I am sure we are all familiar with Google's somewhat recent banning of images next to their ads... EVEN tho they themself do this with their own logo and --- even more recently --- I have seen them use an image of a shopping cart next to their clients ad. So I have a few sites that were using the ol' "image next to ad" trick and want to conform... even tho I believe this defeats a publisher's belief that they need to "sell" those ads to their visitors (that is our job... right ? If we can get more visitors interested in those ads --- that would be better for the advertiser... correct ? We can not control what our visitors click on... whether there is an image or not next to it.) Anyway... I got holes to fill now and decided to try a couple methods. So how about instead of random images... how about a random capitol letter? Perhaps I can try embedding some fancy type style for this... or even try the old <BLINK> tag. That could get very annoying Second one is going to be a square text ad right next to Google's own image ad. That can not be against their TOS... can it ? WDYT?
The first one would be a violation of the policy. The second one should work relatively nicely since I don't think they will be against that.
Good idea, it actually might work I decided to take all the images that were next to my ads down just in case. The actual problem with using images next to ads, was that some publishers were actually deceiving people into clicking which is against Google’s Adsense TOS.
Sorry Crusader... I am not finding the rule that covers text next to adsense in their policy. Although I have just found their blog reply on this issue: Ad and image placement: a policy clarification
They made a post about this few months ago. I can’t remember exactly what it said but I do know they have stopped permitting images next to ads.
While they don't mention text next to Adsense, you should view your "letter" as an image, forgetting that it is text, and compare that to their policies. If you do that you'll see that it would be a violation... especially since the only purpose would be to draw attention to the ads next to it. That's my interpretation in any case. The only people who can give you a definite answer is Adsense support. Why don't you e-mail them with the above examples and ask?
First ad looks like violation to me. Second one is pretty good idea. I bet if it works good you will see it banned. I thought the image ads still had google listed below them. Unless you just made the ad up with some pic you had.
..I believe, the best way is NOT to implement something that we are unsure about it. There are other smarter ways to market our website as well as ads. Anyway, I have also heard about putting images next to adsense is OK but I can't ensure that it is NOT against TOS.
So what some are saying is that Google is saying ( this would only be "hearsay" ) is that we are not allowed to draw any kind of attention to the ads. Why should I have to view my "letter" as an image when it is NOT. If I am not allowed to put images, graphics, or text next to the ads on MY website... what can I use ? I need something to fill these holes and Google should offer us publishers an alternative (either graphically or offer a size for this 580x60 hole. Other companies I deal with really seem to be concerned and always try to offer help to market their product. The thinking here is... If I do good... then they in return make out good and so it is good business to help those helping you. Isn't the idea here to attract visitors to your ads or site and maybe sell those products ? It will not happen if nobody sees and then clicks on these ads. OK... let's view my "letter" as an "image" and question it under the posted image rule: Their examples they posted show their concern would of been over me having "gaming" images next to their "gaming" advertising... but now I just have random letters. Maybe ( hopefully ) random letters are an attention getter (the reason we do just about anything on the internet... whether it is design or advertising ) I don't think it can be construed as misleading tho. I guess its just a guessing game and since there is no definitive answer here I would have to email G and see what they say. At least the one answering the email as we know they all give different answers. But we are hesitant to email them for fear of our account (after reading others experiences here). Sure is a lot of work for those 3-cent clicks which does not add up enough to pay for a redesign or marketing SEO genius either PS: the images I posted above are un-retouched screenshots from real webpages.
You should check out their image policy clarification if you haven't already. It explains it pretty well and the first implementation goes against the below. The fact that the letter is text and not an image is a moot point, since it has the exact purpose as what an image would have had. What's the purpose of the letter other than drawing attention to the ads? If it has no other purpose or doesn't add value/usefulness to your site then it would most likely be against the ToS. You definitely don't need to be afraid to e-mail Adsense and ask for a review regarding your implementation. I've done it many times in the past and nothing bad happened. If you are in violation they will notify you of the fact and ask you to change it. As for drawing attention to the ads, you need to remember that Adsense ads are based on a CPC model. The advertisers pay for each click, regardless if the visitor actually buys from them. Now if you make the ads misleading or draw attention to the ads, then you will get uninterested visitors clicking on them. That's good for you, but bad for the advertisers since they won't get any return on their investment and have to pay a large amount for advertising. Now with CPM and CPA models that wouldn't be a problem, since the advertisers using those methods don't really care how you get people to them, just that they visit the site or convert. With CPM pageviews are important giving the advertiser more exposure. With CPA, you only get paid when a person performs an action so the advertiser is only interested in getting that action done. That's why Adsense allows you to actively endorse the referral products, but NOT the normal Adsense units.
Thanks for the great explanation Crusader. I am not trying to be misleading or deceitful here... just trying to fill a hole in a creative way that is not against TOS. This hole doesn't add a thing to my site or the ad either. After working in the newspaper field for more than 20 years it is a bit difficult to understand this Adsense business model. ( With newspapers the advertisers pay for the space according to circulation... regardless of their results... and when you have a hole to fill... you put in whatever you wanted to as the owner. ) Maybe a CPM would be more "my style" of advertising ? Will have to look into those programs. Meanwhile... I will email them and see what they say and will let you all know.
I know a bit about the newspaper business as well, and it does take getting used to the various internet advertising models. Glad I could clear things up a bit. Let us know what the Adsense guys say.
Got their reply and have removed those "letters" and "she" never gave me a definitive answer either: "doesn't appear to" ... guess that was a "no". So... I still do not see what is wrong with bringing honest attention to these ad placements ? Perhaps I need to redesign things and "blend" the ads better (which Google promotes) so maybe I can get more "unintentional clicks". lol