Ouya's advertising gets edgy; a masterstroke that should help its fortunes
Showing posts with label Advertising. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Advertising. Show all posts
Google Affiliate Network has a widget for UK Bloggers
This Quick-Tip is about the Google Advertiser Network widget becoming available for Blogger users based in the UK.
Today, Google Advertisers Network announced that their Blogger widget is now available for some Blogger users in the United Kindgom.
You don't control whether you see the widget or not. If you:
then the widget will show up in your post editor (I'm guessing on the right hand panel) when you are editing a post.
I can't see it myself at the moment, so I have no idea whether you can get rid of it, like you can with the Zemanata post-editor gadget.
Actually, I'm wondering how Blogger decides where someone is based, and why it's relevant: one of my blogs is very specific to Ireland (where I live) but gets a lot of interest from the UK - and lots of people from Ireland buy things direct from the UK anyway. So I could see some of the UK GAN advertisers being quite relevant.
And as I've mentioned before, this gadget makes it easy to put ads into a post. But if you can see the gadget, you could easily enough put them into a widget (ie sidebar header or footer) by taking the HTML from the post editor's HTML view, and putting it elsewhere in your blog just like any other 3rd-party code.
Today, Google Advertisers Network announced that their Blogger widget is now available for some Blogger users in the United Kindgom.
You don't control whether you see the widget or not. If you:
- have an AdSense account, and
- have linked it to your blog's Earnings tab, and
- are blogging in an appropriate niche (ie one that Google Advertiser Network has advertisers for),
then the widget will show up in your post editor (I'm guessing on the right hand panel) when you are editing a post.
I can't see it myself at the moment, so I have no idea whether you can get rid of it, like you can with the Zemanata post-editor gadget.
Actually, I'm wondering how Blogger decides where someone is based, and why it's relevant: one of my blogs is very specific to Ireland (where I live) but gets a lot of interest from the UK - and lots of people from Ireland buy things direct from the UK anyway. So I could see some of the UK GAN advertisers being quite relevant.
And as I've mentioned before, this gadget makes it easy to put ads into a post. But if you can see the gadget, you could easily enough put them into a widget (ie sidebar header or footer) by taking the HTML from the post editor's HTML view, and putting it elsewhere in your blog just like any other 3rd-party code.
Chitika now supporting all countries
Chitika is one of the advertising programmes that is an alternative to Google AdSense.
Initially, their ads were only shown to website-visitors who were in the USA and Canada. That list extended a while ago. Now they say that they're available in all countries.
Actually, their post makes it sound like you can sign-up as a publisher no matter what country you are in. But I was signed up while they were still limited to showing ads to USA/Canada visitors, despite not being in those countries. So I'm pretty sure that they mean their ads will be shown in all countries.
Initially, their ads were only shown to website-visitors who were in the USA and Canada. That list extended a while ago. Now they say that they're available in all countries.
Actually, their post makes it sound like you can sign-up as a publisher no matter what country you are in. But I was signed up while they were still limited to showing ads to USA/Canada visitors, despite not being in those countries. So I'm pretty sure that they mean their ads will be shown in all countries.
Google Advertisers Network - now has UK advertisers
Google Affiliate Network (one of the alternatives to AdSense LINK, which lets you deal with specific, relevant, advertisers) has signed up 30+ UK based advertisers. Ref: http://googleaffiliatenetwork-blog.blogspot.ie/2012/06/announcing-new-uk-advertisers.html
(When you're looking for them, don't forget to set Relationship status to "available", instead of the default "approved".)
Fingers crossed some of these will also be suitable for my Ireland-focussed blog!
(When you're looking for them, don't forget to set Relationship status to "available", instead of the default "approved".)
Fingers crossed some of these will also be suitable for my Ireland-focussed blog!
A new advertising option for Blogger: Google Affiliate Network
If you are already an AdSense publisher, then today's announcment about Google Affiliate Network: Introducing Google Affiliate Ads for Blogger may be of interest.
Google Affiliate Network (GAN) is a different type of advertising programme: instead of getting paid per click, you get paid per purchase (or whatever other key action the advertiser decides).
