IndustryGoogle AdWords Articles Archive

Google AdWords Articles Archive

Archive of articles about Google AdWords.

NOTE: GOOGLE ADWORDS ITEMS FROM SEPT. 2004 ONWARD ARE LISTED IN THE GOOGLE: ADWORDS CATEGORY OF SEARCH TOPICS IN SEARCH ENGINE WATCH. ALSO:

  • Google AdSense items previously on this page are here.
  • Google Partnership items previously on this page are here.

Jump to articles from:
Jan To Aug. 2004
200320022001 & Before

Jan. To Aug. 2004

“Building Your Business with Google for Dummies” Goes Beyond the Basics
Traffic, Aug. 24, 2004

Short review about making use of Google, from AdWords to AdSense, as part of your online business. The only caveat is to make sure you buy some other books that don’t leave you completely Google dependent.

How To Handle AdWords With Thousands Of Keywords
Search Engine Watch Forums, July 29, 2004

10,000 keywords, a unique URL for each of them — how best to set this up in Google AdWords?

Google’s Gag Order: An Internet Giant Threatens Free Speech
PERRspectives, June 20, 2004

A long look at an issue that’s come up numerous times before in this newsletter, that Google’s unwritten rules about ads it will and will not accept create confusion for advertisers and cause it to be accused of censorship. As the article notes, Google’s not required to publish anything it doesn’t want to. But does it have a social responsibility to censor lightly? My past article for Search Engine Watch members, The Ads Google Just Says No To looks at other cases like this. It also notes that since Google doesn’t guarantee placement in its editorial results, those seeking visibility for key terms are told to buy an ad. But that’s not a solution to getting your views out, if you are denied the ability to buy that ad.

Google Stirs Controversy With Froogle
Washington Post, June 9, 2004

Google was running house ads for Froogle earlier this month. What did I think? Taking up one of the limited number of ad spaces from its own advertisers seems wrong. But promoting Froogle outside of the ad space? I’m all for it. In fact, it’s exactly what I think they should do, and something they have done since March. Unfortunately, my comments about this never made it into the story.

It’s important to note that Google did NOT alter the regular “mathematically generated” web results that came up for golf clubs. Ten of those were still delivered, just as Google has regularly done. Those came from Google crawling the web and using its ranking algorithm to pick the best results. They did no intervention to those results.

By the way, Google house ads aren’t new nor restricted to Father’s Day. Going through my notes, I see one showed up for the words advertise website back on April 1 and is still running to promote AdSense. The words search engine optimization also bring up a Google house ad.

Yahoo is also doing the same. Reader David Ralph wrote me in the middle of June that Yahoo Shopping was being promoted to show up for the words “richie swimwear.” His client, who runs Ritchie Swimwear, wasn’t happy about this. Looking into it, it appears that Yahoo Shopping is bidding $0.13 per click for the term “swimwear” and being broadmatched against “richie swimwear,” as well.

Google preps new tool to juice revenue
News.com, May 11, 2004

Google’s apparently looking at ways to automatically create paid listings for companies by crawling the pages in their web sites. Several search engine marketing firms already offer this to their paid listing clients.

Google Provides Tighter Localization
Search Engine Watch, May 6, 2004

Last October, Google provided the ability to target ads locally by 210 designated market areas in the United States. Now that program has been expanded, allowing ads to be targeted more tightly to regions or cities in the US.

Yahoo Bans Online Casino Ads; Google’s Ban Has Holes
The Search Engine Report, May 6, 2004

Both Yahoo and Google decided to drop ads from online casinos by the end of April. But despite this, the ads can still be found lurking on Google.

Google Drops Restrictions on AdWords; Amazon’s A9 Launches
SearchDay, Apr. 15, 2004

Google, in response to the growing litigation involving the use of third party trademarks as keyword inventory within its AdWords program, has unveiled a new policy by which it disclaims any responsibility to monitor or restrict keywords for ads served within the U.S. and Canada.

The Ads Google Just Says No To
The Search Engine Update, April 2, 2004

Want to buy an ad on Google? You might find it rejected after the fact for a variety of unpublished reasons. A look at some cases and the issues they raise.

Google AdWords Tips & Tricks
SearchGuide.com, Jan. 6, 2004

Quick tips to consider trying for getting more out of your Google AdWords campaign.

