Google Data » Kristin Hall https://googledata.org Everything Google: News, Products, Services, Content, Culture Fri, 03 Apr 2015 21:58:02 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.1 ‘Tis the Season for AdSense Placement Targeting https://googledata.org/uncategorized/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting-2/ https://googledata.org/uncategorized/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting-2/#comments Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:16:00 +0000 https://googledata.org/?guid=a6f285a43f4aa8bd214c150a470fd732

 With the holiday season fast approaching, everyone is spending more online. As consumers start shopping for gifts, searching for holiday activities, and booking vacations, advertisers are putting more of their marketing dollars online to reach these potential customers. This means there is an increased demand for the ad space on your site and an opportunity for you to earn more. To help you capitalize on this trend, we recommend you try Google AdSense, and specifically take advantage of placement targeting. 

As Google Affiliate Network publishers, you all currently have an AdSense account that you may or may not use. By utilizing AdSense, and specifically placement targeting, during this time of year you can capture more revenue by capitalizing on the increased demand for ad space. 99% of Google’s 1000 largest advertisers run display campaigns and focus a lot of their budget during the holiday season. As a result, you can take advantage of this holiday increase in advertiser spend, and help advertisers placement target specific sections of your site using a feature called ad placements. By creating an ad placement, you’ll make sections of your site available to be targeted directly by AdWords advertisers.

Using Google AdSense in combination with the Google Affiliate Network will allow you to have two revenue streams that will be housed in the same AdSense account. Our technology and vast network of advertisers ensures that only the highest paying and most relevant ads are delivered to your users. Additionally, with Google AdSense you have a high degree of flexibility and control as you dictate where and when Google ads appear on your site. Enabling placement targeting within your AdSense account further allows you to provide written descriptions of your site, general demographic segment / audience information, and indicate where ads will appear on your site, all of which encourages advertisers to spend more of their marketing dollars on your site, as they have more insight into your traffic. 

Check out this video to learn more about placement targeting and how you can get started. The sooner you do so, the sooner advertisers can see your ad placements and potentially include you in their holiday campaigns!

One important note if you decide to run Google AdSense ads in addition to your Google Affiliate Network ads, please make sure to review the AdSense program policies before you get started, to understand some of the important differences between these policies and the Google Affiliate Network program policies.  For example, publishers running AdSense ads may not click on their own AdSense ads (or encourage users to click on their AdSense ads.) On the other hand, publishers may encourage users to convert through their Google Affiliate Network ads (and this is what many affiliates do best!).

Posted by Kristin Hall at the request of the AdSense team
]]> https://googledata.org/uncategorized/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting-2/feed/ 0 ‘Tis the Season for AdSense Placement Targeting https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting/#comments Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:16:00 +0000

 With the holiday season fast approaching, everyone is spending more online. As consumers start shopping for gifts, searching for holiday activities, and booking vacations, advertisers are putting more of their marketing dollars online to reach these potential customers. This means there is an increased demand for the ad space on your site and an opportunity for you to earn more. To help you capitalize on this trend, we recommend you try Google AdSense, and specifically take advantage of placement targeting. 

As Google Affiliate Network publishers, you all currently have an AdSense account that you may or may not use. By utilizing AdSense, and specifically placement targeting, during this time of year you can capture more revenue by capitalizing on the increased demand for ad space. 99% of Google’s 1000 largest advertisers run display campaigns and focus a lot of their budget during the holiday season. As a result, you can take advantage of this holiday increase in advertiser spend, and help advertisers placement target specific sections of your site using a feature called ad placements. By creating an ad placement, you’ll make sections of your site available to be targeted directly by AdWords advertisers.

Using Google AdSense in combination with the Google Affiliate Network will allow you to have two revenue streams that will be housed in the same AdSense account. Our technology and vast network of advertisers ensures that only the highest paying and most relevant ads are delivered to your users. Additionally, with Google AdSense you have a high degree of flexibility and control as you dictate where and when Google ads appear on your site. Enabling placement targeting within your AdSense account further allows you to provide written descriptions of your site, general demographic segment / audience information, and indicate where ads will appear on your site, all of which encourages advertisers to spend more of their marketing dollars on your site, as they have more insight into your traffic. 

Check out this video to learn more about placement targeting and how you can get started. The sooner you do so, the sooner advertisers can see your ad placements and potentially include you in their holiday campaigns!

One important note if you decide to run Google AdSense ads in addition to your Google Affiliate Network ads, please make sure to review the AdSense program policies before you get started, to understand some of the important differences between these policies and the Google Affiliate Network program policies.  For example, publishers running AdSense ads may not click on their own AdSense ads (or encourage users to click on their AdSense ads.) On the other hand, publishers may encourage users to convert through their Google Affiliate Network ads (and this is what many affiliates do best!).

Posted by Kristin Hall at the request of the AdSense team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/tis-the-season-for-adsense-placement-targeting/feed/ 0 Give the Customer What They Want: Coupons! https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons-2/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons-2/#comments Thu, 21 Oct 2010 16:07:00 +0000 https://googledata.org/?guid=514385b42f0bb2363b8d66d710c311f3

10/21/2010 11:06:00 AM - repost from the Google Retail Blog

Labels: ,
It probably does not come as a surprise that sales are the most effective driver of holiday purchases. Savvy consumers have become accustomed to hunting for coupons before making purchases online and extras such as free shipping are the new basics.


