Google PPA …and Text Link Ads??
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Written By Kate Zimmermann | March 21, 2007 | Share This
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Yesterday Google announced the extension of its Pay Per Action ad test as a limited beta. As many have pointed out, entry into PPA puts Google in direct competition with affiliate networks using a similar model, such as LinkShare or Commission Junction. Cost-Per-Action ads are appealing to advertisers because they eliminate risk of clickfraud or ineffectiveness. Though smaller sites like Snap.com and Turn.com have been experimenting with CPA for some time, Google’s announcement indicates a turning point for this early-stage market.
That aside, Google’s announcement included another small tidbit that has been largely overlooked. From the Google Q&A on PPA:
“What ad formats can I use?
You can create text, image, or text link ads for your pay-per-action campaign.What is the text link format for pay-per-action ads?
Text links are hyperlinked brief text descriptions that take on the characteristics of a publisher’s page. Publishers can place them in line with other text to better blend the ad and promote your product.
For example, you might see the following text link embedded in a publisher’s recommendatory text: “Widgets are fun! I encourage all my friends to Buy a high-quality widget today.” (Mousing over the link will display “Ads by Google” to identify these as pay-per-action ads).
Though the maximum length of a text link is 90 characters, we’ve found that shorter links perform better because they allow the publisher use the link in more places on her/his site and in different context. The maximum length is 90 characters but less than 5 words is best. Even better, just use your brand name to offer maximum flexibility to the publisher.”
Text link ads are already used by companies like Miva or Intellitxt, and are generally regarded as annoying and confusing to the user. They’ve generated controversy in the past because they can potentially skew Google’s page rank system that relies on links to judge authority. As TechCrunch writes,
“They’ve crossed a hazy ethical line here. If this product was announced on its own, it would be heavily debated by the blogs and press. But by burying it in other, bigger news, they’ve mostly avoided the critical analysis that this actually deserves”
“What’s not clear is why Google has decided to lump these two things, the text link ads and the pay per action beta, into the same announcement, since the two really have nothing at all to do with each other. It seems possible that Google knew the text link ads might elicit a negative response and so the company decided to mask that with the other announcement, knowing it would get overshadowed.”
In 2005 Matt Cutts wrote,
“Selling links muddies the quality of link-based reputation and makes it harder for many search engines (not just Google) to return relevant results…Yes, Google has a variety of algorithmic methods of detecting such links, and they work pretty well. But these links make it harder for Google (and other search engines) to determine how much to trust each link.”
Though I’m sure Google’s text link ads wont factor into the advertiser’s link reputation, they certainly contradict Google’s longstanding devotion to the quality of user experience. As far as I can tell, the only motivation for text link ads is monetary - so where’s the benefit to the user on this one?
Topics: Google |
Interested in the Google’s “Pay Per Action” program. Please advise.