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Sunday 18 March 2012

So are there alternatives to Google adwords?

If you've read my previous post, you'll know about my friend Peter who was 'suspended' (ie banned) from using Google adwords.  After the shock had died down, he decided he needed to find out if there were any alternative ways of promoting his current website and the information products he intended to write.  Could Google really end his career on the internet at one fell swoop, or were adwords just one way among many of driving traffic to his site?

After a short search he discovered the website of Ryan Healy.  Ryan is a freelance direct response copywriter, who has worked for some of the top names in internet marketing, and is co-author of the book    Million-Dollar Marketing Secrets.  In September 2010, he was suspended by Google adwords.  In a post on his blog, he says "I still don’t know exactly why I was suspended.  I know it had to do with something on this domain. From what I was able to figure out, my site was classified as a “make money” site, probably because I’m a freelance copywriter who helps clients make money.
In Google’s eyes, it’s apparently an “unforgivable sin” to talk about making money or help others to make money."

Like Peter, Ryan found Google less than helpful.  He writes "I would gladly fix my site if Google were willing to tell me what I did wrong. Isn’t that how a business relationship works?  Communication has to flow both ways. The merchant and customer need to work together for a fruitful relationship. But Google doesn’t seem to want good business relationships.  It doesn’t matter whether you’re spending $500 a month or $30,000 a month — they’ll cut you off without notice if you so much as blink the wrong way.  I spent exactly $9,825.74 on AdWords before my account was suspended. A client of mine was spending $30,000 a month up until two weeks ago when he, too, was suspended without warning.  Who the hell snubs a customer who’s spending $30K a month and then won’t even give the customer the courtesy of an explanation?"

Peter read through the post, in one way reassured that he was not alone but increasingly depressed and angry about Google's high handed attitude.  However, his spirits lifted when he got to the final subheading and read "Google Is Not the Only Game in Town!"

Ryan lists a number of alternatives: 
  • Bing Ads: At the moment, Bing is probably as close as you’ll get to a paid search experience with capabilities that are similar to AdWords.
  • Facebook Ads: Advertising on Facebook is fun because you get to combine images with ad copy. Advertising on Facebook lets you target groups of people by interests and demographics.
  • Amazon Pay-Per-Click: If you sell physical products, then you may want to advertise on Amazon. Right now, you can start advertising for as little as $0.10 a click.
  • LinkedIn Ads: If you are in the B2B market, then consider advertising on LinkedIn. You may actually spend less to acquire sales and leads on LinkedIn given your ability to target exactly who you want to reach.
  • Infolinks In-Text Advertising: This company lets you place text links on a network of publishers’ web sites. When a reader rolls over your link, an ad pops up. This medium is similar to Google’s Content Network — but you get more than just text to get readers to click.
He concludes by saying "I’ve only scratched the surface here. The more I investigate, the more I begin to see how many alternatives to AdWords are available.  Whether your AdWords account has been suspended or not… I strongly suggest you explore other advertising options and begin to divert a portion of your ad spend away from Google.  Because the way things are going at Google, it’s only a matter of time before your AdWords account is “permanently suspended.”

3 comments:

  1. Just happened to me - wish I had known this could happen so easily - quickly - and so high-handedly! I've never scammed anyone in my life - and had NO intentions of leading anyone to believe they could "get rich quick" - but, simply based on (the misunderstanding) of a few key words - I'm permanently ostracized!

    Thanks for your article!

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    Replies
    1. Sorry to hear that it's happened to you, too, Wayne. It's a bit of a nightmare. However, as Ryan Healy says, Google's not the only game in town (although I think it would like to believe that it is and certainly behaves as though it is). By far and away the best course I've found on Facebook advertising is Armand Morin's FAST which you'll find at http://tiny.cc/fastsystem

      Good luck, and thanks for your comment.

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