Connect ads for a platform

Unified ads connection endpoint. Creates a dedicated ads SocialAccount for the specified platform.

Meta business login (opt-in). Set loginMode=business for facebook or instagram to use Facebook Login for Business and a Business Integration System User token. No posting account is created or required. This mode always returns an authUrl; it returns 503 when the server has no META_ADS_CONFIG_ID. Complete the dialog in a browser. The callback creates or reconnects only the metaads account, preserving its ID and history. Non-empty successful subscription results replace subscribedAdAccountIds to remove stale grants; an empty result leaves routing unchanged. A reconnect is accepted when the new grant shares at least one ad account with the existing connection (its scopedAdAccountIds plus the previous grant, or the ad accounts its old token can read when neither is stored), so re-running the dialog can add, drop or swap ad accounts. A grant with zero overlap is refused before changing the account and redirects with error=invalid_field_value and error_reason=reconnect_mismatch (disconnect and connect again to switch); when the previous ad accounts cannot be read at all, it redirects with error=reconnect_required. On an accepted reconnect the scope is rebuilt from the new grant: adAccountIds passed on the re-auth become the scope; otherwise a stored scope keeps its ad accounts that are still granted plus any granted for the first time, and an unscoped connection follows the new grant.

Pass pageId to select a granted Page for creatives and lead forms. API integrations otherwise reuse the previous Page or sole granted Page. Multiple Pages without a selection return 400 with available Page IDs for API integrations; restart with pageId. Dashboard session logins use the sole current grant automatically or open the existing Facebook Page picker for several grants, including reconnects. Selection completes the Meta Ads connection. Success redirects with connected=metaads, profileId and accountId. Every failure after Meta's dialog redirects to redirect_url (or the dashboard) with error, platform=metaads, error_message, request_id and stage, plus is_user_fixable and error_reason when known. error is the API error code: invalid_field_value with error_reason no_pages_granted (no Page ticked), page_not_granted (pageId not in the grant), ad_accounts_not_granted or reconnect_mismatch (the grant shares no ad account with the existing connection); reconnect_required, ads_addon_required, payment_required and the profile gates of GET /v1/connect/{platform}; invalid_state with error_reason=state_expired after the 30-minute window; connection_failed when Meta refuses the code (e.g. a replayed callback). A denial in the dialog is meta_ads_authorization_denied with the platform_error* params. Only a state that cannot be decrypted at all still answers 400 JSON, since it names no redirect_url. Business login reports metadata.tokenType=system-user in GET /v1/accounts. An absent Meta expires_in leaves tokenExpiresAt absent; no personal-token re-exchange occurs. Subsequent classic requests can change the ad-account scope using the business token; force=true (or disconnecting the business connection first) switches the profile to the standard Facebook login; the ads account is then held by the user token.

Same-token platforms (facebook, instagram, linkedin, pinterest). The ads SocialAccount (metaads, linkedinads, pinterestads) reuses the OAuth token of the parent posting account, but only when an active parent exists and, for facebook and instagram, its stored token carries ads_management and ads_read (linkedin and pinterest need no extra scope). In that case no extra OAuth happens and the response is alreadyConnected: true.

When no such parent exists, or the scopes are missing, the endpoint returns an authUrl and a full OAuth round trip is required. When a parent exists but carries no token usable for ad accounts, the call fails with 400 RECONNECT_REQUIRED. Independently of the branch, the call can return 403 ADS_ADDON_REQUIRED without the ads add-on and 402 PAYMENT_REQUIRED when the billing gate is closed.

Meta Ads prerequisite: connecting Meta Ads (via facebook or instagram) requires a Facebook Page. Not because the ad account is read through a Page, but because both parent posting accounts are: the facebook flow only offers Pages you manage, and the instagram flow with loginMethod=facebook_login only offers Instagram accounts linked to one of those Pages. Without a Page there is no parent account to inherit a token from. A user who manages no Facebook Page cannot complete this connection, and the facebook flow ends with error=no_facebook_pages.

Separate-token platforms (tiktok, twitter). Starts the platform-specific marketing API OAuth flow and creates an ads SocialAccount (tiktokads, xads) with its own token. If the ads account already exists, returns alreadyConnected: true.

• tiktok: accountId is OPTIONAL. With accountId, the new tiktokads account links to that posting account (parentAccountId set), so Spark Ads + standalone ads using the posting TT_USER identity become available. Without accountId, ads-only mode kicks in: the new tiktokads account has parentAccountId=null and standalone ads use a synthetic CUSTOMIZED_USER ("Brand Identity"); Spark Ads are unavailable because TikTok requires a posting account for them. The Brand Identity is configured separately via PATCH /v1/connect/tiktok-ads (or inline on POST /v1/ads/create via the brandIdentity field).
• twitter (X Ads): accountId is REQUIRED. There's no ads-only mode, because tweets need to be authored by a real X user.

Standalone platforms (googleads). Starts the Google Ads OAuth flow and creates a standalone ads SocialAccount (googleads) with no parent. If the account already exists and has at least one discovered Google Ads customer account, returns alreadyConnected: true. When the existing connection has zero customer accounts (metadata.googleAdsCustomerIds is empty) or is flagged needsReconnection, it returns an authUrl instead; completing it reconnects the same account (same accountId) and re-runs ad account discovery. Discovery includes the client accounts under every manager (MCC) the Google user can reach, and includes Google Ads test accounts, which Google always reports with status CLOSED. When discovery finds no usable customer account, the callback saves nothing and redirects with error=google_ads_no_ad_accounts, platform=googleads and an error_message naming each customer the Google user can reach and why it was left out (for example CUSTOMER_NOT_ENABLED). Sign in with a Google user that has access to the ad account or to its manager account. When the user unticks the Google Ads permission on Google's consent screen, the callback saves nothing and redirects with error=missing_google_permissions, platform=googleads, is_user_fixable=true and missing_scopes. An existing connection whose token lacks that permission is flagged needsReconnection, and the health endpoints report "Google Ads permission not granted"; this endpoint then returns an authUrl for it.

Ads accounts appear as regular SocialAccount documents with ads platform values (e.g., metaads, tiktokads) in GET /v1/accounts.

import Zernio from '@zernio/node';const zernio = new Zernio({ apiKey: process.env.ZERNIO_API_KEY });const { data } = await zernio.connect.connectAds({  path: {    platform: 'facebook',  },  query: {    profileId: 'profile_abc123',  },});console.log(data);

{  "alreadyConnected": true,  "accountId": "664a1b2c3d4e5f6789012345",  "platform": "instagram",  "username": "@mybrand",  "displayName": "My Brand"}