Source: Google/OTX State of Shopping, May 2010

Google saw search volume related to coupons increase by 30% during the 2009 holiday shopping season, as consumers became even more active in searching for deals than during the rest of the year.


Source: Google Internal. Average monthly search volume on top 100 coupon-related terms on Google for February through September 2009 compared against the average monthly for October through January.

So give customers what they want -- provide value by offering coupons and free shipping. Some retailers like Best Buy, Victoria’s Secret, Kay Jewelers, and Burlington Coat Factory have begun offering layaway. If your brand cannot provide coupons, think about offering value to customers in other ways. . . be creative!

Posted by Heidi Spector, Google Retail Team
Reposted from the Google Retail Blog
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons-2/feed/ 0 Give the Customer What They Want: Coupons! https://googledata.org/uncategorized/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons/ https://googledata.org/uncategorized/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons/#comments Thu, 21 Oct 2010 16:07:00 +0000

10/21/2010 11:06:00 AM - repost from the Google Retail Blog

Labels: ,
It probably does not come as a surprise that sales are the most effective driver of holiday purchases. Savvy consumers have become accustomed to hunting for coupons before making purchases online and extras such as free shipping are the new basics.


Source: Google/OTX State of Shopping, May 2010

Google saw search volume related to coupons increase by 30% during the 2009 holiday shopping season, as consumers became even more active in searching for deals than during the rest of the year.


Source: Google Internal. Average monthly search volume on top 100 coupon-related terms on Google for February through September 2009 compared against the average monthly for October through January.

So give customers what they want -- provide value by offering coupons and free shipping. Some retailers like Best Buy, Victoria’s Secret, Kay Jewelers, and Burlington Coat Factory have begun offering layaway. If your brand cannot provide coupons, think about offering value to customers in other ways. . . be creative!

Posted by Heidi Spector, Google Retail Team
Reposted from the Google Retail Blog
]]> https://googledata.org/uncategorized/give-the-customer-what-they-want-coupons/feed/ 0 Introducing Google Commerce Search 2.0 https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/introducing-google-commerce-search-2-0/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/introducing-google-commerce-search-2-0/#comments Mon, 21 Jun 2010 14:48:00 +0000
To help retail sites get ready for the summer shopping season, the Google Commerce Search team launched Google Commerce Search 2.0 for retailers in the US and UK. The new version of Google Commerce Search gives merchants greater control and shoppers a better experience online—not to mention a higher ROI for retailers.





Google Commerce Search, initially launched just seven months ago, is an enterprise-grade website search solution hosted in Google’s cloud and designed for specific retail needs like parametric sorting and fast search result loading. This second release includes a number of improvements:

  • More merchant customization: Today we’re launching a full merchandising dashboard, giving merchants more control over promotions, ranking rules and filtering - with no custom code so marketers and product merchandisers can do all of this themselves. New intuitive retailer controls like time-based promotions, full left-hand panel facet control and simple product ranking rules mean seasonal optimization on the fly.
  • Unparalleled shopper experience:  With query autocompletion, retailers can offer common queries to shoppers in real time, as they type, without any custom coding. Search quality improvements make GCS faster and more relevant than before. Because it’s hosted in the Google cloud, search results are returned to shoppers in less than a second. Spelling and stemming dictionaries and new custom synonyms mean that shopping on a retail site can be as easy and accurate as searching on Google.com.
  •  Better browsing and navigation: Though more and more shoppers are turning directly to the search bar on retail sites when they’re looking to make a purchase, some people will always prefer to navigate through different categories and discover new products. Now, Google Commerce Search allows visitors to shop by browsing around your site as well as searching directly for products.
     
    To learn more, visit google.com/commercesearch or sign up for our upcoming webinar:
    Google Commerce Search: Delivering Search Innovations to Retailers and Shoppers
    Wednesday, June 23, 2010
    1:00 p.m. EDT / 10:00 a.m. PDT / 5:00 p.m. GMT

     
    Posted by Vijay Koduri and Alex Dovlecel, Google Commerce Search team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/introducing-google-commerce-search-2-0/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network Releases New "Browse Links" https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links-2/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links-2/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 15:54:00 +0000 https://googledata.org/?guid=91977209287cc96b7b701f48c63d2493 We are pleased to announce the release of a new links interface for Google Affiliate Network publishers. With the new “Browse Links” update publishers can view all available links for current relationships, quickly find high-potential ads and join new advertiser programs.


We’ve added advanced filter options like expiration date, promotional and creative specs, as well as advertiser Earnings per Click performance data alongside the links for your reference. Publishers will also see a dramatic improvement in the creative preview features and. in addition to accessing the links live, can export links as .csv or .txt files.


All publishers have access to the beta but still can access the legacy links interface and toggle back and forth if needed (although we don’t think you’ll want to!). We will continue to iterate on the beta and we invite you to provide your feedback in our Help Forum.

