Warning to Google Adwords Users

[Domainace]

I just received an email from Google today stating that my Adwords account was suspended for violation of terms. This was a surprise, since I haven't used the account over 2 years.
I called and got some girl named Heather (of course), who told me that my account was suspended because one of my affiliate offers pointed to a misleading landing page. This offer was run 3 years ago when I was new the internet, and it was deleted from my account after running.
I can only get my account reinstated by changing the landing page, which is on a site not owned by me. In other words, I have been permanently cancelled for an ad that ran 3 years ago.

Of course, it's absurd, and after Heather bid me farewell with a mindless "have a nice day," I decided that Google really is inane.

So a word of warning. If you have an Adwords account and you have ever run questionable affiliate adds on it, you may want to cancel the account, and then reopen a new one. Otherwise they may find something you ran 3 years ago that they don't like, and cancel your business.

(Mods- Not sure if this is right thread. If not, please feel free to move it.)

 

[HostMantis]

Just from an ad you ran 3 years ago? That does seem a little absurd.

 

[mis_chiff]

(Mods- Not sure if this is right thread. If not, please feel free to move it.)

Moved it to Warnings and Alerts.

Thanks for the heads up. 3 Years is a long time to wait to suspend you.
Are they that backed up with offenders [in their eyes].

 

[johname]

Sounds like the catch 22 is that they cant change customer's setting period (helps keeping away certain types of law suits) but obviously wont let you back in to change it. Maybe there a way to go higher up the support ladder and talk to someone. But thanks for the warning.

 

[Domainace]

I've been checking this out. It appears they will go way back, farther than 3 years, and even ban accounts that were fine when they ran the ads, but now would run afoul of the new terms.

It may just be a cowardly way to clean out smaller advertisers to reduce management costs. The bulk of their income comes from a few large advertisers, and they may just want to dump the little guys. The 80/20 rule. That also seems to fit with their recent emphasis on brands over keywords. Closing up the internet.

 

[enlytend]

It may just be a cowardly way to clean out smaller advertisers to reduce management costs. The bulk of their income comes from a few large advertisers, and they may just want to dump the little guys.

That doesn't make sense - revenue is revenue, and right now they're pushing a program that's geared towards acquiring new small / local business accounts.

But then, deleting an account over an ad from 3 years ago, since deleted, is messed up to begin with. This isn't the first such incident I've heard of. I recently got a message from them about an unresolvable destination url (typo) for a campaign that ended over a year ago.

 

[HostMantis]

The larger companies have a much larger advertising budget and have set the minimum bid levels on most keywords to such high levels a small business just can't afford. So using Adwords for most smaller businesses isn't even an option, because they simply can't afford it.

So Adwords is essentially becoming the same thing as TV ads. Only companies that have a large amount of money can normally use them.

 

[Tia Wood]

You said it was a questionable lander that had affiliate ads, but you are no longer in possession of this page, correct? What kind of affiliate ads?

 

[TheBaldOne]

This smells of opportunity for someone with enough knowledge and money to start nibbling away at Google's 'suspended' account holders, signing them up and launching an ads service themselves.

The problem is that Google has just become too large without the inherent management structure (and likely management ability) to sort this out quickly and professionally.

But then again who am I to offer advice to Google, my $60 against their $xx,xxx,xxx,xxx's !

 

[Domainace]

The ad was for "Weightloss for Idiots." I don't even remember running it, as I was just testing a bunch of stuff. I doubt it ran for more than a 2 or 3 days - the only thing I stuck with were tax and insurance offers. The ad was direct to the landing page most likely - so I never had possession of it to begin with.

Anyway, they said if I change the landing page to meet guidelines, I could reapply. When I said I don't have access to the landing page, never had access to that page, and I don't even remember what it might be, I got some Google-slogan that she must have had printed in front of her.

I found a blog filled with comments from small-business people who had their accounts banned and were suffering financially because of it. Google doesn't care.... it's like one big bloody robot. And when you do get a real live person, they talk like robots themselves.

It's a company that's completely detached from their customers as far as I can see. A business person would be a fool to put too much of their revenue in hands of Google. May as well leave your business in the hands of the nearest schizophrenic. I am thinking all my adsense and SEO is unreliable now - who knows what they'll do next?

 

[enlytend]

So using Adwords for most smaller businesses isn't even an option, because they simply can't afford it.

@Hostmantis, Some verticals are more challenging than others, but I have local business clients using it sucessfully with budgets of $300/mo and less. You have to be careful how you target and set up your campaigns and keep an eye on things - establish good quality scores and geotarget or negative match traffic that won't convert.

Anyway, they said if I change the landing page to meet guidelines, I could reapply. When I said I don't have access to the landing page, never had access to that page, and I don't even remember what it might be

That is ridiculous. One thing to hit you for an infraction on an active campaign, quite another to do it years after the fact. BUT, out of curiosity, had the campaign been "deleted" from your account or was it sitting there "ended" or "paused"? It would make some sense to me if it was either of the latter, absolutely none at all if it was the former!

 

[Domainace]

It was completely deleted, and had been for at least 2 years. The only reason I know I ran it is because they told me. For all I know, they could have just made it up, because I don't remember that ad at all.