I've heard rumors that accounts are now limited to one coupon per account.
I got an Adwords coupon at the webmaster world conference in Las Vegas. I tried to use it last week and got an error message saying it had expired, but the card clearly says "Expires 1/31/05". I sent an email to Google through the contact link within adwords last week, but I haven't heard back from anyone. Any suggestions?
No, first time. I just opened the account even, first time to ever use Adwords, if I can get the coupon to work.
Trisha, we owe you an apology.
After I saw your first post, I did a little digging and have discovered what's up. Evidently in a few cases, at least, our system is incorrectly recording the expiration date. Engineers are on the job, and this will most likely be resolved by 1/18.
Very sorry to make you wait - but if you'll enter your code on the 18th, it should work just fine. And you can always enter the coupon code after the account has been running a while - so no problem there.
If I hear of an earlier resolution, I'll post to this thread again.
Please accecpt our apology, and thanks also for your patience.
AWA
Thanks!
My pleasure. :)
Trisha, I've just realized that I was not particularly clear when I said:
And you can always enter the coupon code after the account has been running a while - so no problem there.
What I meant was that, if you don't want to wait till the 18th to get your account running, you can start it running now with your credit card, (which you'd need to do regardless), and then enter the promotional code after the 18th. In other words, the system will accept a credit in a running account with no problems.
And I wish you great success with your AdWords ads, of course!
AWA
AdWordsAdvisor - One question - does the balance of it have to be used by the 31st? or just the code has to be initiated by then?
...One question - does the balance of it have to be used by the 31st? or just the code has to be initiated by then?
Great quesiton, thaedge. Rest easy, you just need to enter the code by then. ;)
Word has it that the Vegas event was pretty cool, btw...
AWA
It was a good conf
Rest easy, you just need to enter the code by then. ;)
Oh good! I was concerned about that too!
Here's another question about what eWhisper said. I got that one coupon at the conference, but then a couple of weeks ago I won another $100 of adwords from a contest at webmasterradio, can I use that one too? I got them totally independent of each other. I'm happy about it since this will be my first time to use adwords, I figure that gives me a little help to start out with before I put my own money in, since from what I've read there is a bit of a learning curve with adwords.
I was wondering to whom does google give these free certs..is there any criteria for spendings on adwords..
Benevolent001, typically these are give out to folks that we've talked with at trade shows, conferences, and the like. The are mostly intended to be used by new advertisers, who are interested in starting with AdWords but don't want to spend their own money at first, as they experiment. ;)
Here's another question about what eWhisper said. I got that one coupon at the conference, but then a couple of weeks ago I won another $100 of adwords from a contest at webmasterradio, can I use that one too?
Trisha, I can't say for sure if this'll be a problem or not, in terms of the automated system that is place.
But I can say this for certain: If it does turn out to be a problem, just post here and we'll arrange something to make it work. Congrats on winning that!
AWA
This problem does not appear to be fixed. Will it be fixed before the expiration date (1/31/05)? What should coupon holders do?
I'll look into this again, and post with what I've learned ASAP.
AWA
"Sorry, your coupon has expired."
message with it too.
This problem does not appear to be fixed. Will it be fixed before the expiration date (1/31/05)? What should coupon holders do?
Submitx (and others?) - I've done a little digging, and find that the best solution would be to write AdWords support using the 'Contact Us' link from within your AdWords account. Please provide a few details about where the coupon was picked up - and also include the code number on the coupon, of course.
We'll then make sure that the credit is applied to the account you've written from.
I tried using the coupon I won today, and I got a "Sorry, your coupon has expired." message with it too.
Trisha, when you write, would you please include a request to have the support team consult with AdWordsAdvisor (they might not know me as AWA, by the way) if there are any problems with two coupons being used in one account? I'll make sure it is worked out.
I apologize to all that this was a bit more difficult than intended!
AWA
I sent a message Friday evening, but haven't heard anything back. Has anyone else?
Trisha, it's probably a bit early still to hear back, especially if you wrote on Friday evening after the support team were on their way home.
To provide you with a bit more information about why this is so, and provide some general tips on getting the best support, I've paraphrased an earlier post on this subject below. I've double asterisked (**) the two that are most likely at work in your case.
Some Tips for Getting the Excellent Support:
* If you're sending an email to AdWords support, please use the 'Contact Us' link, which is on every page in your account. This will enable the customer service team to immediately find the account associated with your question.
* However, if for some reason, you are unable to use the 'Contact Us' link, then please use only this email address:
adwords-support@google.com
* If you're using the adwords-support@google.com email address, rather than the 'Contact Us' link, then please identify your account by customer ID and/or email address. A surprisingly large number of emails come in each day with absolutely no way to identify the account associated with the question. As you might imagine, this makes a meaningful response much more difficult. And slower.
* Please note that using any other email address than the above will slow down your response.
** Please be aware that, at present, customer service folks are working Monday through Friday. So writing to support on Friday night means that your reply will be delayed until at least Monday.
** Also, be aware of peak periods and slack periods. Highest volume of email occurs on Monday. Volume is lower, and turnaround time is potentially quicker mid-week. So if your question is routine rather than urgent, please consider writing mid-week.
* We strive for a maximum turnaround time of one business day. Most often, it will be faster. During very high volume periods, yes, it can be slower. But believe me, we are all tasked with not letting that happen.
* Please ensure that our replies are not being filtered out by your email program as 'Spam'. I've talked with many advertisers who are upset at our lack of response, who then find that those responses have been sent, but filtered and sent to a 'junk mail' folder. (Related note: almost all email from AdWords will have the word 'AdWords' in the subject line.)
A few more general thoughts:
* Be as succinct and as specific as possible with your questions. In many ways it is best to ask a single question (or a very few) per email. Asking 5 or 8 questions in one email may slow your response down a bit.
* Provide whatever background information will be required to answer your questions fully and quickly. Please include pertinent dates, Campaign and Ad Group names, the keywords in question, and so forth. If we have to guess, it'll slow your response down, and make it less meaningful.
* If you get an reply that doesn't meet with your satisfaction, then please reply directly to that email. This will send it directly back to the person who answered it, who is already familiar with your account. This will prevent duplication of research. Be sure to explain what was missing from our original answer.
Thanks for your patience Trisha, and I trust you'll hear back soon. ;)
AWA
I know its kind of early for sending it in just friday night, but I was concerned since this is 1/31/05, the last day before the coupon is supposed to expire (for real).
Ahh, of course. I wasn't thinking about the date. (Hey! How did January finish, while I wasn't looking?!)
So, Trisha, good news: your email was received, and I think you'll find you are good to go now. ;)
Best of luck with AdWords. I hope you have fun with it, and also get a ton of new business!
AWA