On behalf of the Google Affiliate Network team.

posted by
Sheila Parker
Product Manager
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links-2/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network Releases New "Browse Links" https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links/#comments Tue, 01 Jun 2010 15:54:00 +0000 We are pleased to announce the release of a new links interface for Google Affiliate Network publishers. With the new “Browse Links” update publishers can view all available links for current relationships, quickly find high-potential ads and join new advertiser programs.


We’ve added advanced filter options like expiration date, promotional and creative specs, as well as advertiser Earnings per Click performance data alongside the links for your reference. Publishers will also see a dramatic improvement in the creative preview features and. in addition to accessing the links live, can export links as .csv or .txt files.


All publishers have access to the beta but still can access the legacy links interface and toggle back and forth if needed (although we don’t think you’ll want to!). We will continue to iterate on the beta and we invite you to provide your feedback in our Help Forum.

On behalf of the Google Affiliate Network team.

posted by
Sheila Parker
Product Manager
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-releases-new-browse-links/feed/ 0 Finding and Building Product-Specific Links https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/finding-and-building-product-specific-links-2/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/finding-and-building-product-specific-links-2/#comments Thu, 01 Apr 2010 18:30:00 +0000 https://googledata.org/?guid=3b9e2554bd18d957791e7dc40380660a

Google Affiliate Network publishers can now easily browse across relationships to find products and build links to specific products. The product search feature allows publishers to access aspects of the advertiser’s product feed within the Google Affiliate Network interface. Publishers can view product price, image, category and description in addition to tracking and creative urls.


To search for a product, sign in and go to the “Products” tab. Next enter the name of a product you want to promote on your website and click ‘go.’ Your product search results will appear ranked by relevancy to the keyword entered.


Please note that specific criteria will generate better results. You can search by criteria such as keywords, brand, advertiser name, product name, UPC, ISBN, MPN and/or SKU. To exclude products place a minus (-) in front of any of your criteria. For example, "digital camera -accessories".


On behalf of the Google Affiliate Network team.


posted by Sheila Parker, Product Manager

]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/finding-and-building-product-specific-links-2/feed/ 0 Finding and Building Product-Specific Links https://googledata.org/uncategorized/finding-and-building-product-specific-links/ https://googledata.org/uncategorized/finding-and-building-product-specific-links/#comments Thu, 01 Apr 2010 18:30:00 +0000

Google Affiliate Network publishers can now easily browse across relationships to find products and build links to specific products. The product search feature allows publishers to access aspects of the advertiser’s product feed within the Google Affiliate Network interface. Publishers can view product price, image, category and description in addition to tracking and creative urls.


To search for a product, sign in and go to the “Products” tab. Next enter the name of a product you want to promote on your website and click ‘go.’ Your product search results will appear ranked by relevancy to the keyword entered.


Please note that specific criteria will generate better results. You can search by criteria such as keywords, brand, advertiser name, product name, UPC, ISBN, MPN and/or SKU. To exclude products place a minus (-) in front of any of your criteria. For example, "digital camera -accessories".


On behalf of the Google Affiliate Network team.


posted by Sheila Parker, Product Manager

]]> https://googledata.org/uncategorized/finding-and-building-product-specific-links/feed/ 0 Trend to Watch: Research & Purchase Process Is Multi-Channel (4 of 4) https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-purchase-process-is-multi-channel-4-of-4/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-purchase-process-is-multi-channel-4-of-4/#comments Wed, 17 Mar 2010 16:33:00 +0000 Reposted from the Google Retail Blog

Last but not least, our final learning for the rest of 2010: the evolution of multi-channel behavior.

With searches for "buy online, pick up in store" up by as much as 100% this past December, multi-channel shopping has evolved as the new face of commerce, the norm rather than the exception. In fact, when asked, 34% of consumers researched online before buying offline and 21% researched online and offline, before purchasing online.


As we see, consumers leverage both the online and offline worlds in making their final purchase decisions so retailers must also integrate their strategies to reach the "nonline" consumer.

Source: Google/OTX Post-Holiday Consumer Study, January 2010. Q12 Thinking about your recent Holiday shopping experience, in which of the following ways did you approach your Holiday shopping? Select all that apply. n= 1850.

Originally Posted by Eric Lopez, the Google Retail Team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-purchase-process-is-multi-channel-4-of-4/feed/ 0 Trend to Watch: Shopping Focused on Key Promotional Periods (3 of 4) https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-shopping-focused-on-key-promotional-periods-3-of-4/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-shopping-focused-on-key-promotional-periods-3-of-4/#comments Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:28:00 +0000

Repost from the Google Retail Blog 2/25/2010 12:11:00 PM

In addition to the extended shopping cycle and increased online research, we've also found that purchases were concentrated around key promotional periods such as the Black Friday, Cyber Monday, last minute, and post-holiday time periods.

Taking a look at when consumers completed the majority of their purchasing in the graph below, we find that almost one quarter of consumers completed the majority of their purchasing over the 4-day Thanksgiving Weekend (Black Friday - Cyber Monday), while another 14% completed the majority of their purchasing at the last minute.

