find the legal name under Admin, Policy, Account, and set the asset to match. A different name is allowed only with an active trademark and brand verification. Also check that the name is clearly shown on the landing page.
At a glance
- Where it shows
- The business name asset, with a disapproval reason on the asset or the ad.
- What stops
- The name asset stops serving while it is disapproved.
- How serious
- One asset. It can come back if the landing page still does not show the name.
What it means
The business name on an ad must be the domain name or the legal name of the advertiser. Any other name is treated as not relevant, including a real trading name the business uses on its signage.
The same rules check prominence as well: the name has to be clearly shown on the ad's landing page.
What actually triggers it
A trading name that differs from the legal name
A shorter or friendlier name is a common cause. The allowed names are the domain name and the legal name verified in advertiser verification, so a trading name is not allowed unless it is the domain.
Keywords, a location or a service added to the name
Adding a city, a service or a keyword to the name asset makes it differ from the legal name, which fails the same check.
A legal name that was never updated
A name entered at setup can go stale after a rename. Check the legal name the account holds against the current registration, because the ad will be judged against the account's version.
A landing page that never states the name
Google checks that the name is clearly visible on the landing page. A page that does not state the business name, even with a correct asset, leaves the asset unsupported.
Fix it in this order
- Open Admin > Policy > Account and write down the legal name the account holds.
- Set the business name asset to the domain name, or to the legal name, whichever the account has verified.
- Make the same name clearly visible on the landing page, in the headline or the page text.
- Replace the asset and check that it is approved.
When to appeal
Use a different name only when the business holds an active trademark registration for it and has completed brand verification for business information. Without both, an appeal does not change the rule.
Often confused with
Logo not relevant
A logo is judged separately from the name. The rule is one logo that matches the business and its domain, and no more than one logo for the same business. Fixing the name does not clear a logo disapproval.