What is a Google Bomb?
A “Google bomb”, also known as a “link bomb” is a coordinated effort to manipulate search engine results to point to a certain page. The practice is usually done as a prank for humorous purposes but has often been used for political purposes.
Wired Magazine explains it some more and gives some advice on how to “Google Bomb” an Enemy.
More on the Adsense Revenue Reduction
We recently posted about some publishers reporting a decrease in Google Adsense revenue. Well, it turns out that it may be due to Google’s own efforts to improve its Pay Per Click effectiveness.
Most people have been of the opinion that the reduction in CTR (click-through rate) was due to people clicking less on ads. However, today’s report by comScore on the issue reveals that the following:
The evidence suggests that the softness in Google’s paid click metrics is primarily a result of Google’s own quality initiatives that result in a reduction in the number of paid listings and, therefore, the opportunity for paid clicks to occur.
Meanwhile, in the post Google CTR Down Due To Click Area Changes, TechCrunch is claiming that Adsense revenue is dropping because of changes in the way that Google defines the click region for ads.
I guess we’ll be seeing more on this issue to come.
Go Directly to Google Jail (Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect…)
Two recent posts talk about how difficult it is (impossible?) to get included again in Google’s index once you have been penalized for using Black Hat techniques.
Sebastian’s Pamphlets describes one such unfortunate schemer in You can’t escape from Google-Jail when… and Search Engine Roundtable similarly describes how bad links can hurt your site in Bad Links Can Kick You Once You Are Down.
Some Report a Drop in Adsense Revenue
Search Engine Roundtable is reporting that 63% of Adsense Publishers have seen a decline revenue in 2008.