Google Search, AdSense, and Other Pressures
I read “Google Is Enraged By A Fake Conspiracy Theory That It Is Stealing Money From Publishers.” My initial reaction was, “Google seems to have a low threshold for pain.” I continue to hear and read that the shift from desktop Web surfing to whiz bang mobile devices is putting some pressure on Web sites that are designed to make money. This blog is free and every couple of months I try to figure out how to get the paltry sum Google says I have earned.
The article does not address my concerns about AdSense. I don’t have much at stake with my personal blog. Heck, after hitting the big seven oh, I am lucky to remember that I have a blog.
The article points out something that I found mildly interesting:
an alleged former Google employee who claims the company systematically banned hundreds of Web publishers from its AdSense advertising system simply because they were making too much money.
That comment gets into the notion of trust, but apparently the “leader” was a fake. Business Insider did not peg the false information method as disinformation, misinformation, or reformation.
The article points out that a Googler explained that Google does not penalize anyone using AdSense.
But for years, I have heard about Web sites that experienced some AdSense anomalies. For example, I was asked by one Web site owner to look at data about the company’s AdSense earnings. I worked through the information and noted one anomaly. It seemed that variances in the amount paid to the Web site owner ramped up as Google approached the end of a fiscal quarter.
I have only a sample of one, so I want to emphasize that this situation may be an anomaly, or in fancy talk, an outlier.
Google’s fast response to the false story struck me as interesting. Google is not exactly the most rapid response outfit I have come across.
I have several questions:
- Are there other Web sites using AdSense that have periodic anomalies? It would be interesting to learn about payment deltas so I can figure out if my analysis was an odd duck or something more interesting, maybe a snail darter.
- Why is Google so vociferous with regard to a one shot article? The reaction in itself was fascinating because of its speed and the delivery of the message from a person at Google who has the job of balancing search engine optimization with the Google need to sell ads.
- What financial pressures are mounting at Google as the emergence of New Age searching pushes down the value of certain types of online advertising?
If I were younger, I suppose I could build a head of steam about the fake story, the Google reaction, and the experiences of other AdSense dependent sites. Well, I am not. I don’t care because Google, like other companies, may have its work cut out for it in the months and years ahead. AdSense may be the least of Google’s worries. Plus is exciting. Glass is exciting. Management churn is exciting. You get the idea.
Stephen E Arnold, May 4, 2014