2003

Google Enhances Froogle, Offers New Ad and Search Features
Search Engine Watch, Dec. 15, 2003

Google has beefed up its Froogle shopping search engine, introduced two new ‘quick links’ for searchers, and has added new features to its AdWords program.

Google, Overture Limit Pharmacy Ads — But Not In Free Listings
The Search Engine Report, Dec. 2, 2003

Overture and Google have reacted to pressure to drop ads for unlicensed online pharmacies in the United States. But while the ads will be gone, the access to sites selling prescription medicines without proper approval will remain virtually unchanged.

Overture & Google Unveil New Advertiser Tools
SearchDay, Nov. 24, 2003

Overture’s new Marketing Console is a performance marketing tool, while Google’s Auto-Optimization feature automatically optimizes advertiser campaigns.

Customers rage at Google tweak
News.com, Nov. 14, 2003

Some Google advertisers remain upset at the expanded broad matching that the service introduced recently. Some find the broad matches catch terms they aren’t interested in, making them spend more time to manually exclude some terms. Others feel that broad matching is bringing larger advertisers into keyword niches that previously were ignored, making the cost for smaller businesses more expensive.

By the way, Overture does display bid prices. Do a search. After the results appear, select the View Advertisers Max Bids link at the top left of the page. Enter the code in the window that appears. Now you can see prices.

It’s a real kludge to do this with Google. If you set up an AdWords account, you can then go in, add a keyword and use the Estimate Traffic option. Then keep upping the bid until you get into a position you want. That’s the price — or at least an estimate for a brand new ad on Google that lacks any clickthrough history.

Also, Overture has indeed rolled out its own broad matching tools. I mentioned these in the mid-August newsletter, when they debuted.

In the new phrase match, “running shoes” would match any search that contains those exact words, in that exact order — such as “discount running shoes” or “nike running shoes” In broad match, “running shoes” would match any search that contains those words, regardless of order — such as “discount running shoes” or “good shoes for running races” or “reviews of popular running shoes.”

Why aren’t people complaining about Overture’s broad matching? They don’t happen by default, so many people aren’t impacted. In addition, those who do choose them don’t trump others in the old system. For example, your ad using either of the new options will only appear after ALL standard matches. So a person who pays $0.05 to come up for “discount running shoes” as a standard match will beat a person who wants to come up for any search involving the words “running shoes” and is willing to pay much more.

Local Search Part 3: Google Gets Local With AdWords
SearchDay, Oct. 28, 2003

Goes into depth about how regional targeting lets advertisers target their ads to any of 210 specific local regions in the US. It also explains how to override local targeting to convince Google to show you what those in other parts of the world will see, in terms of ads.

New Google and LookSmart Tools: A User’s Guide
ClickZ, Oct. 10, 2003

Overview of new features at LookSmart and Google that expand the possible matches that your paid listings may appear for.

Google Rolls Out Keyword Conversion Tool
InternetNews.com, Oct. 9, 2003

Need conversion tracking? Google offers basic conversion tracking to advertisers, as described in the article below.

Tips to Avoid AdWords Hassles
ClickZ, July 10, 2003

Tips on getting more out of AdWords.

Google AdSense Expands Contextual Ad Placement Program To Small Sites
Search Engine Watch, June 18, 2003

Google has expanded its contextual ads program to allow many more content sites to carry its paid listings. The new Google AdSense program allows site owners to sign-up for the program in a self-serve manner, similar to becoming an Amazon affiliate.

Google Ends Premium Sponsorships
Search Engine Watch, June 17, 2003

It’s official. Google’s CPM-based Premium Sponsorships are being phased out, leaving CPC-based AdWords as Google’s sole ad unit.

Google Ends Premium Sponsorships
The Search Engine Update, June 17, 2003

The article and commentary below covers how Google has reduced minimum bids on some keywords within the last year.

Google Reduces Minimum Bid on Some Keywords
InternetNews.com, May 21, 2003

While Google has always had a “minimum” bid of $0.05, some popular terms required advertisers to pay much more than that. Meanwhile, bids on Overture initially started at a $0.01 minimum bid when the service began in 1998, regardless of a term’s popularity. Over time, Overture’s now raised that minimum to $0.10. Meanwhile, Google has just dropped its minimum for some terms. In short, Overture has been moving to get more value out of terms that were likely being sold at bargain rates while Google is trying to get some terms sold that might have been ignored because they were overvalued.