Likewise, though few completed the majority of their purchasing during the post-holiday season, 64% of consumers did shop during this period.

What's driving the concentrated shopping around these time periods? When asked, consumers said they were taking advantage of sales, making additional purchases for themselves and others, and shop for upcoming occasions.
With record e-commerce sales on Black Friday and Cyber Monday and 44% of consumers identifying promotions as a key driver of their shopping decisions, consumers have remained deal-seekers through the end of 2009 and into 2010.

Headed into Mother's Day, Father's Day, and graduation seasons, ensure you are attracting the price conscious consumer through your marketing efforts.

Source: Google/OTX Post-Holiday Consumer Study, January 2010. Q3 [1] And, when did you do the majority of your holiday purchasing? n=1850. [2] Q1 Which of the following retail (non-grocery) purchases, if any, do you plan to make this week? n=2757 [3] Q7 For which of the following reasons did you shop after Christmas/Holiday Season (during post-holiday sales or markdowns) or are you still doing your Holiday shopping? Select all that apply. n=819.
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-shopping-focused-on-key-promotional-periods-3-of-4/feed/ 0 Trend to Watch: Research On the Rise (2 of 4) https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-on-the-rise-2-of-4/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-on-the-rise-2-of-4/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 18:53:00 +0000

Reposted from the Google Retail blog

What other consumer trends should we keep an eye on in 2010? The lengthening shopping cycle we discussed last week hinted at the increasing importance of research as a trend to watch.

Taking a look at category level research trends from the 2009 holiday shopping season, we found that consumers begin researching far in advance of all retail purchases. Consumers are especially cognisant when it comes to electronics, appliance and furnishing purchases.


And, with the increased search volume in the electronics, appliance, and furnishing categories, much of this research will take place online.

Be sure to "stay on" as consumers not only research far in advance but research increasingly online for upcoming seasonal purchases.

Source: Google/OTX Post-Holiday Consumer Study, January 2010. Q1A Listed below are the products or services you mentioned you purchased this Holiday Season. How long prior to making this/these purchase(s) did you research it/them, if at all? (Select one for each.) Mean summary. n=1850.

Reposted from the Google Retail Blog

]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-research-on-the-rise-2-of-4/feed/ 0 Trend to Watch: Consumers Start Early, End Late (1 of 4) https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-consumers-start-early-end-late-1-of-4/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-consumers-start-early-end-late-1-of-4/#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:19:00 +0000 Repost from the Google Retail Blog

The online holiday shopping season was a season of historic highs: $29 billion in online sales, the first $900M day in e-commerce history, 20% growth in Black Friday searches, and an even more impressive 60% growth in Cyber Monday searches. How did this historic online growth translate at the consumer level? Throughout the holiday season we tracked consumer research and purchase behavior and the results revealed a trend to watch in 2010: Consumers start early and end late.

Read the full post on the Google Retail Blog
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/trend-to-watch-consumers-start-early-end-late-1-of-4/feed/ 0 Visit with Google Affiliate Network at Affiliate Summit West https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/visit-with-google-affiliate-network-at-affiliate-summit-west/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/visit-with-google-affiliate-network-at-affiliate-summit-west/#comments Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:43:00 +0000 The Google Affiliate Network team will join our fellow affiliate marketers at Affiliate Summit West January 17-19 in Las Vegas. We are hoping to see our valued advertisers, publishers and partners at the Meet Market on Sunday afternoon. If you attend Affiliate Summit, please come by our booth (#530) on Monday or Tuesday to meet your Google Affiliate Network team.

Also on Monday afternoon, don't miss Google Affiliate Network product manager Larry Adams' panel discussion on product datafeeds. You can submit questions to the panel moderator at: http://affbook.com/datafeed-panel-at-affiliate-summit-west-2010/

Session Overview
Monday, January 18 at 11:30 AM
Product Datafeeds: The Next Level
Product datafeeds are among the most powerful tools available to affiliate marketers. We’ll discuss the current state of datafeeds and industry progress, best practices, and moving toward standards.
Scott Jangro, President, MechMedia, Inc. (Moderator)
Larry Adams, Product Manager, Google
Shergul Arshad, VP, Business & Corporate Development, StyleFeeder, Inc.
Brian Smith, CEO & Founder, SingleFeed


See you soon!



Posted by Kristin Hall, Google Affiliate Network Team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/visit-with-google-affiliate-network-at-affiliate-summit-west/feed/ 0 Free Shipping Day Just Around The Corner https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/free-shipping-day-just-around-the-corner/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/free-shipping-day-just-around-the-corner/#comments Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:42:00 +0000 Consumers are shopping for the holidays earlier than ever, but the shopping season still extends well into December. Of consumers responding to our Google/OTX Consumer Intentions Survey from September, 46% plan to purchase the majority of their gifts in early and late December or wait until the last minute. As of last year, consumers have had a new incentive to finish their last minute shopping online: National Free Shipping Day.

Thursday, December 17, 2009 marks the second annual National Free Shipping Day, in which participating retailers ship products for free and guarantee arrival by Christmas Eve. Looking at 2008, we see that search traffic upticks at the start of December for "free shipping day," well before the actual day as users begin researching participating retailers.


