Google crackdown on Affiliates..Now what?

[details85]

I've been using Google Adwords for over a year now and suddenly they stopped showing my ads. I phoned them and below is the response I received.

Google's response:

It was a pleasure speaking with you yesterday. On our call we discussed
whether adding more text to your site would solve the low landing page
quality your keywords are experiencing. As promised, I wanted to consult
with a technical specialist before you made these changes to your site to
see if this may improve the quality score.

That specialist noted that adding these product descriptions to your site
will not likely increase your quality score. The reasoning behind this is
that adding text to your site does not make your site unique- your site's
purpose is still to send people to other sites to buy a specific product.
Your site would be an original site with original content if, for example,
you sold your own cat-related products. In this case, it seems as though
your business model does not support a unique landing page.


I realize that everyone is not effected.

Can anyone give an example of a website that is still being accepted by Google, whereas they are using affiliate links on the landing page and using adwords?

I realize that conduit review sites, and some blogs have been slapped that have affiliate links on the landing page. Some of these websites has 20 or more pages of content, they were not "thin websites."

I would appreciate any help given. As we all realize, holiday season is upon us and I'd like to build a few more websites. But I want to do it correctly so that they will not be slapped, thereby wasting my time and money.

Again, I am thanking you in advance for any help given. Sheri

 

[djbaxter]

Are you talking about AdWords, where Google is publishing ads for your sites? Or do you mean AdSense, where you display the ads for other Google advertisers on your pages?

 

[Linda Buquet]

She's talking about Adwords. I've talked to her about it via email and suggested she post to get some feedback from others.

 

[djbaxter]

Okay, thanks, Linda.

More information here: Google Adwords Quality Score - Google Search

In particular, see:

Improving Your Google AdWords Quality Score

Inside Google AdWords’ Quality Score | The Adventures of PPC Hero

 

[Linda Buquet]

Thanks David!

Here is a blog post and video that may help from a Super Affiliate that really knows Adwords. He has lots more helpful articles on the topic. Google his site for Google slap.

Surviving Google’s Landing Page “Quality” Score (Part II) | Super Affiliate Mindset

<a href="http://www.superaffiliatemindset.com/how-to-beat-adwords-landing-page-quality-score/">How to Beat Adwords Landing Page Quality Score</a>

 

[Linda Buquet]

Sheri, I believe I gave you this via email but for other's benefit.

Here is some important info from the Adwords help docs.

Landing Page and Site Quality Guidelines - AdWords Help

"Originality:

* Feature unique content that can't be found on another site. This guideline is particularly applicable to resellers whose site is identical or highly similar to another reseller's or the parent company's site, and to affiliates that use the following types of pages:

o Bridge pages: Pages that act as an intermediary, whose sole purpose is to link or redirect traffic to the parent company

o Mirror pages: Pages that replicate the look and feel of a parent site; your site should not mirror (be similar or nearly identical in appearance to) your parent company's or any other advertiser's site

* Provide substantial information. If your ad does link to a page consisting mostly of ads or general search results (such as a directory or catalog page), provide additional, unique content.

It's especially important to feature original content because AdWords won't show multiple ads directing to identical or similar landing pages at the same time."

There is other important info on that page so click the link above.

 

[Seascape]

OK, right now in October 2009 something is definitely up with Adwords and affiliates.

Go to the Adwords Help Forum and take note of the posts in the "Can't see my Ad" forum. People are complaining about their campaigns not running, and the "Adwords Professionals" zealots are seemingly aglee in telling them that their site is being disapproved because it may have an affiliate link on it.

It's almost plain as day in the email from Google up in the top post:

your site's purpose is still to send people to other sites to buy a specific product. Your site would be an original site with original content if, for example, you sold your own cat-related products.

Translation: we don't want affiliates - we only want to sell adwords to actual retailers

And just how does Google rectify this when they have their own affiliate network? In theory, this means that a site with original content would still get a low Adwords score if it contained Google Affiliate links. Ironically, a site running Google Affiliate ads, if they want to drive traffic to their site via PPC, would be better off spending their ad budget at Facebook or MS Adcenter (which will soon include Yahoo). Plausible?

 

[newyorkshopping]

I am shocked I have never seen that before. Ouch!

 

[djbaxter]

And just how does Google rectify this when they have their own affiliate network? In theory, this means that a site with original content would still get a low Adwords score if it contained Google Affiliate links. Ironically, a site running Google Affiliate ads, if they want to drive traffic to their site via PPC, would be better off spending their ad budget at Facebook or MS Adcenter (which will soon include Yahoo).