So far, it's limited to Blogger users who are based in the USA - presumably because this is where most advertisers are. It's also limited to "select bloggers" - this seems to mean ones whose blog is a good fit with the available advertisers, and the criteria for "a good fit" is as decided by Google. This is unlike regular use of the Google Advertisers network, where you apply to a particular advertiser based on your own assessment of the fit.
After you have signed up for AdSense (and, I guess been approved!):
This means they will only available from the "new", ie post-Sept-2011 blogger interface.
I guess you will be allowed to copy the HTML code for the GAN advertisement from the post editor, and put it into a regular gadget - since you can put regular GAN adverts into your blog in this way. But this is a detail that should be checked against their terms and conditions: as with AdSense, the additional requirements for GAN are glossed over when you are accessing it via Blogger, but I expect that they will still apply.
Google Affiliate Network (GAN) is a different type of advertising programme: instead of getting paid per click, you get paid per purchase (or whatever other key action the advertiser decides).
So far, it's limited to Blogger users who are based in the USA - presumably because this is where most advertisers are. It's also limited to "select bloggers" - this seems to mean ones whose blog is a good fit with the available advertisers, and the criteria for "a good fit" is as decided by Google. This is unlike regular use of the Google Advertisers network, where you apply to a particular advertiser based on your own assessment of the fit.
After you have signed up for AdSense (and, I guess been approved!):
IF GAN options are available to you
THEN they will be shown when you are editing a post, in a gadget that appears in the right-hand Post Settings area.
This means they will only available from the "new", ie post-Sept-2011 blogger interface.
I guess you will be allowed to copy the HTML code for the GAN advertisement from the post editor, and put it into a regular gadget - since you can put regular GAN adverts into your blog in this way. But this is a detail that should be checked against their terms and conditions: as with AdSense, the additional requirements for GAN are glossed over when you are accessing it via Blogger, but I expect that they will still apply.
More categories to ban from your AdSense ads
AdSense has added 88 new categories to the list of advertisement-topics that can be blocked from your sites, including apparel, business, family and sports. The may make it easier to keep ads for competitors off
your blog.
You can block a maximum of 50 categories - and there is still no way to block categories by site.
Ref: How to block competitors ads from your site.
your blog.
You can block a maximum of 50 categories - and there is still no way to block categories by site.
Ref: How to block competitors ads from your site.
Blogger / Amazon integration is finished - what are our options now?
This article is an update about the interation between Blogger and Amazon, and what options Blogger users have instead.
Blogger and Amazon working together ...
In December 2009, Blogger announced integration with Amazon (which was actually only integration with Amazon.com).
At the time, there were hints that this was only the first of many new money-making options and programmes for Bloggers.
These features were added to Blogger to support the integration:
... but not any more?
For months, there have been complaints in Blogger-help-forum that existing Amazon.com associates couldn't link their Blogger and Amazon.com
Amazon.com accounts on the Monetize tab any more: the function just returned an error, or appeared to work, but didn't actually storing the connection.
Now, with the release of Blogger's new interface, the Monetize tab has been renamed Earnings. There's no mention of Amazon on it, and no sign of the Amazon Product Finder (APF) in the Post-editor. And there are reports in Blogger-help-forum that people who had APF turned on in "old blogger" find that it's gone in the new interface - and is broken even if they switch back to the old interface.
On the Amazon.com site their official Amazon-Associates blog is now made with TypePad. I know that I recently saw instructions about putting things (widgets?) into Blogger, that that these commented that blogger has a new look. However the instruction were still based on the old interface. And today, I can't find them at all.
There has been nothing said (that I've seen anyway) by either company. But I think it's safe to assume that the Blogger / Amazon integration has been abandoned.
Why Did This Happen:
My guess is that there are two big issues.
Firstly, Amazon.com is a lot more than just a bookseller: Google and Amazon are competitors in some areas (eg document storage), so there's bound to be some friction, even though they managed to agree a compromise in 2009. And possibly that compromise wasn't profitable enough for either of them.
Second, and possibly more importantly, there is an internationalisation issue.
Blogger is a multi-lingual, multi-country platform: different languages and cultures are catered for within the same platform and subject to the same terms and conditions. Blogger users all live with the same rules, that are based on American law (eg the 13-year age limit, which is most probably based on America Children's Online Privacy Protection Act).