Repost from the Google Retail Blog - View Entire Post
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/free-shipping-day-just-around-the-corner/feed/ 0 Sign In Issues https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sign-in-issues/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sign-in-issues/#comments Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:24:00 +0000 We are currently experiencing issues with signing into the Google Affiliate Network platform. Tracking is not impacted.

We will update this post when the issue is resolved.


Update: 3pm CST - services have been minimally restored, we are working to get back up to full capacity. Reporting data for today is catching up. This post will be updated once data is fully restored.

UPDATE: The sign in issue is resolved.
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sign-in-issues/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network Winter Holiday Retail Insights https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-winter-holiday-retail-insights/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-winter-holiday-retail-insights/#comments Tue, 24 Nov 2009 22:41:00 +0000 As we head into the busy holiday shopping season our water-cooler conversations turn to prognostications about the upcoming seasonal peak. With a vast publisher network helping consumers find offers and product information, the affiliate channel is typically a very accurate reflection of ecommerce trends, particularly during peak shopping seasons. And of course the most interesting change during the holiday season, we (online marketers), really look forward to Mondays!

Cyber Monday is a widely accepted phenomenon and it's dueling with its offline counterpart, Black Friday, for attention from shoppers and advertisers. But November 30th is just the first of the exciting Mondays during the online shopping season. The most important indicator of the holiday shopping peak is the calendar. It all depends on where the holidays fall relative to shipping deadlines. Google Affiliate Network captures a summary of our advertisers shipping deadlines to help affiliate publishers with their optimization schedules. Publishers can access the shipping deadline calendar in the Google Affiliate Network user interface. Sign in and visit the announcements section on the publisher home page.

During the holiday season we see activity accelerate around the first of November and that trend continued this month. We look at four key indicators: visits, conversions, average order size and conversion rate. Visits peak first, with the spike in conversions lagging by 2-3 days. Conversion rates peak just before the average shipping deadline as last minute shoppers move into transaction mode. Average order size has proven to be a good indicator of the overall e-commerce environment, as in 2008 we saw the average order size drop pretty significantly over previous holiday seasons. The consensus at Google Affiliate Network is that we'll see the most significant spike in volume on November 30th but we anticipate the following Mondays (Dec. 7th and Dec 14th) will rival Cyber Monday in overall volume and conversion rates will peak on Monday, December 14th as the shipping deadlines loom.


Note: Data presented represents "Google Affiliate Network's Same Store Sales" to illustrate affiliate channel trends. The trend data is based only affiliate programs in place during the previous year, it does not include new advertisers and excludes certain anomalous publishers.
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-winter-holiday-retail-insights/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network Publisher Terms and Policies Update https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-publisher-terms-and-policies-update/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-publisher-terms-and-policies-update/#comments Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:15:00 +0000 In August, Google Affiliate Network updated the terms and policies for new-to-network publishers to better reflect our integration with AdSense. We also recently released the updated terms and policies to all publishers who joined Google Affiliate Network before August 12, 2009. These new terms and policies help streamline and consolidate a number of issues that are now shared between Google Affiliate Network and AdSense. Since our affiliate terms and policies are largely based around existing AdSense terms and policies, we are making it easier for the one million+ AdSense publishers -- largely content websites and blogs -- to participate in affiliate marketing for the first time.

However, while we believe there is an opportunity to expand the affiliate opportunity to traditional AdSense publishers, affiliate ads and AdSense ads are different. The updated Google Affiliate Network terms and policies explicitly address the important differences between cost-per-click and cost-per-action advertising. For example, publishers running AdSense ads may not click on their own AdSense ads (or encourage users to click on their ads.) In the affiliate channel publishers may encourage users to convert through their specific Google Affiliate ads (and this is what many affiliates do best!)

Another change to highlight is our Google Affiliate Network software applications policy, which clarifies some of the previous rules around software applications and toolbars while focusing on increased transparency and choice. This new software policy is heavily oriented around protecting end users from unwanted, deceptive, or malicious software. Publishers who use, distribute, or generate traffic from applications that do not meet this policy may have their accounts immediately disabled.

We encourage all affiliate publishers to review these new terms and policies closely to understand how they may impact you. If you happen to be one of the many Google Affiliate network publishers who has experience with AdSense ads, these affiliate network terms and policies should be quite familiar. If you are a Google Affiliate Network publisher who is new to AdSense and who chooses not to run AdSense ads, that's okay too (you are under no obligation to do so). But it is important that your AdSense account remains in good standing.

Publishers will be prompted to review and accept the terms and policies upon signing into the Google Affiliate Network platform.

We thank you for all of your patience through this period of transition and wish you a happy (and productive) Q4!


UPDATE: Google Affiliate Network publishers must read and accept the updated terms in the platform by 1/31/2010

Posted by: Your Google Affiliate Network Team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-publisher-terms-and-policies-update/feed/ 0 Make Sure You Update your Payment Preferences https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/make-sure-you-update-your-payment-preferences/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/make-sure-you-update-your-payment-preferences/#comments Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:20:00 +0000
Publishers can view payments that have been posted to your AdSense account in the Google Affiliate Network platform; on the "Home" page click "Payments." This view captures all payments and a detailed breakdown of your earnings per advertiser.

