Adsense, The  Great Secret

Just in time for the Christmas season, Google the Adsense + christmas = $$$ formula.  There are endless articles and opinions trying to decipher how Google's algorithm works and how the publisher-advertiser relationship is changing, and yet we are still left unsure of what it all means. That's because if you have not already signed up for some kind of ad network that sells impressions to advertisers then you do not know anything about how it all works. You know the gist of how Google works and you can go to websites that tell you the secrets of how it works, but I will tell you the specifics.

Many people have sent me emails asking for help understanding how they can use Adsense for Christmas. That's because many bloggers who use Adsense get a special 20% - 25% ad sell off for Christmas.  So I've decided that rather than just send out a blog post to ask people's questions we will have them email me directly with their questions first.  I'll then post what I write back in this post so others can get help from others who are doing this already.

1.  How do you know if you qualify for the huge holiday boost? 2.  What additional benefits can I expect to receive? 3.  How will this change the way I manage my account and what is an acceptable cost per click? 4.  Do I need to know how this works or can someone else take care of it for me? 5. What does Adsense want from me in order to give me the Christmas ad boost and how much do they want? 6. If I'm going to pay extra, what kind of earnings will that give me and how long will it take before those dividends kick in? 7. What will it cost to have someone do this for me? 8.  What can I do to make sure my readers don't see the ads and how can I get more out of the holiday season if I am under the 25% threshold?

9. Is there a way to buy impressions ahead of time for this season so that I know what my costs will be? 10. If they (Google) are giving higher rates how much does that ask of them in terms of resources? 11. If Google is telling us now, what does that say about next year's holiday season and when do I need to register or pay in order to get a better deal than pricing during Christmas only? 12. What else do I need to know about Adsense in general?

Please send your questions, comments, suggestions and what you would like me to write about to:  adenseverywhere@gmail.com or leave a comment below. Thank you. -Mark

============= UPDATE: DECEMBER 20th, 2011 ===========

I thought it would be useful to have a discussion with Google Adsense reps from one of my blogs on the forum. Below is what Steve at Google AdSense had to say about all the questions and concerns raised during this time of year. Enjoy the discussion!

Hello Everyone, My name is Steve and I work for Google in the Publisher Services team.  I want to thank everyone for sharing their thoughts and getting into this conversation.  First, I wanted to let you know that my team is always open to hearing more from our publishers and we would love to hear more ideas about how we can improve the AdWords programs for all our Google publisher partners. I also wanted to answer some of the questions that were asked during this Q&A session: 1. Is it possible to have special holiday pricing in AdSense?

We do not offer seasonal pricing at this time but as mentioned before, if there are any changes or updates we'll let you know. 2. Will I receive substantial benefits from the holiday sales boost?

Yes, it is beneficial to get extra traffic and more sales during the holiday season. 3. What do I need to know about contributing to AdSense?

We would be happy to answer any specific questions you may have about our programs. 4. How can I tell if I qualify for the special winter pricing?

As we mentioned previously, you will see a notification when you select your campaign that says "yup - it's Christmas!  Winter rates are now in effect" or other variations on that statement.  This means that we'll be providing higher rates for all your ads on that day and hence, you will earn more money per click on those ads. 5. The holiday boost is more than my standard ad rates.  Do I have to keep the holiday boost on all year?

No, you can switch your campaign back to the standard ad rates at any time and will not lose the price increase. 6 . What happens if I turn off the "holiday boost" in December?

Your ad rates will immediately return to your standard ad rates that you set up for your campaign. 7 . Is there a way to buy impressions ahead of time for this season so that I know what my costs will be?

Yes, from October 28th through December 31st, you can purchase up to a maximum of $500 in guaranteed impressions ahead of time for $0.15 per impression. 8. If I register now, will I get the holiday ad boost?

Yes, but you have to register for it before November 21st in order to get the ad boost on your active campaigns. 9. What else do I need to know about AdSense in general?

I want to share some of the ways that we have supported our publishers during the holidays in years past:  In 2011 we allowed you to purchase and save up to $500 (for use between November 28th and December 31st) on guaranteed impressions of your ads - a benefit that was previously only available during Q4 when setting up a new campaign. (We are not making this option available to new publishers in 2012.) We also did several things to support our existing advertisers: * We gave qualifying publishers the ability to increase their daily budget limit for a short period of time. For many publishers, this meant that they could increase their daily budget by 50% for the duration of the holiday season. This change was live from November 15-25, 2011. * In 2011 we also sent an email to all AdSense publisher partners letting them know about some changes we were making to improve their overall experience with AdSense during the holiday season.

Conclusion: Is Google AdSense worth it?  If you read this far, I'm proud of you!  I do hope that everyone got valuable information out of the discussion and that they will continue to share their thoughts and ideas as the holiday season approaches.  I look forward to more discussions in the future. Please send your questions, comments, suggestions and what you would like me to write about to: adenseverywhere@gmail.com or leave a comment below. Thank you. -Mark

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Do Adsense publishers have any rights after being terminated from Adsense? One of my affiliates is receiving a termination letter from Google stating that she was terminated for "fraudulent advertising".