Amazon, on the other hand, have different platforms for different countries (even amazon.ca for Canada, vs amazon.com for the USA+rest of the world). This is understandable, because countries have vastly different laws about on-line selling and taxes, so Amazon's rules need to be quite different in different places. Even in the European Union, we see regular updates to the terms and conditions that basically amount to the addition of new countries/languages - Amazon.es (for Spain) was the latest one - and these come with small rule-tweaks too. These big differences mean that integration with a multi-national product like Blogger is not easy: there would be lots of on-going issues with making the sites work well together.
My guess is that these two factors combined have killed off the integration.
What can bloggers do instead
You can still sign yourself up for Amazon.com (or Amazon.co.uk
, or .ca or whatever-other country), and make the links to products and Amazon-widgets yourself. Personally, I think this better anyway, because it gives you control ove the look and feel (colours, backgrounds, tracking-IDs) used on the ads, and choices about where to install the HTML on your blog.
There is no alternative for the Amazon Product Finder gadget - except opening Amazon in a different tab, and making the links there as you need them. It's little bit more work - but only just.
There are still Amazon.com gadgets in the Add a Gadget list (from Layout in the new interface, Design > Page Elements in the old one) - you can find them under the features tab.
For now at least, it looks like Blogger's monetize tab is limited to AdSense , and it is a money-making option that you can sign up for from within Blogger. (Even though there are a few vital extra steps that you should take, even though Blogger hasn't told you about them, like blocking certain ad-categories, and stopping malicious use of your AdSense ID).
And there are, of course, many other advertisting programmes and affiliate programmes that you can consider if AdSense doesn't work for your blog.
Related Articles:
-->
Signing up for Amazon.com
Alternative advertising programmes
Stopping malicious use of your AdSense ID
.
Making links to products and Amazon-widgets yourself
Changing colours and design of Amazon.com advertisements
Installing the Amazon Product Preview code
Amazon / Blogger integration is with Amazon.com only
Blogger and Amazon working together ...
At the time, there were hints that this was only the first of many new money-making options and programmes for Bloggers.
These features were added to Blogger to support the integration:
- Ability to sign up for Amazon.com on the Monetize tab
- Existing Amazon.com users link their Blogger and Amazon account on the Monetize tab
- A tick-box on the Monetize tab that let "amazon-integrated" bloggers turn on the Amazon-product-preview without having to install the code
- Amazon Product Finder (APF) - a gadget that bloggers could use in the the Post Editor, to make a link to a product from Amazon.com without leaving the Post Editor screen
- A range of gadgets from Amazon were added to the list in Add a Gadget
... but not any more?
For months, there have been complaints in Blogger-help-forum that existing Amazon.com associates couldn't link their Blogger and Amazon.com
Amazon.com accounts on the Monetize tab any more: the function just returned an error, or appeared to work, but didn't actually storing the connection.Now, with the release of Blogger's new interface, the Monetize tab has been renamed Earnings. There's no mention of Amazon on it, and no sign of the Amazon Product Finder (APF) in the Post-editor. And there are reports in Blogger-help-forum that people who had APF turned on in "old blogger" find that it's gone in the new interface - and is broken even if they switch back to the old interface.
On the Amazon.com
site their official Amazon-Associates blog is now made with TypePad. I know that I recently saw instructions about putting things (widgets?) into Blogger, that that these commented that blogger has a new look. However the instruction were still based on the old interface. And today, I can't find them at all.There has been nothing said (that I've seen anyway) by either company. But I think it's safe to assume that the Blogger / Amazon integration has been abandoned.
Why Did This Happen:
My guess is that there are two big issues.
Firstly, Amazon.com
is a lot more than just a bookseller: Google and Amazon are competitors in some areas (eg document storage), so there's bound to be some friction, even though they managed to agree a compromise in 2009. And possibly that compromise wasn't profitable enough for either of them.Second, and possibly more importantly, there is an internationalisation issue.
Blogger is a multi-lingual, multi-country platform: different languages and cultures are catered for within the same platform and subject to the same terms and conditions. Blogger users all live with the same rules, that are based on American law (eg the 13-year age limit, which is most probably based on America Children's Online Privacy Protection Act).
