January 2011 Adsense earnings

Adsense earnings analysis -

[chrisdonahue]

Hello Everyone: I ported the thread located here: [webmasterworld.com...]
as we were off topic in a few areas.

I'm highly interested in continuing the discussion about what other Publishers are seeing in 2011 with regard to their adsense earnings over years prior.

As I indicated, I noticed a substantial drop in earnings during the first few days of January 2011, after a record breaking December 2010.

Anyone noticing this trend is encouraged to share their feedback.

[ElvisFan]

My 2 cents worth ... is that I am not getting ads displayed on all my pages... not enough advertisers? in any of my niche sites... however ad impressions are still being counted by the plex... thus the low CTR and low earnings...

[HuskyPup]

No problems with the earnings on my sites. Doing okay :)

You've bounced back?

When?

[ember]

Today's epc is looking better, almost normal. Holding my breath....

[AdSenseAdvisor]

The age old question. As many of you guys have heard us say before, revenue fluctuations are common in AdSense. Earnings can be affected by a lot of different factors, ranging from things like changes in your traffic or site design to how advertisers have set up their campaigns and how much they're bidding for their ads. Something to keep in mind is that many advertisers (especially those in retail) tend to increase their spend during the holiday season at the end of the year, so changes can sometimes be due to seasonality. I'm not saying this is the main or only reason for fluctuations you're seeing, but just something to take into consideration as we start off the new year.

That said, I've also taken your feedback to the product teams and am double checking whether they have any additional information to share. I'll let you know if I hear anything.

In the meantime, I really encourage you to check out these blogposts/videos for more details about revenue fluctuations and smart pricing as you analyze any changes in your earnings.

[adsense.blogspot.com ]
[adsense.blogspot.com ]

Also, here are a few sources on smart pricing and revenue fluctuations that are worth a read:

[adsense.blogspot.com ]
[adsense.blogspot.com ]

ASA

[HuskyPup]

ASA - It is almost a statistical impossibility for so many people/companies across so many forum boards across so many different industries to be witnessing entirely the same EPC collapse at the same time when not one of them have experienced anything lke this since the introduction of the programme.

If all you are going to do is give us canned responses then, in my opinion, there is no point in continuing, we can get canned responses from your so-called customer services.

Yep, I'm getting very miffed now...I used miffed because my real feelings are becoming unprintable.

[Lame_Wolf]

You've bounced back?

When?

I didn't dip except for one day. I wasn't suffering from seeing Google adverts on my sites.

[HuskyPup]

Insofar as I am aware Google ads have not been on my site however that's an impossibility to confirm but I have noticed a big reduction of them the last couple of days or so on other sites.

[frank72]

@AdSenseAdvisor: Thanks for your links and the videos you provided us all. Unfortunately, they are quite familar to me as I have read and watched them in the past...

Can you provide us any other suggestion, advice, tip on what it is going on? As for me this situation is unprecedented. Never seens anything like that in my X years blogging. I have not changed anything in my blog. No redesign, no changes, nothing.
My traffic, yes my traffic is steadily increasing as well as the number of clicks. The only thing which goes down is the cpc :**((

[ember]

No offense, ASA, but many of us here have been running Adsense a long time and have read everything there is, etc. What many of us are currently seeing is a 20% to 50% drop in epc when we have changed nothing. For many of us, this drop happened overnight. For me, January is usually one of my best months, but this year, the bottom has dropped out. And I am not in retail, so it has nothing to do with the holidays.

I am glad you are here, but some specifics, not generalities, would be appreciated.

[netmeg]

AdSense (meaning Google, not ASA) will never ever give you specifics like you are calling for. They never have, and they never will. They can't. People would jump on those specifics like a duck on a June bug, looking for even more ways to exploit them.

[ErnestHemingway]

@ASA thank you so very much for sharing your insight, however most of the people sharing their recent earning drops are a long time adsense members, including me.

You have mentioned some good points, however given past 4-5 years it has not been the case, I do not see how it could be the case.

Thank you for your links and we appreciate it, however most of us have seen it and I have personally read all Google Adsense Blog posts so far.

@HuskyPup - indeed

@Frank - indeed, the EPC has gone down significantly. I can understand there is smart pricing, but how come all of sudden dozens and dozens of Adsense users have been smart priced? So good point raised.

[netmeg]

On the other hand, how come some of us haven't?

[HuskyPup]

On the other hand, how come some of us haven't?

Now that's the one I want the answer to:-)

[ErnestHemingway]

@NetMeg, what sort of figures were you touching? Can you give a rough idea?

