CPC & TAC

Do they shift with volume?

[ryros]

Sorry if this has already been covered. Am an adsense veteran, but new to the board.

Does anybody have any insight into how Google determines their TAC (Traffic Acquisition Cost - the % of each click Google puts in their own pocket)?

I have a feeling from watching my site the past year that Google has some sort of sliding scale relative to the amount of traffic/clicks/revenue each publisher brings to the table. The "more you bring, the more you keep" type concept. From their financials, this is obviously the case with their large partners, but I am wondering how it filters down to the masses and if they might even manage this on a real-time basis?

I am almost positive that Google isn't paying each small publisher the same percentage. Is there any insight into how Google manages this?

[ken_b]

Maybe the closest thing to what you are talking about would be Googles "Smart Pricing".

Using "Smart Pricing" Google adjusts how much they pay each publisher for a click, that's apparently based on how likely they think a click from a given page is likely to convert for the advertiser.

[ryros]

Yeah, I definitely think that Smart Pricing has an effect on the CPC an advertiser pays, based on the publisher site, ability to convert, etc...

That gets us to a gross CPC the advertiser pays for a click on a certain site. I am more interested in the next step... From that click (smart pricing or not), how much is Google putting in their pocket, and how much are they giving to the publisher. In the world of the "bigger" sites, this is a highly discussed & negotiated number based on volume and CTR. Just wondering how Google gets to this % for the smaller sites, and whether or not they actively revisit it...