Amazon, on the other hand, have different platforms for different countries (even amazon.ca for Canada, vs amazon.com for the USA+rest of the world). This is understandable, because countries have vastly different laws about on-line selling and taxes, so Amazon's rules need to be quite different in different places. Even in the European Union, we see regular updates to the terms and conditions that basically amount to the addition of new countries/languages - Amazon.es (for Spain) was the latest one - and these come with small rule-tweaks too. These big differences mean that integration with a multi-national product like Blogger is not easy: there would be lots of on-going issues with making the sites work well together.
My guess is that these two factors combined have killed off the integration.
What can bloggers do instead
You can still sign yourself up for Amazon.com
(or Amazon.co.uk, or .ca or whatever-other country), and make the links to products and Amazon-widgets yourself. Personally, I think this better anyway, because it gives you control ove the look and feel (colours, backgrounds, tracking-IDs) used on the ads, and choices about where to install the HTML on your blog.There is no alternative for the Amazon Product Finder gadget - except opening Amazon
in a different tab, and making the links there as you need them. It's little bit more work - but only just.There are still Amazon.com gadgets in the Add a Gadget list (from Layout in the new interface, Design > Page Elements in the old one) - you can find them under the features tab.
For now at least, it looks like Blogger's monetize tab is limited to AdSense , and it is a money-making option that you can sign up for from within Blogger. (Even though there are a few vital extra steps that you should take, even though Blogger hasn't told you about them, like blocking certain ad-categories, and stopping malicious use of your AdSense ID).
And there are, of course, many other advertisting programmes and affiliate programmes that you can consider if AdSense doesn't work for your blog.
Related Articles:
-->
Signing up for Amazon.com
Alternative advertising programmes
Stopping malicious use of your AdSense ID
.
Making links to products and Amazon-widgets yourself
Changing colours and design of Amazon.com advertisements
Installing the Amazon Product Preview code
Amazon / Blogger integration is with Amazon.com only
Chitika overview
This article is an introduction to the Chitika advertising programme, which is one of the alternatives considered by bloggers whose sites are not eligible to use Google AdSense.
Chitika is another advertising programme - similar to Google AdSense, but run by a different company with slightly different rules and ways of publishing advertisements.
Ads shown by Chitika are not context-sensitive. Instead, they are selected for your site using the search-terms a user entered to find the site.
Because they're not context-sensitive, you can display them on the same pages as AdSense ad-units. At least the reason Chitika give - personally I've never been able to to find the AdSense condition that says "we must be the only context sensitive ads on a page", just one that says "no ads that look like ours".
Who sees Chitika ads:
Origianlly, Chitika ads weren't worldwide: they were only displayed to readers from Canada and the US who got to your site by searching. However this has been changed: now they have two products:
If you want, you can opt-out of showing Select ads, so that visitors who don't get Premium ads don't actually see an ad at all.
You can see an example of Chitkia ads here: this opens a new window showing you this page (the one you're reading now) as it would look to someone who arrives at the site by searching for "Blogger Hints".
How to sign up for Chitika:
You sign up for Chitika in the usual way - they ask for a range of information about you and your website. They do personally check each site, so it may take a few days or even weeks for account approval to come through .
It's a bit more "tecchie" to set up than AdSense - mainly because you need to install code from Chitika into your blog, instead of being able to just add a gadget in Blogger. But (in 2010), I was able to log in for the first time, read the terms and conditions, mess around with some ad-formats, and place ads on my site in less than 2 hours this evening, with no glitches along the way.
Terms and Conditions:
This article is based on my understanding of the terms and conditions of Blogger, AdSense, and Chitika - as at today. These companies may change their policies at any time, so before you implement anything, it is essential that you read the currrent T&C documents yourself, to sure that your site will comply.
Chitika has some quite stringent conditions. For example, you can't use it on site promoting sale of alcohol, tobacco, haz-chem, weapons, and some other things. This bit is quite near the end of their terms-and-conditions document - yet another reason to double-check before you start showing Chitika ads.
Related Articles:
Some other dvertising programmes
Setting up AdSense on your blog
Installing code from advertisers etc into your blog
More details about the Chitika programme.
