My account or domain was disapproved by Google MCM - how do I fix this?

Introduction

Receiving a disapproval from Google Multiple Customer Management (MCM) can be a roadblock, but it is not always permanent. To manage ad inventory, Google requires two specific approvals: Ad Manager Account approval and Domain approval. This guide breaks down the most common reasons for disapproval and provides actionable steps to get your site back on track.

Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting

1. Ineligible for MCM:
   • Issue: You have an outstanding policy issue on your Google Ads account.
   • Solution:
     • Check the Policy Centre in your AdSense, AdWords, Ad Manager, or AdMob account to verify there are no disablements, suspensions, or policy violations.
     • If there is a violation, submit an appeal using the Content policy violation appeal form or Traffic policy violation appeal form.
2. Duplicate Account:
   • Issue: You have multiple Google publisher accounts.
   • Solution:
     • Apply to MCM using the email address associated with your AdSense account.
     • Close any old Google Ads accounts that are no longer in use.
     • Consolidate multiple AdSense accounts into one.
     • If someone at your address already has an Ad Manager account, use a different address for your application.
3. Low Value Content:
   • Issue: Your site does not meet Google's standards for high-quality, well-established sites.
   • Solution:
     • Ensure your site is easy to navigate with clearly defined and distinct categories.
     • Add essential pages like Privacy Policy, Contact Us, and About Us with fully functioning links.
     • Organize content well, categorizing posts appropriately without overlaps and avoiding generic categories.
     • Maintain high content quality; posts should be 500 words or more, and avoid thin or scraped content.
     • Resolve any issues with image serving.
4. Navigation Issues:
   • Issue: Users are unable to access content easily due to poor navigation.
   • Solution:
     • Define and distinguish categories clearly.
     • Ensure no posts are in multiple categories to avoid duplication.
     • Add fully functioning Privacy Policy, Contact Us, and About Us pages.
     • Avoid multiple menus, and use a single main menu for easier navigation.
5. Site Down or Unavailable:
   • Issue: Google cannot review your site because it is down.
   • Solution:
     • Ensure no downtime with your host.
     • Update Ezoic DNS records to match your host.
     • Follow the guide to fix Origin Errors if noticed.
6. Site Not Ready to Serve Ads:
   • Issue: Your site is not configured to serve Google ads.
   • Solution:
     • Create an ads.txt file using the Ads.txt app in your Ezoic dashboard if you do not have one.
     • Ensure you are Cloud integrated with Ezoic to automatically add Ezoic’s list of sellers to the ads.txt file.
     • Add your AdSense credentials to the ads.txt file using Ezoic’s ads.txt app if applicable.
7. Google Ads on Pages Without Publisher Content:
   • Issue: Ads are shown on non-content pages such as About Us, Contact Us, or Privacy Policy pages, or pages with minimal content.
   • Solution:
     • Ensure ads are only served on content pages.
     • Contact the Ezoic team for review if your site is a tool or application with minimal content.
8. Multiple Site Disapprovals:
   • Issue: Repeated re-review requests without resolving flagged issues.
   • Solution:
     • Wait 30 days to re-apply and use this time to fix the initial issue flagged by Google.
9. Multiple Policy Violations:
   • Issue: Site content does not meet Google's publisher policies.
   • Solution:
     • Ensure adherence to all policies stated by Google.

Common Symptoms

Common symptoms that indicate disapproval issues for Google Multiple Customer Management (MCM) include:

1. Ineligible for MCM:
   • Outstanding policy issues on your Google Ads account, such as disablements, suspensions, or policy violations.
2. Duplicate Account:
   • Application linked to another Google Publisher Account.
   • Multiple AdSense accounts or Google Ads accounts resulting in automatic denial.
3. Low Value Content:
   • Site not meeting Google’s standards for high-quality and well-established content.
   • Poor navigation, unclear categories, or repeated articles under multiple categories.
4. Navigation Issues:
   • Difficulty for users to access content easily.
   • Missing essential pages such as Privacy Policy, Contact Us, or About Us.
5. Site Down or Unavailable:
   • Site experiencing downtime or DNS issues.
   • Origin Errors impacting site availability.
6. Site Not Ready to Serve Ads:
   • Missing or improperly configured ads.txt file.
   • AdSense credentials not included in the ads.txt file.
7. Google Ads on Pages without Publisher Content:
   • Ads appearing on pages such as About Us, Contact Us, or Privacy Policy.
   • Ads on pages with minimal or third-party content.
8. Multiple Site Disapprovals:
   • Excessive re-review requests without fixing the initial issues flagged by Google.
   • 30-day waiting period imposed before re-applying.
9. Multiple Policy Violations:
   • Site content not adhering to Google’s publisher policies.