Google’s Premium Sponsorships On The Way Out
Search Engine Watch, May 5, 2003

Google has yet to make an official announcement, but the signs are clear — its CPM-based Premium Sponsorships are to be retired and gone as we know them by 2004.

Google AdWords: Best Practices
ClickZ, April 25, 2003

Expect Google’s ad programs to undergo changes over the coming year, says buyer Kevin Lee. In the meantime, consider ways to make the existing system work better for you, such as using ad groups for better targeting, power posting, running testing multiple ads to find the best creative, using dynamic keyword insertion to easily customize thousands of listings and testing landing pages to improve conversion.

2002

Prime Google AdWords Keywords Still Ignored by Many Businesses
SearchEngineGuide.com, Nov. 26, 2002

Traffick’s Andrew Goodman finds that Google seems to have plenty of inventory where advertisers can get placed cheaply, in comparison to Overture.

Compare & Contrast: Ad Guidelines At Overture & Google
Search Engine Watch, Aug. 5, 2002

This article explores the editorial guidelines at Overture and Google for advertisements.

Forget The CPC! What’s Your ROI?
Search Engine Watch, July 1, 2002

Purchasing paid listings just got a whole lot more complicated — or a lot more easier — depending on your perspective, thanks to changes at Overture last week. The company rolled out a new bidding system that will force many advertisers to think more about how much they can afford to pay to gain leads rather than how cheaply they can get those leads.

Letter From Sydney
Search Engine Watch, June 17, 2002

I’ve been in Sydney this past week for the Search Engine Strategies conference, and in this article, I thought I’d share a few things that stood out in my mind as I listened to the various local speakers discuss search engine marketing. Not all of this is Australia-specific, so even if you don’t target the region, give the rundown a quick skim. In particular, there’s a mention of how Google AdWords may now be shown in the Premium Sponsorship area.

Google AdWords: Sublime Poetry?
Search Engine Watch, May 13, 2002

A frustrated poet uses Google’s AdWords program to not only lose money with his art, but as a clever way to test the effectiveness of keywords for search engine optimization efforts.

Up Close With Google AdWords
The Search Engine Update, March 4, 2002

Forget the hype about what the new cost-per-click AdWords means for Google, in terms of competing with Overture. What’s in the program for advertisers, and how does the cost per click pricing fit in with the existing cost per impression ads? Let’s take a look.

Google Takes On Overture With Pay Per Click Ads
Search Engine Watch, March 4, 2002

Google is no stranger to advertising, having had paid listings on its site since text banners debuted in December 1999. However, last month the company introduced a new pay-per-click payment option for its AdWords program that may make Google more attractive to some advertisers — as well as establishing the company as serious competitor with Overture.

2001 & Before

Google Gets Paid Links, Quotes and More Languages
Search Engine Watch, Oct. 16, 2000

Google has debuted a new self-serve paid links program, while also adding more language search support and a feature that allows you to locate stock quotes. Called AdWords, the Google paid links program has been running for about two weeks and has purposely been not heavily promoted so that Google could slowly beta test the system.

Up Close With Google AdWords
Search Engine Watch, Oct. 16, 2000

Google’s AdWords system is similar to that run by Ask Jeeves, where paid results are displayed along the right-hand side of the results page. Also like Ask Jeeves, ads are sold on a CPM basis. This means you pay for how often your ad appears, rather than how often someone clicks on your paid link. That’s about the end of the similarities, and the unique differences Google introduces may take some getting used to.

Google Loses Virginity But Gains A Virgin
Search Engine Watch, Dec. 6, 1999

And so finally it’s come — advertising on Google. They promised something other than banners when the site came out of beta, and Google delivers on that promise. Ads are simply a big text link, within a blue box at the top of the search results page. I find them oddly refreshing — maybe I’ll even click on one 🙂 Try a search for “shopping,” if you haven’t seen one yet. Meanwhile, Google has cut a new deal to power searches at Virgin Net, an entertainment and leisure portal for the UK. As part of its Virgin Net service, Google has added a special index of 5 million UK web pages to its regular listings.

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