Sign up for Chitika
Chitika is another advertising programme - similar to Google AdSense, but run by a different company with slightly different rules and ways of publishing advertisements.Ads shown by Chitika are not context-sensitive. Instead, they are selected for your site using the search-terms a user entered to find the site.
Because they're not context-sensitive, you can display them on the same pages as AdSense ad-units. At least the reason Chitika give - personally I've never been able to to find the AdSense condition that says "we must be the only context sensitive ads on a page", just one that says "no ads that look like ours".
Who sees Chitika ads:
Origianlly, Chitika ads weren't worldwide: they were only displayed to readers from Canada and the US who got to your site by searching. However this has been changed: now they have two products:
- Premium, shows ads related to the search query used by people who visit your site and come from one of Chitika's "accepted countries". Currently (Aug 2011) there are 12 of them, including the USA, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and India.
- Select, shows less-well-targetted ads to visitors from other countries, or who did not get to your site by searching for something.
If you want, you can opt-out of showing Select ads, so that visitors who don't get Premium ads don't actually see an ad at all.
You can see an example of Chitkia ads here: this opens a new window showing you this page (the one you're reading now) as it would look to someone who arrives at the site by searching for "Blogger Hints".
How to sign up for Chitika:
You sign up for Chitika in the usual way - they ask for a range of information about you and your website. They do personally check each site, so it may take a few days or even weeks for account approval to come through .
It's a bit more "tecchie" to set up than AdSense - mainly because you need to install code from Chitika into your blog, instead of being able to just add a gadget in Blogger. But (in 2010), I was able to log in for the first time, read the terms and conditions, mess around with some ad-formats, and place ads on my site in less than 2 hours this evening, with no glitches along the way.
Terms and Conditions:
Chitika has some quite stringent conditions. For example, you can't use it on site promoting sale of alcohol, tobacco, haz-chem, weapons, and some other things. This bit is quite near the end of their terms-and-conditions document - yet another reason to double-check before you start showing Chitika ads.
Related Articles:
Some other dvertising programmes
Setting up AdSense on your blog
Installing code from advertisers etc into your blog
More details about the Chitika programme.
Sign up for Chitika
Using Google Analytics to get statistics about AdSense performance on your blog
This article is about how to set up your blog so it collects data about your AdSense performance, using Google Analytics.
Recently, I described options for installing Google Analytics into blogs made with Blogger.
If you have decided to use Analytics, and you are also a Google AdSense publisher (ie person who has AdSense ads on your blog), then you probably want to take one more step, so that you can get statistics about AdSense on your blog from the Analytics tools.
After you have created a profile in Analytics, and installed the Analytic settings into your blog, go back to the Analytics Settings tab in Google Analytics.
If you have left the profile, find it and click Edit Profile (currently this is on the right of the screen).
The Profile screen that opens has sections for
Click Edit in the title for the Main Website Profile Information section.
At the bottom of the screen, tick Yes, this profile should receive AdSense data
When you tick the button, a window with some code opens. Copy the code.
Press the Save Changes button (currently bottom left of the screen.
Install the code you into your blog either in the header or in a HTML/Javascript gadget.
Installing this script has no effect on what your readers see.
But when you go into Analytics and look at any detailed report page, you will find that the AdSense Revenue tab will start to have data in it. Currently the statistics that are reported are (even if there was no revenue) are:
Data is only collected from the time that you installed the code into your blog: Google does not collect it (at least not in a form that's accessible to you) until you ask them to.
Detailed advertising performance data is only available through Analytics for AdSense: it's not available for the Google Affiliate Network and most certainly not for competing ad-services like Chitika.
Installing Google Analytics for your blog
Advertising on your Blog: some things to consider
AdSense and AdWords - understanding the difference
Putting Chitika ads into your blog
Understanding Google accounts
Adsense: how to stop malicious use of your AdSense account
Google Analytics and AdSense
If you have decided to use Analytics, and you are also a Google AdSense publisher (ie person who has AdSense ads on your blog), then you probably want to take one more step, so that you can get statistics about AdSense on your blog from the Analytics tools.
Installing the extra code
After you have created a profile in Analytics, and installed the Analytic settings into your blog, go back to the Analytics Settings tab in Google Analytics.