Payment information is stored in your AdSense account and Google lets you select your desired form of payment. Publishers can currently choose to be paid by electronic funds transfer, check, Western Union Quick Cash or Rapida. Check out the Help Center for a detailed overview your options.

Note if you see a message in your AdSense account prompting you to complete your payment information, it's important you act quickly. This message means that there is some information missing in your payment profile and action is required to avoid payment delays.


]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/make-sure-you-update-your-payment-preferences/feed/ 0 Google Retail Advertising Blog Provides Insight https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-retail-advertising-blog-provides-insight/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-retail-advertising-blog-provides-insight/#comments Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:33:00 +0000
We are avid followers of the Google Retail Advertising blog and wanted to share some posts that are particularly insightful as we move into the holiday shopping season. Search interest is a leading indicator of consumer trends. Check out these recent posts...


With consumers both savvier than ever online and turning to the web for free shipping, discounts, and deals, coupons and promotional codes are also driving substantial search interest. In the Google Insights for Search graph below, searches for coupons are growing fast in 2009, even compared to 2008 when the recession was nearing its worst. And, as we head into the holidays, 68% of consumers report that they plan take advantage of coupons this season...


Even in a recession, consumers have shown that they will buy if they are given a reason or incentive to do so. Programs such as Cash for Clunkers have breathed life into the Auto industry, generating 700,000 new car sales and jetBlue's 'All You Can Jet' promotion ran in August and was so successful, they sold out their airline passes in 2 days. So even if money is tight, consumers respond to a strong value proposition.

A simple way to capitalize on this consumer behavior is through advertising your discounts and free shipping online. 87% of consumers plan to take advantage of price discounts or sales this holiday season [2] and, as we see in the Google Insights for Search graph below, search interest in 'discounts' is consistently trending above 2008 levels online...

Black Friday Shoppers Already Searching For Deals (posted Nov 6)

Earlier this week, we saw that search interest in Black Friday is starting earlier than ever. Today’s consumers invest more time searching for a bargain, and Black Friday has proven to be a key example of consumer savviness. In fact, using Google Insights for Search, we see that over the last seven days, 50% of the top ‘Black Friday’ related search terms include ads, sales, and deals...



Posted by
Kristin Hall, Google Affiliate Network Team

]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-retail-advertising-blog-provides-insight/feed/ 0 AdSense Payment Integration https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/adsense-payment-integration/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/adsense-payment-integration/#comments Wed, 04 Nov 2009 18:58:00 +0000
Google Affiliate Network publisher payments are now delivered through Google AdSense. In order to retire the legacy payment systems, all Google Affiliate Network publishers were required to link their affiliate account to an approved AdSense account before October 31, 2009. This integration is central to the development of our affiliate network and it provides a foundation for future growth and further improvements.

Nearly all productive Google Affiliate Network publishers successfully linked. Publishers who either chose not to link, could not link because of a previous issue with an AdSense account, or thought they linked but for some reason were unsuccessful have been deactivated. However, missing the October 31st deadline does not mean a publisher cannot continue to work with Google Affiliate Network. Any publisher (with an approved AdSense account) is welcome to reapply through our new-to-network process.

We recognize that change can be confusing and we truly appreciate our users cooperation. We look forward to closing out 2009 with a great holiday shopping season.


Posted by
Chris Henger
Head of Google Affiliate Network
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/adsense-payment-integration/feed/ 0 IP Address Range for Google Affiliate Network https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/ip-address-range-for-google-affiliate-network/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/ip-address-range-for-google-affiliate-network/#comments Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:32:00 +0000
Please note that the IP address range associated with Google Affiliate Network is changing:

Current IP Network
New IP Network
65.167.65.0/24
216.73.92.0/23
This change may impact your workflow for product feeds, link subscriptions and any automated reporting you built. Please make sure to add the new IP network (216.73.92.0/23) range to firewall settings by 10/26 and leave the old IP network range (65.167.65.0/24) until November 8th, the old range can be removed from your firewall settings.

You can also view this information in the Google Affiliate Network Help Center.

Posted by Kristin Hall
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/ip-address-range-for-google-affiliate-network/feed/ 0 New FTC Advertising Guidelines https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/new-ftc-advertising-guidelines/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/new-ftc-advertising-guidelines/#comments Wed, 07 Oct 2009 14:04:00 +0000
You can review the FTC press release or the full text of the FTC guidelines. If you have questions or need advice on interpreting these FTC guidelines, we encourage you to consult your own legal counsel to help you understand how these changes may affect you.

The Performance Marketing Alliance is a good resource to monitor how these guidelines are impacting the affiliate industry.

