How to Create Optimal PDFs for Risk Reviews

Creating high-quality PDFs is essential for accurate risk detection by Marketing Compliance. This guide outlines best practices for preparing PDFs that will yield the most accurate results.

Best Methods for Creating PDFs

For optimal performance, create PDFs using:

• Direct Export: Use the "Export" or "Save As PDF" function from the application in which the campaign asset was created (typically Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Word, or PowerPoint)
• Avoid Print to PDF: For files converted from doc(x) or ppt(x) source files, we recommend using the 'Export to PDF' (Microsoft) or 'Download as PDF' (Google) option instead of the 'Print to PDF' option due to subtle differences in the conversion scripts
• Native Applications: Create files directly from the source program whenever possible rather than using third-party converters

Resolution Requirements

• The recommended resolution for images/PDFs for accurate text detection is 1024 x 768
• Higher resolutions can be used but may increase file size
• Lower resolutions may result in less accurate text recognition

Avoiding Common Issues

• Avoid Scanned Documents: PDFs created by printing out a copy and then scanning that copy back in can create a low-resolution result. Accuracy in reviewing these types of scanned documents is limited by the OCR capabilities.
• Limit Screenshots: Screenshots can be uploaded to Marketing Compliance but should be high resolution to ensure optimal performance.
• Avoid Image Text Overlays: If an asset contains text which is obscured by annotations, comments, notes, or instruction boxes, the obscured text cannot be extracted and reviewed for risks.
• Flattened Layers: Where possible, flatten image layers in the original application before exporting to PDF to ensure all text elements are properly processed.

Special Considerations

• Hidden Elements: Marketing Compliance can only review visible elements. Ensure all relevant content is visible in the final PDF.
• Digital Signatures: If your document contains digital signatures, these should be applied after the risk review process is complete, as they may interfere with the review.
• Embedded Fonts: Always embed fonts in your PDFs to ensure text is properly displayed and can be accurately analyzed.
• Form Fields: If your PDF contains form fields, ensure they are properly populated before review or clearly marked as placeholders.

File Size Management

• There is a 50MB limit on PDFs uploaded for risk review
• If your file exceeds this limit, consider:
  • Optimizing images within the document
  • Breaking the document into smaller sections
  • Removing unnecessary elements
  • Using compression tools designed for PDFs

For any questions about specific document types or formats, please contact your administrator or support team.