If you have left the profile, find it and click Edit Profile (currently this is on the right of the screen).
The Profile screen that opens has sections for
- Main Website Profile Information
- Goals
- Filters Applied to Profile
- Users with Access to Profile
Click Edit in the title for the Main Website Profile Information section.
At the bottom of the screen, tick Yes, this profile should receive AdSense data
When you tick the button, a window with some code opens. Copy the code.
Press the Save Changes button (currently bottom left of the screen.
Install the code you into your blog either in the header or in a HTML/Javascript gadget.
What you and your readers will see
Installing this script has no effect on what your readers see.
But when you go into Analytics and look at any detailed report page, you will find that the AdSense Revenue tab will start to have data in it. Currently the statistics that are reported are (even if there was no revenue) are:
- AdSense Revenue
- The number of AdSense ads that were clicked.
- AdSense Page Impressions ie the count of of pages displaying AdSense ads that were viewed
- AdSense CTR, ie the ratio of AdSense ads clicked to ad pages viewed.
- AdSense eCPM, ie the estimated revenue from AdSense per thousand ad page views (assuming that future viewers and advertisers behave in a similar way to the previous one).
Data is only collected from the time that you installed the code into your blog: Google does not collect it (at least not in a form that's accessible to you) until you ask them to.
Detailed advertising performance data is only available through Analytics for AdSense: it's not available for the Google Affiliate Network and most certainly not for competing ad-services like Chitika.
Related Articles:
Installing Google Analytics for your blog
Advertising on your Blog: some things to consider
AdSense and AdWords - understanding the difference
Putting Chitika ads into your blog
Understanding Google accounts
Adsense: how to stop malicious use of your AdSense account
Blocking specific AdSense advertisers from your site
You can stop ads from specific AdSense advertisers from appearing on your blog - provided you know the URL that those advertisers are using.
Previously, I've described how to set up AdSense on your blog, and how to to block certain categories of AdSense ads from your blog or from individual sites.
But there may be times when you need more control than this, for example if your blog (or other website) has:
But the contents in some blogs attract advertisers with directly opposite points of view. For example, an anti-hunt blog will have posts about the things that hunters do to animals and why these are bad - but the contextual-advertising approach will probably attract ads from people promoting hunting or selling hunting equipment.
And other blogs just attract straight-out competitors I've advised one person in the blogger help-forum who was running a blog about a particular educational scholarship and was very unhappy that their blog was showing ads for other scholarships.
In any of these cases - and others - you may want to tell AdSense not to show ads from certain advertisers on your blog. Unfortunately, you cannot quite do this - AdSense doesn't let you identify individual advertisers. But you can block ads that point to specific websites.
1 Log in to AdSense,
2 Choose the Allow & block ads tab (from the top row)
3 Under Blocking Options (left hand menu), choose Advertiser URLs
4 Click the Block new URLs button. This opens a window
5 From the Products drop-down, choose one or more products and press Apply (currently at the bottom right corner of the drop-down window).
6 Enter the names (URLs) of the sites you want to block
7 Choose one of the reasons.
8 Press Block Sites.
You can un-block it at any time by going to the same screen, finding it in the list, and clicking the Unblock link at the right hand side of the name/product.
Within a short time (maybe even in about 10 minutes), advertisements that point to the URL(s) you entered will not be displayed on your site: instead, visitors who see AdSense adverts will see other (non-blocked) ads, or Google (public service) ads if no payng ads are available.
Notice the risk for you:- if you block too many potential advertisers, your site may only show public-service or Google ads that don't earn you revenue.
Ads which you block because they feel "spammy" can easily re-appear from other not-yet-blocked sites: folks who make money off them move servers etc regularly. If you are determined to keep certain ads off your site, you may need to keep figuring out where the ads are coming from and adding new sites to your blocked-list all the time.