Tips for Prevention and Maintenance

To prevent Google Ad Manager disapprovals and maintain optimal performance, follow these tips:

1. Ensure Policy Compliance: Regularly check the Policy Centre in your AdSense, AdWords, Ad Manager, or AdMob accounts to ensure there are no disablements, suspensions, or policy violations. Address any policy issues promptly using Google's appeal forms for content and traffic violations.
2. High-Quality Content: Maintain high standards for content quality. Make sure most posts are at least 500 words, and avoid thin or scraped content. Ensure your content is original, engaging, and relevant to your site's niche.
3. Essential Pages: Include essential pages such as Privacy Policy, Contact Us, and About Us on your site. These pages should be fully functioning and easily accessible from the main menu.
4. Avoid Downtime: Minimize downtime by ensuring your hosting is reliable and your Ezoic DNS records are up-to-date. Follow guides to fix any Origin Errors if encountered.
5. Ads.txt File: Make sure you have an ads.txt file containing Ezoic and Google's information. Use the Ads.txt app in your Ezoic dashboard to create or update this file.
6. Ad Placement: Serve ads only on content pages. Avoid placing ads on pages such as About Us, Contact Us, or Privacy Policy, and ensure ads are not shown on pages with minimal or third-party content.

Following these best practices will help you maintain a compliant, high-quality website that meets Google’s standards and prevents common disapproval issues.

Overview

Common Disapproval Reasons

Ineligible for MCM

This typically stems from an outstanding policy issue on an existing Google Ads-related account.

• The Fix: Check the Policy Center in your AdSense, Google Ads, Ad Manager, or AdMob accounts. Look for active suspensions or violations.

• Action: If a violation exists, you must resolve it or appeal it directly with Google using their Content Policy Appeal or Traffic Policy Appeal forms.

Duplicate account

Google allows only one "Google Publisher Account" per entity. If your application is linked to another existing account, it will be denied.

• The Fix:  Ensure you are applying to MCM using the same email address associated with your primary AdSense account.

  • Close any old, unused Google Ads or AdSense accounts.

  • If a household member already has an account at your address, ensure your application uses a unique, distinct address if possible.

  • Tool: Use Google’s Sign-in Troubleshooter to identify duplicate accounts.

Low Value Content 

• Google seeks high-quality, well-established sites that provide unique value to users.

  • Originality: Avoid "thin" or "scraped" content. Your articles should provide unique insights rather than just summarizing existing web content.

  • Content Volume: Most posts should be 500 words or more, with at least 6 posts per category.

  • Niche Focus: Keep content relevant. For example, a finance site should not have a "Pets" category.

  • Note: Navigation is a major factor in how Google determines "Value." Please review the Navigation section below to ensure your site meets these requirements.

Navigation

Google’s review ensures users can find content effortlessly. If a visitor (or a Google bot) cannot easily navigate your site, it will be disapproved.

• Essential Pages: You must have a fully functioning Privacy Policy, Contact Us, and About Us page linked in your main menu.

• Categorization: Each category must be distinct. Avoid generic labels like "General" or "Other."

• Avoid Duplication: Do not list the same post under multiple categories. This is often flagged as duplicate content.

• Menu Structure: Use a single, clean primary menu rather than multiple complex menus.

Site down or unavailable

If Google’s crawlers cannot reach your site, they cannot approve it.

• The Fix: Ensure there is no downtime with your host.

• Integration Check: If you are using Cloud integration, verify that your DNS records in the Ezoic dashboard match your host’s records. If you are using JavaScript integration, ensure your site is loading correctly and no security plugins (like Wordfence) are blocking Google's crawlers.

Site Not Ready to Serve Ads

This usually indicates an issue with your ads.txt file.

• The Fix: If you don't have an ads.txt file, create one using the Ads.txt app in your Ezoic dashboard.

• Integration Difference: * If using JavaScript integration, you must manually ensure Ezoic’s entries are included in your ads.txt file via the app.

  • If using Cloud integration, Ezoic will automatically include the required seller information.

Google Ads are showing in pages without publisher content

This disapproval occurs when ads are placed on pages that lack original, substantive content. Google requires that ads only appear on pages providing value to the user

• The Fix: Ensure ads are not showing on:

  • Login, "Thank You," or "Welcome" pages.

  • Error pages (like 404 pages).

  • Pages that consist primarily of images or videos with no accompanying text.

  • Search results pages.

• Action: If your site is a tool or application with minimal text, please contact the Ezoic team for a manual review.

Multiple site disapprovals

Requesting a review too many times without fixing the original issues results in a "cooldown" period.

• The Result: You will be barred from re-applying for 30 days. Use this time to perform a deep audit of your content and navigation.

Multiple Policy Violations

This tends to mean that your site content doesn't meet Google's publisher policies. To fix this, you need to ensure that you're adhering to all policies stated here: 

https://support.google.com/admanager/answer/10502938?hl=en

Related articles:

Applying to Google Ad Manager Multiple Customer Management

Need Further Assistance?

For further assistance with disapproval issues or to get help with any of the steps mentioned, you can reach out to the Ezoic support team. They can provide specific guidance and support related to your situation:

• Email Support: support@ezoic.com
• Help Center: Visit the Ezoic Help Center for detailed guides and troubleshooting tips: Ezoic Help Center
• Community Forum: Engage with other publishers and Ezoic support staff in the Ezoic Community Forum: Ezoic Community

If your site is a tool/application and you have received a disapproval for minimal content, you should get in touch with the Ezoic team to have your site reviewed.