# Approve and start a campaign in the Inbox

URL: https://blackbox.plus/guides/approve-campaign-in-inbox
Level 4: Run it as an ad (https://blackbox.plus/guides/run-ads)
Updated: 2026-10-19
Time: about 4 minutes

> Approve a campaign from an Inbox suggestion or the full brief one card at a time — campaign, ad set, ad — then start it. Nothing spends until you do.

## Short answer

Campaigns that come from an Inbox suggestion, from Launch campaign in the Inbox or from the full campaign brief are approved in Blackbox (blackbox.plus) one card at a time. Click Inbox in the left menu, open your brand and find the campaign on the Campaign tab. Click Create the campaign, which makes it on Meta paused. The card becomes the ad set: check who it reaches, change it if needed, answer any question it asks, and click Create the ad set. Then click Add the ad, which uses your picture, ad text and landing page, still paused. The last card says what the campaign can spend and until when; click Start ads to turn on the campaign, ad set and ad together. That is the only step that spends, and Meta reviews every new ad before it shows. Afterwards, Undo is on the card. A Studio post run as a Meta ad skips these cards: it is created and started from its own review.

## Before you start

- **A drafted campaign.** From an Inbox suggestion, Launch campaign in the Inbox, or the full campaign brief — Use the full brief instead, or Launch as ad on TikTok, Snapchat or LinkedIn. A Studio post run on Meta is started from its own review instead: see Turn an Instagram post into a Meta ad.
- **Meta Ads connected.** As someone who can create ads on the ad account. See Connect your Meta ad account to Blackbox.

## How to approve and start a campaign in the Blackbox Inbox

1. **Open the Inbox.** Click Inbox in the left menu (or the link in the Campaign proposal drafted message) and open your brand. The campaign card is on the Campaign tab; the Campaigns filter shows it among your suggestions too.
2. **Create the campaign.** The first card reads Create campaign: and your campaign’s name. Check it and click Create the campaign. It is made on Meta paused, so nothing shows yet.
3. **Create the ad set.** The card turns into the ad set. Under Ad set reaches it shows who will see the ad — from your brief, the ad account’s saved audience, or everyone in the chosen countries — and you can change it. If it asks which countries, which Facebook Page the ad runs from or how a sale is measured, answer; the button waits until you do. Click Create the ad set.
4. **Add the ad.** Click Add the ad. It is made with your picture, ad text and landing page, still paused.
5. **Start it.** The last card says what it can spend and until when. Click Start ads — it shows the daily amount — to turn on the campaign, ad set and ad together. This is the only step that spends. Meta then reviews the new ad, which can take a few hours.

## Good to know

- The steps here are for a Meta campaign. Every card before the last creates something on Meta, paused. Only Start ads turns it on.
- If a launch stops partway, the card offers Remove the paused campaign so nothing is left behind.
- Not now lets you Snooze a card for a day or Dismiss it. Ask about this answers questions about the card.
- The campaign is a normal Meta campaign: you can see it, and pause it, in Meta Ads Manager too.

## Questions people ask

**Does approving the first card spend anything?**

No. The campaign, ad set and ad are all created paused. Nothing shows or spends until you click Start ads on the last card.

**Can I change who sees the ad?**

Yes, on the ad set card, before you click Create the ad set. Change the countries or the audience there.

**The button says Pick a country to continue**

The ad set needs an answer before it can be made — which countries, which Facebook Page, or how a sale is measured. Pick one on the card and the button comes back.

**I started it but the ad is not showing**

Meta reviews every new ad before it shows, which can take a few hours. If Meta rejects it, Meta tells the ad account why.

**How do I stop it?**

Click Undo on the card after approving, or pause the campaign in Meta Ads Manager. With an end date, it stops on its own after that day.