Finding out what sites to block can be challenging, as not every advertiser puts their URL into their graphical ads. Some ways of doing this include:
Settng up AdSense on your blog
Blocking categories of AdSense ads
Limiting AdSense categories for individual websites
AdSense and AdWords
Other advertising programmes for your blog
Why block individual advertisers
But there may be times when you need more control than this, for example if your blog (or other website) has:
Poor contextual advertising fit:
AdSense is a "contextual" advertising programme: it decides what ads to show to a person on a web-page based on the content of the page and the characteristics of the person viewing it.But the contents in some blogs attract advertisers with directly opposite points of view. For example, an anti-hunt blog will have posts about the things that hunters do to animals and why these are bad - but the contextual-advertising approach will probably attract ads from people promoting hunting or selling hunting equipment.
And other blogs just attract straight-out competitors I've advised one person in the blogger help-forum who was running a blog about a particular educational scholarship and was very unhappy that their blog was showing ads for other scholarships.
Restrictions imposed by other advertisers
One of my blogs has affiliate ads from a particular budget-accommodation travel site. One of their terms and conditions is that I don't display ads for a list of other websites that they provided.Advertisers not categorised correctly
Even if you've applied category-filtering to your blog, there may be some advertisers that sneak into the wrong category - for example, an advertisement for diet products that uses pictures that are only slightly suggestive may be listed in the "Weight loss" category, but not the "References to Sex & Sexuality" category.If you advertise your blog through AdWords
Sometimes, AdWords can be an effective tool for advertising your own blog. But in terms of keywords, your blog is likely to be a very good fix. So there's a high chance that your ads will be shown on your blog, unless you tell AdSense not to.In any of these cases - and others - you may want to tell AdSense not to show ads from certain advertisers on your blog. Unfortunately, you cannot quite do this - AdSense doesn't let you identify individual advertisers. But you can block ads that point to specific websites.
How to block ads from specific companies
1 Log in to AdSense,
2 Choose the Allow & block ads tab (from the top row)
3 Under Blocking Options (left hand menu), choose Advertiser URLs
4 Click the Block new URLs button. This opens a window
5 From the Products drop-down, choose one or more products and press Apply (currently at the bottom right corner of the drop-down window).
- f you just want to keep the ads off your blog, choose the "Content" product. Or to be certain, choose all of them.
6 Enter the names (URLs) of the sites you want to block
- Click Learn how to format your URLs for blocking fordetails about how to enter URLs so that you block sites at the correct level. But in most cases, you just enter the top-level name, eg enter "blogger.com" to stop all ads pointing to anywhere under www.blogger.com
7 Choose one of the reasons.
8 Press Block Sites.
Result:
The newly-blocked site will appear in your list of blocked URLs - which is in alphabetical order.You can un-block it at any time by going to the same screen, finding it in the list, and clicking the Unblock link at the right hand side of the name/product.
What your visitors will see
Within a short time (maybe even in about 10 minutes), advertisements that point to the URL(s) you entered will not be displayed on your site: instead, visitors who see AdSense adverts will see other (non-blocked) ads, or Google (public service) ads if no payng ads are available.
Notice the risk for you:- if you block too many potential advertisers, your site may only show public-service or Google ads that don't earn you revenue.
Some final thoughts
Ads which you block because they feel "spammy" can easily re-appear from other not-yet-blocked sites: folks who make money off them move servers etc regularly. If you are determined to keep certain ads off your site, you may need to keep figuring out where the ads are coming from and adding new sites to your blocked-list all the time.
Finding out what sites to block can be challenging, as not every advertiser puts their URL into their graphical ads. Some ways of doing this include:
- Looking very hard at the advertisement:
Sometimes the company URL is in small text at the bottom - Searching for a key phrase from the ad
Eg when I wrote this articl,e Blogger-HAT's home page was showing an ad for "Smallest hidden DV in the world" - I suspect I could identify them with Google fairly quickly). - Click the ad yourself: Remember that this is against AdSense's terms and conditions, and that you won't get any revenue for it. I'm not suggesting that it's good to do this - AdSense know that it occasionally happens by accident, so they are unlikely to penalise you for doing, so long as you don't do it often.
- Click the same ad on someone else's site:
This is allowed under AdSense's rules. But it's not recommended, because the advertiser won't get any benefit from the click, so doing this will tend to put the price they are willing to pay for each down in the longer-term.
Related Articles
Settng up AdSense on your blog
Blocking categories of AdSense ads
Limiting AdSense categories for individual websites
AdSense and AdWords
Other advertising programmes for your blog
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