[webmasterworld.com...]
I found a website that shows ads picked from AdWords. I found my very own ad in there, even if I opted out of the content network for that ad.
Weird? Yes, but that what it is.
I found a website that shows ads picked from AdWords. I found my very own ad in there, even if I opted out of the content network for that ad.
Actually a lot of people seem confused about the various google networks. The search network and the content network may both have junk sites.
Then, there's the google search pages. Three different networks.
[edited by: jatar_k at 9:35 pm (utc) on Aug. 14, 2006]
It's not Content Network. I'm positive it's Search Network. I got bit by Yahoo/Overture on this too, when I opted out of Content over there and was still getting all kinds of garbage traffic, that I could actually trace in my log files. As far as I can tell, the difference is that a Search Network site exists at least in part for the purpose of some kind of search, as opposed to a Content Network page, which theoretically is supposed to be serving up some kind of useful Content. This is just my guess.
Here's a page that gives some examples of each one:
It's not Content Network. I'm positive it's Search Network. I got bit by Yahoo/Overture on this too, when I opted out of Content over there and was still getting all kinds of garbage traffic, that I could actually trace in my log files. As far as I can tell, the difference is that a Search Network site exists at least in part for the purpose of some kind of search, as opposed to a Content Network page, which theoretically is supposed to be serving up some kind of useful Content. This is just my guess.
You got it, bro. At least that's my understanding. Also as far as I know google doesn't disclose the identities of the search partners, OR, whether they are in fact straight search engines or something different.
No doubt there's some very good sites on the search network, since it appears to be made up of premium partners (I suspect that amazon.com used to be or still is part of it).
I don't know where they stick parked domains.
We don't advertise on the search network for quality reasons.
We don't advertise on the search network for quality reasons
Rbacal, do you mean that you think the content network has a higher quality than the search network? If the search network is composed of pages like the one I found, then I fully agree with you. Unfortunately, the content network is full of MFAs, which are the content version of junk sites like the one I found.
My question, as a publisher, is: if a page with all those "features", that are violations for any AdSenser, is allowed for a site with absolutely no content, why shouldn't everybody be allowed to do the same things?
My point, as an advertiser, is that I'm paying clicks through AdWords to show ads on a junk site. I don't consider a click from such sites a click that is worth paying for. But I can't opt out...
You got it, bro.
(I'm a sis, not a bro)
If the search network is composed of pages like the one I found, then I fully agree with you.
The search network has some questionable sites, no doubt, but it also has some really good ones. I have one client who has had extraordinary results on one health-related search partner. We know directly the orders are coming from them, because we ask the customers to specify how they found the site, and many of them mention this partner by name.
I wish Google would let you choose, but of course they don't. Thus we have to put up with a lot of go-nowhere clicks in order to keep advertising on this (and a handful of other good) partner sites.
The search network has some questionable sites, no doubt, but it also has some really good ones.
So we simply have to hope that our ads are shown on the nice part of the search network, hoping the worst for the junk sites, because we can tolerate them only while they are small.
But, isn't a junk site still a junk site even if Google blessed it?
So we simply have to hope that our ads are shown on the nice part of the search network, hoping the worst for the junk sites, because we can tolerate them only while they are small.
What's the alternative? It's important to my client to be seen on that one particular website, and that's the way in.
I only have two clients in the Search Network, because I can only determine its effectiveness for two of them. I tried it with the others, but couldn't see results that justified the cost, and because I didn't want ads showing up on sites like that one you found.
What will happen when they will discover where they are appearing?
A lot of advertisers won't know. Some won't care, if they're getting a decent ROI. And some will care, but not enough to abandon the search network.
Of course, if there's a rush toward the exits, Google's policy on what constitutes a "search site" (or, for that matter, a "content site") may change.
Rbacal, do you mean that you think the content network has a higher quality than the search network? If the search network is composed of pages like the one I found, then I fully agree with you. Unfortunately, the content network is full of MFAs, which are the content version of junk sites like the one I found.
I don't know if there's any way of knowing about relative quality. There appears to be one major difference.
In the content network you can exclude sites in that network you don't want to be seen on. Practically, that's not ideal, but it's better than nothing.
As far as I know there is no similar feature to exclude sites in the search network, and I have no way of knowing anything about these "partners".
The more I don't know about where my ads appear, the less I advertise. I generally don't advertise much on content, and for months, I NEVER do the search network.
When google tells us more about these sites, then I'd consider it.
When google tells us more about these sites, then I'd consider it.
And since they don't, and don't seem likely to, every site I've created, or taken over, or maintain that asks for some kind of interaction with the user (be it a sale, a quote, an email, form submission, etc.) also has a set of fields to ask how the user found the site, with dropdown choices, and a text box for him to be as specific as possible. Some people skip over it, but probably 70 to 80% fill it out, and that's a big help in deciding where I want to spend my client's money.
And since they don't, and don't seem likely to, every site I've created, or taken over, or maintain that asks for some kind of interaction with the user
It's probably possible to use log files if you advertise on the search network to look at referrers, but I don't know how well that would work, since I'm not sure what the referrer url for search network sites looks like.
In any event, it's not worth my time.
The question is easy: is THAT a valid AdWords landing page? If the answer is yes than I can use it too.