Here are some interesting links to some recent press about these new guidelines
http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20091006-709182.html
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/oct2009/tc2009106_866275.htm
http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/2009/10/bloggers-face-11k-ftc-fines-for-not-disclosing-paid-endorsements.html

Posted by Dan Chiss
Manager, Affiliate Marketing
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/new-ftc-advertising-guidelines/feed/ 0 Publishers-Get Found https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/publishers-get-found/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/publishers-get-found/#comments Fri, 28 Aug 2009 19:39:00 +0000 One of the common phrases you hear in Affiliate Marketing is that this is "a relationship business." That's a broad statement; and at Google Affiliate Network we ask what does that actually mean? We believe it's our job to help both publishers and advertisers create effective relationships through highly productive partnerships. We take our role in facilitating these relationships seriously. As the holiday shopping season approaches, I want to alert our publishers to a tool in the Google Affiliate Network interface that can help you establish more and better relationships with our advertisers.

Earlier this summer we launched the "Opportunity Center." Advertisers use this tool to find new publishers and to identify opportunities for growth.
Google Affiliate Network advertisers have the ability to view a report that highlights two things:

  • Publishers who are under-performing in their program but are performing well in the advertiser's category

  • High potential publishers who have not joined the advertiser's program.


Advertisers are constantly looking for ways to improve the productivity of their affiliate programs, and this feature will help you "get found" by engaged advertisers.
To appear to advertisers looking for new publishers, visit your Communications Preferences in our interface and opt-in to "Non-Joined Advertiser Opportunities." Publishers are identified as opportunities for existing advertiser programs when you opt in to receive promotional communication for specific advertisers.

If you want to "get found" by advertisers who want to add you to their programs or do more business with you, we recommend you update your communication preferences. We wish you a successful holiday shopping season.


On behalf of the Google Affiliate Network Team,

Tony Nelan
Manager, Publisher Services
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/publishers-get-found/feed/ 0 Affiliate Tax Legislation Update https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/affiliate-tax-legislation-update/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/affiliate-tax-legislation-update/#comments Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:25:00 +0000 While affiliate marketers and industry peers continue to work to oppose 'affiliate tax' proposals around the country, a nexus law passed yesterday in Rhode Island. There are also proposals pending in other states, most notably North Carolina, where a nexus law is included in the budget proposal and could pass on July 1st and Hawaii, where the legislation will be enacted unless the Governor vetoes it by July 15th.

Google continues to work with trade associations around the country to ensure that policymakers understand the implications of these proposals on businesses and consumers. And we encourage publishers who may be affected by these proposals to take action in their home states.

Online sales tax is a complex and dynamic issue and each advertiser must evaluate the implications of any legislation on their business. Google cannot provide counsel on potential implications.

The Performance Marketing Alliance is a good resource to monitor progress on these issues.

Here are some interesting links to some recent press about the proposals:


Posted by Kristin Hall and the Google Affiliate Network team
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/affiliate-tax-legislation-update/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network: One Year Later https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-one-year-later/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-one-year-later/#comments Wed, 27 May 2009 19:26:00 +0000

It’s been just over a year since our affiliate business became part of Google. To say a lot has happened seems obvious but I am proud of what our team has accomplished. To name just a few of the achievements: a new brand & UI, numerous platform enhancements, fantastic client and employee satisfaction in the midst of integration and many, many, new customers. Google Affiliate Network is fully integrated operationally within Google. We had an exciting year, but I am even more excited about where we are going.


Our focus remains the same, drive exceptional customer satisfaction through affiliate channel growth; however, being part of Google brings a mindset in how to best achieve our goals. A culture focused on the user and the tenet that ads must be high quality now permeates the Google Affiliate team.


Our goals are clear as we invest in our Platform, integrate our Network and continue to refine and evolve the Practice of Affiliate Marketing. To this end, we recently launched an “opportunities center” in the platform allowing advertisers to more easily identify underperforming relationships. This capability generates growth by improving optimization. We currently are beta testing data feed integration with Google Base which will drive growth with improved category taxonomy and data validation, as well as an improved user experience for advertisers who will only have to send one feed to Google. Publishers benefit from a higher quality data feed. The integration with Google Base is also an example where integration with other Google products and systems enables our Affiliate engineers to focus on affiliate innovation, while the engineers supporting Base will drive that product forward. Our team and our users benefit in many ways from Google’s scale and engineering excellence.


Google brings a focus on making decisions based on facts and data, rather than intuition. Our Practice embraced this focus, and has conducted more than 20 structured optimization projects this past quarter, resulting in measurable lift in program performance. These are just a few of our accomplishments to date, and the possibilities and ideas endless.


There is a lot of hard work ahead. I am sure we will make mistakes and things won’t go as fast as we want. But know that we are 100% committed to our customers’ satisfaction and to bringing unprecedented innovation to affiliate marketing. Our collective futures are very bright.


Thank you for your business and continued support.


Chris Henger

Head of Google Affiliate Network

]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-one-year-later/feed/ 0 Sales Tax Legislation https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sales-tax-legislation/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sales-tax-legislation/#comments Tue, 24 Mar 2009 18:06:00 +0000
In 2008 the State of New York enacted legislation which expanded the definition of sales tax vendors. There are currently several state legislatures, most notably California, considering similar proposals. Online sales tax issues are a dynamic and important issue for our industry. It is important that we not only stay abreast of these issues but work together in the best interests of our industry and consumers to educate policy makers on the dynamics of digital marketing.