Yep. Google is once again changing the rules as they go along. I am beginning to wonder if this is the result of simple arrogance or whether they have become too big as an organization to keep track of who is doing or saying what or what they said yesterday.

Either way, "Don't be evil" seems to have morphed into "Don't worry about inconsistency or hypocrisy as long as Google stock prices stay high".

Fight back. Use Bing for search.

 

[Seascape]

OK here's some new info I found. Apparently on Sept 25 Google sent out an email to many folks with sites with affiliate links warning them of low quality and reducing their QS to 1/10. This was NOT neccesarily just to those running rebill-type things, apparently many types of niches were affected.

A very long (8 pages so far) discussion can be found here:
New rule? Quality Violations => Adwords ban

It would seem the adwords reviewers have to make a decision on the intent of any site with aff links. Does this mean that any site with aff links, no matter how well the site is constructed with original content, if that site is intended to send visitors to an aff link at another domain, it gets slapped by adwords?

(as an example, the adwords reviewer probably wouldn't have had a problem with Sheri's site selling cat products from within her domain like a traditional ecommerce store, but because she sends visitors out to an aff link, she got slapped?)

 

[Linda Buquet]

This is a REALLY important article to read and relates to the WebmastWorld thread Seascape linked to in the post above.

I posted this in some other forums and apologize, I meant to add it here earlier.

In the recent round of Google slaps that were supposedly about landing page quality - AdwordsAdvisor (supposedly an official Google rep) explained what the slap was really about and it was geared toward certain types of affiliate sites, not so much landing pages or quality scores.

Click the link below and read the whole thing!

Google Mass Bans & Warns AdWords Advertisers, But Why?

Certain kinds of websites (ref1) are not allowed per our policies because the user experience is of low quality or we consistently receive negative feedback from our users about these kinds of pages. These sites include:

* Data collection sites that offer the false promise of free items, etc., in order to collect private information.

* Arbitrage sites that are designed for the purpose of showing ads

* Affiliates who provide limited value by being a bridge page with the intent of solely driving traffic to another site or who are framing an affiliate site

 

[Seascape]

Thanks Linda. (What other forums are you following with this news?) Someone has now posted on page 8 of the webmasterworld thread an update to Google's LP quality guidelines which now says:

Are there any types of website that merit low landing page quality scores? - AdWords Help

Affiliate sites that the primary purpose of which is to drive traffic to another site with a different domain

This kinda jives with Sheri's problem. The Google reviewer would have been OK with her selling cat products from within her domain, but it was sending people to another affiliate domain that they didn't like.

What does this bode for using Google adwords for affiliate marketing? I mean, the whole POINT is to ultimately send customers to another domain!

 

[Joseph Ratliff]

I think the bottom line here is...yep I'm gonna say it...analyze your business for what search engines can consider shortcuts.

Big-G is in business to provide value for searchers and advertisers...if you create something like a one-page site that doesn't accomplish what Big-G wants...they will penalize you.

People can say Google is "doing the wrong thing" or "has it in for affiliates" or "hypocritical"...but guess what...it's their business.

They aren't the only game in town people. Put a few other marketing measures into place, build a more valuable site for YOUR visitors (forget G)...and heck, you might make EVEN MORE money.

 

[djbaxter]

I agree with most of what you said, Joseph...

They aren't the only game in town people.

Perhaps not, but they are 70% plus of the tournament. I for one would love to see that change but you can't ignore Google's "rules" with impunity.

 

[Joseph Ratliff]

Perhaps not, but they are 70% plus of the tournament. I for one would love to see that change but you can't ignore Google's "rules" with impunity.

I wouldn't suggest that at all (ignoring Google totally), in fact, the last thing I mentioned would (hopefully) comply with Google's rules in ALL cases...

build a more valuable site for YOUR visitors

But...they only have a 70% hold of the search market...not the offline advertising market, not the article marketing market, and certainly not the joint ventures market (leveraging others assets for traffic)...etc...etc...

I agree with you wholeheartedly though minstrel...you can't totally ignore Google...nor should you...because they do have control of part of the game.

I guess I just went off the deep end.

 

[djbaxter]

All quite true...

As I used to say to my youngest son, when you're right you're right... and when you're wrong you're right...