Changes in Google Adwords
If you’ve been using Google Adwords, you’ve may have noticed a sudden jump in your cost per click. It wasn’t imaginary - Google is putting more emphasis on the quality of your landing page in calculating your minimum bid. There was, apparently, a lot of Adword spamming regarding the landing pages. People would click through to the landing pages only to find a page of Adsense advertisements or ads on products unrelated to the click-through keyword phrase.
Google was using humans to evaluate the landing pages, but now (as of June) started using a special spider to check Adword landing pages for spam. If you’ve seen your click prices jump by $5- or more, you’ve probably been Adword spamming. It’s a dramatic jump in PPC price if you are being flagged for Adword spamming.
The bottom line here is simple - optimize that landing page as if it were a page for the organic engines. Here are a few tips:
-
Don’t click the user to a landing page full of Adsense ads.
-
Don’t click the user to a common page for an affiliate product you sell. Your page should be unique.
-
Have a privacy statement on the page.
-
Have your real address (not a PO Box number) and phone number on the landing page.
-
Don’t put your email address there, but you can use a form and give them the option of sending you their questions.
Need more tips for that landing page? See our SEO book. Remember that now a strong, strong landing page can get your traffic up and your cost per click down.