Google and several other California based companies submitted a formal letter of opposition to the proposed California legislation. The Google Affiliate Network team and other teams at Google are working with trade associations across the country to ensure that policymakers understand the implications of these proposals on businesses and consumers.

Google cannot provide counsel on potential implications. We encourage businesses to follow the situation closely and evaluate any potential impact on your particular business.

Following are some relevant links regarding the situation in California:

California Chamber of Commerce:

California Taxpayers Association Fact Sheet:

Performance Marketing Alliance:
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/sales-tax-legislation/feed/ 0 System Maintenance Saturday https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/system-maintenance-saturday/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/system-maintenance-saturday/#comments Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:43:00 +0000 We will be performing system maintenance this weekend, during our normal Saturday maintenance window.  During the maintenance, the Google Affiliate interfaceswill be unavailable beginning approximately at 10:00 a.m. EST (3:00 p.m. GMT), Saturday, February 28th.  The interfaces will be restored no later than 6:00 p.m. EST (11:00 p.m. GMT).
 
Please note: tracking will NOT be affected during the maintenance period.  
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/system-maintenance-saturday/feed/ 0 Google Affiliate Network User Forums – Ask questions, share ideas and search for answers https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-user-forums-ask-questions-share-ideas-and-search-for-answers/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-user-forums-ask-questions-share-ideas-and-search-for-answers/#comments Tue, 20 Jan 2009 17:02:00 +0000
We are pleased to announce the addition of user-to-user forums within the Google Affiliate Network Help Center. And we invite you to join the discussion!

Our Help Center now hosts a unique user forum where you can feel free to ask questions, share ideas, search for answers and talk to other Google Affiliate Network advertisers and publishers. 




This is not a moderated forum but we have "Google Guides" who may clarify factual errors and/or provide product help if required.

You do not need a ConnectCommerce login to access the Help Center or the forums. You can access the forums with a simple click. If you want to ask or reply to a question, simply sign in with any Google Account and create display/username for the Affiliate Network forum.

Google Affiliate Network's adoption of the user-to-user platform is an example of the value of the ongoing integration with Google's powerful systems. The forum has an innovative interface, clear categories, and robust search capabilities. Since this is a user forum the content will only be as good as the questions that are asked so we encourage all Google Affiliate Network users to participate.

The forum is part of the Google Affiliate Network Help Center where you will find product documentation and answers to product related questions.

We invite you to participate in the Google Affiliate Network User Forums. Check it out!


Posted by Kristin Hall
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/google-affiliate-network-user-forums-ask-questions-share-ideas-and-search-for-answers/feed/ 0 ConnectCommerce Update https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/connectcommerce-update/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/connectcommerce-update/#comments Tue, 08 Jul 2008 02:32:00 +0000 ConnectCommerce user interface. We have made improvements to overall navigation and usability and have updated colors and styles to reflect the new Google Affiliate Network brand. This update should leave the interface simpler to understand and navigate. Please note that we are not currently integrated with Google Accounts and you must continue to use your ConnectCommerce username and password to log in.


Google is dedicated to providing the best possible user experience. This release is another step toward our goal of improving user experience and delivering value for our partners.

ConnectCommerce is the reporting and tracking platform that powers Google Affiliate Network.

Kristin Hall, Industry Marketing Manager, Google Affiliate Network
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/connectcommerce-update/feed/ 0 DoubleClick Performics is now Google Affiliate Network https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/doubleclick-performics-is-now-google-affiliate-network/ https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/doubleclick-performics-is-now-google-affiliate-network/#comments Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:33:00 +0000 Google Affiliate Network . Effective Monday, June 30, 2008, DoubleClick Performics Affiliate will operate as Google Affiliate Network. The integration with Google's brand is a reflection of efforts to quickly assimilate our business and teams, as well as reinforce Google's commitment to the Affiliate channel. Together with our new colleagues at Google we are creating new opportunities for monetization, expansion and innovation in Affiliate Marketing.

Within the next couple of weeks you will see some exciting changes to the user interface reflecting the new brand. The platform will continue to be hosted at www.ConnectCommerce.com, but will eventually migrate to a google.com product url.

As noted in earlier communications, DoubleClick Performics' Search operations are being spun off and sold to a third party. While many advertisers have relationships with both DoubleClick Performics' Affiliate and Search, there have always been separate account teams and product-specific specialists servicing clients' search and affiliate programs. These teams remain intact. While the formal separation will occur when the Search business is sold, the businesses are functionally separate today.

We are proud of what we achieved as Performics and this name change signals a new milestone. Google provides world-class resources and enables us to continue to attract the best talent to support our advertisers and publishers. Now as part of Google we have an exciting and unprecedented opportunity to advance our industry. We remain committed to ensuring you receive the quality service you have come to expect from us.

We appreciate your business and look forward to doing great things together.

Posted by Chris Henger, Group Product Manager
]]> https://googledata.org/google-affiliate-network/doubleclick-performics-is-now-google-affiliate-network/feed/ 0