I reckon if tons of people are talking then there must be something going on. Past 4 years I have never talked about Adsense even though I read all forums and posts around.

[netmeg]

No, I don't discuss figures. Ever.

But I've been in the program since it started (and I'm also a heavy duty AdWords advertiser), and I'm not seeing the big EPC tank. Mine's been steadily rising over the past 13 months. And I am aware of at least a dozen other associates and acquaintances who are not seeing it. I don't say this to gloat, but because if it actually were something systemic at Google, I would think it would be across the board.

[cien]

This is ridiculous! EPC is the lowest it's ever been! Traffic has actually increased as well as CTR.

ASA, you need to tell your boys to check their code and shake up those dbs! Too many publishers suffering from the same issue at the same time! This is no fluctuation this is massive slaughter! We've gone over these canned answers/help millions of times.

[edited by: cien at 8:48 pm (utc) on Jan 19, 2011]

[HuskyPup]

I thought I'd do a quick comparison from previous years, my issues started just before Thanksgiving Day therefore I have used the period 22nd November to 18th January and this is how my earnings have been versus:

2009 to 2010 -18.92%
2008 t0 2009 -9.48%
2007 to 2008 +13.04%
2006 to 2007 -20.51%

Regarding 2007 to 2008 I almost pulled put of AdSense and was experimenting, if I added Chitika etc earnings in it's probably about equal, since I was clobbered hard on 26th October by a 50% reduction and miraculously my EPC reappeared at the end of the first week of January just as I was about to remove the whole damned thing.

No answers then, no answers now, the only reason my ads are still there is because I have experienced this shambles before, the difference is that this time many more people have been hammered mercilessly without any explanation as to why when they have complied to the programme's T&Cs to the letter.

Their opaqueness as a public company is quite unbelievable.

[Play_Bach]

It's just about 1:00PM here. I'll be heading to the pub soon. :-(

[HuskyPup]

It's just coming up to 9:00 pm here...I'll see you in an hour:-)

[frank72]

@ErnestHemingway: yes this theory would fit what we are witnessing. The more i read on this and other forums the more I think we are being smart priced because of an algo change. This makes me all the more worried as it is the only thing over which webmasters are powerless...

[ElvisFan]

netmeg(and I'm also a heavy duty AdWords advertiser),

maybe that is the answer to our woes... most of us NOT Adword Advertiser... and the plex is looking after you better than the rest of us...

[ember]

Just because you haven't seen your epc drop significantly yet doesn't mean it can't happen to you in the future. And then you will be as surprised as the rest of us.

[Scurramunga]

Earnings getting lower and lower with each passing day.

[cien]

Today has been the lowest day ever. I'm thinking to remove Adsense code and put back Amazon which was performing awhile ago better than Adsense these days. Google got no respect for publishers and I bet things are going to get worse. Can't be paid a couple pennies/click smartpriced (which I doubt) or not, on my high paying niches.

[edited by: cien at 11:59 pm (utc) on Jan 19, 2011]

[nick28]

Earnings getting lower and lower with each passing day.

indeed.

G belongs to the top 10 or top 20 companies of the world in short time, who made him so BIG?
Of course Publisher, but it doesn't care about Publisher's low earning:-(((

[netmeg]

My AdWords accounts are different from my AdSense account. (The AdWords is mostly on behalf of clients)

Of course my EPC could drop in the future, never said it couldn't. If it drops significantly, then *I* have to make some changes - either minimize or replace AdSense with something else, or move into a niche with better EPCs. But Google's not going to change what they do (or don't do) on account of me.

[adamxcl]

Echoing a few others here, the generic lines just don't apply this time. I have used Adsense since nearly when it started. Years vary but the months and the arch they create are always the same. January is supposed to be up (as is my traffic but earnings are down 48%) from December. I don't usually have a top weekday making less than Christmas eve. It should be triple.

[Scurramunga]

Echoing a few others here, the generic lines just don't apply this time...Years vary but the months and the arch they create are always the same.

My previous average January earnings are usually about six times higher than they have been this January.

The age old question. As many of you guys have heard us say before, revenue fluctuations are common in AdSense.

ASA from where I am sitting I have not seen a "fluctuation" like this before. I think that 'crash' would be a more apt term to use.

[Scurramunga]

I've also taken your feedback to the product teams and am double checking whether they have any additional information to share. I'll let you know if I hear anything.

Now that would be very well received indeed.

[Play_Bach]

Today is in track tone the lowest earning day all year. Haven't seen numbers like this in a very long time.