A few days ago I strated a new campange for a site that uses keywords that none else uses. I had to bid on 2 terms with real low costs. Day 1 - Term 1 - €0,05 a click Day 1 - Term 2 - €0,05 a click 2 days later I checkup and see that my keywords are no longer active and I have to bid a minimum of €0,09. So I do Day 3 the same thing happens. Now i is: Day 3 - Term 1 - €0,21 a click Day 3 - Term 1 - €0,27 a click That is a huge increase of 420% and 540%. So I manully type the terms in google and so that there is still NO competition on adwords. At the rate this is going, I do like it and feal ripped off Is google ripping me off?
I've noticed the same sort of bumps in price requirements, although for a much more competitive market. If you look closely, you will see that you are given the option to increase the price or the quality of the ad. Presumably this is to increase a)quality (obviously) and b) relevance, thereby increasing click throughs.
I looked at what Google definces as quality, but after chaning it (and in my opinion loosing quality) they still ask for me to update the price.
I think Google is saying that your obscure terms are not worth their precious time & effort unless you are willing to be overcharged for it. (A smiley, but actually I'm serious)
Earnings go up. Earnings go down. Right now, I'm in a slump. Two weeks ago, I was flying. It happens. Don't worry about what Google is doing, their cutting checks is all I care. Focus on what you are doing.
I noticed the same thing with my Adwords. I am ranked in the top 5, but they want me to up the bid from $0.10 to $0.40. I don't get it. They aren't doing it to the other keywords in the ad.
They hit ALL my keywords in an ad group (roughly 500 of them). Now some of them have turned active again from yesterday, just a few though (about 10 of them out of the 500). There are only 2-3 other advertisers buying these keywords also which is making me wonder why they'd turn the ads inactive. I'm assuming it hasn't happened to you yet and this is a new phenomenon with Adwords.
Same thing happened with one of my campaigns. 100 of the 150 keywords were inactive, awaiting my increase in bids. I didn't realize that they will make them active without me doing anything. At least that gives me some hope. How much more unique could "Doogie Accountant" be?
We need to figure out how they factor this inactive thingee. There has to be a formula and set of rules somewhere but I'm figuring they're always changing and maybe even a few algorithms deciding behavourial actions ...
Now they are really trying to rip me off! What started with 0,05 for a keyword is now hitting 1,00 in a few days!
They're not "ripping you off". You understand quality issues (CTR) and the effect of an "open market" for bidding, right?
I understand the effect of an open market. What I don't understand is why I have to pay more if I am the only one with adwords using those terms.
Odds are you are not. What type of matching are you using? While your ad was running was your ctr above or below 1%? Feel free to PM me any details and I'll check it out for you.