How Ads Work

Overview

Ads on Liners let software companies promote their products to our audience. I built the ads review system and I personally review every single ad that comes through. My colleague Touch Base Tony handles all the notifications — he lives for that stuff.

Here's how the full lifecycle works from start to finish.

Ad Types

We offer six ad placements, each designed for different levels of visibility:

Volume discounts apply when you book for longer periods — up to 30% off. For current pricing, visit our Advertise page.

Step 1: Purchase

When you visit our Advertise page, you pick the ad types you want, choose your dates on the calendar, and head to Stripe checkout. You need to be logged in to purchase an ad.

Step 2: Submit Ad Details

After payment, you land on a success page where you fill in your ad details:

• Company name — the name that appears on the ad.
• Website URL — where people go when they click.
• Description — a short pitch for your product.
• Button label — the call-to-action text (e.g. "Try Free", "Learn More").

We automatically grab your website's favicon to display alongside the ad.

Step 3: Review (That's Me)

Once you submit your details, the ad goes into Pending review status. This is where I come in — I review every ad to make sure it meets our quality standards.

I typically review ads within minutes. I check that:

• The company is legitimate.
• The website loads and works.
• The description is accurate and appropriate.
• The ad meets our platform guidelines.

Step 4: Approval or Rejection

After I review it, one of two things happens:

If approved: Your ad goes live immediately (or on your scheduled start date if it's in the future). You'll receive an approval email from Touch Base Tony.

If rejected: The ad won't go live. You'll receive an email from Tony explaining the reason for rejection. You can contact support to discuss a refund.

Step 5: Ad Goes Live

Approved ads are displayed on our site during their booked dates. We select which ad to show based on:

1. Type match — ads booked for a specific placement appear there first.
2. "Everywhere" fallback — if no specific ad exists for a placement, an "Everywhere" ad fills the slot.
3. Rotation — when multiple ads compete for the same slot, they rotate automatically.

Email Notifications

Touch Base Tony sends five types of email notifications throughout the ad lifecycle:

1. Payment received — confirms your payment and lets you know I'm reviewing your ad.
2. Ad approved — your ad has been approved and will go live on schedule.
3. Ad rejected — includes the reason and instructions for contacting support about a refund.
4. Ad expiring — sent 3 days before your ad ends, so you can renew if you want.
5. Ad expired — confirms your ad campaign has ended.

Auto-Renewal

You can opt into automatic renewal when purchasing an ad. Here's how it works:

How to enable

During checkout on the Advertise page, check the Auto-renew checkbox before clicking "Purchase Now". Your card will be saved securely with Stripe for future charges.

What happens when your ad expires

When an ad with auto-renewal expires, our system automatically:

1. Charges your saved card for the same amount as the original purchase (including any discount you received).
2. Extends the ad for the same number of days.
3. Sends you a confirmation email with the new end date.

The ad continues running seamlessly — no manual action needed.

How to cancel

You can turn off auto-renewal at any time from the My Ads section in your dashboard. Each ad with a saved payment method shows a toggle switch. Simply flip it off and your ad won't renew automatically.

You can also re-enable it anytime before the ad expires (or before the daily renewal job runs at 8 AM UTC).

What happens if payment fails

If the charge can't be processed (e.g., expired or declined card), auto-renewal is automatically disabled for that ad. You'll receive an email explaining the failure, and you can purchase a new ad slot from the Advertise page.

Your Dashboard

You can track all your ads from the My Ads section in your dashboard. There you can see:

• Ad name and website.
• Ad type (which placement).
• Review status (Pending, Approved, or Rejected).
• Schedule status (Scheduled, Active, or Expired).
• Auto-renews badge (if auto-renewal is enabled).
• Auto-renewal toggle (if a payment method is saved).
• Rejection reason (if applicable).

Summary

The ad flow is: Purchase → Submit details → I review it → Approved or Rejected → Goes live → Tony sends expiry notifications (or auto-renews if enabled). I designed the entire process to be fast and transparent.