I-Search #083: Conversion Fraud

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             "Understanding Internet Search Technology"
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August 15, 2006                           SearchReturn Issue #083
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                   .....IN THIS DIGEST.....

// -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- //
            "Click Fraud Battle"
            "Millions Of AOL Searches"
            "Yahoo! Project Panama"
            "Big Online Spending With SMB"

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// -- ESSENTIAL NEWS -- //

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==> Click Fraud Battle

http://directmag.com/news/google_clickfraud_surprise/

Essentials: A 17-page Google report delivered from the stage at
Search Engine Strategies last week took panelists completely by
surprise - and without time to respond. The report contained
information compiled by engineers that found click fraud as
reported by third party monitoring services overestimates the
problem. The report showed the monitoring services fail to
properly account for users that go back to landing pages, along
with other factors including a confused cookie problem that fails
to track back to the originating click between Yahoo! and Google.

Characterizing the methodology of third party monitoring services
as "very, very flawed," Google stopped short of saying there was
intentional wrongdoing, but using a live platform without
informing other panelists and sharing the report ahead of time
did not allow the proper discourse about the problem as the room
needed. Panelists could only offer a delayed response after the
chance to read the paper. The truth is somewhere in between. What
is true is that search engines take fair measures against click
fraud, and the problem is far worse than they think.

For example, Google produces a statistic that 800 clicks reported
as fraud converted at nearly the same rate as 24,000 clicks that
were not in dispute. A conversion does not automatically disprove
fraud. Conversion tracking may be designed to calculate signups,
and fake signup numbers can exceed what Google reports as fraud.
The most pernicious type of click fraud from PTR (Paid To Read)
gangs of clicksters is well suited for actually completing the
signup conversion process with completely fake information.

The search giant either discovers bad clicks and doesn't charge
the advertiser for suspicious clicks - even those that lead to
conversions, or they wrongly assume a conversion is automatic
proof of a good click, even when it certainly is not. The thing
about conversion fraud is that it really is fraud. PTR users that
take the time to complete a form to show fake conversions are
those that do so specifically to fool the search engine. When
calculated together, these fake clicks and conversions at times
can total to high click fraud estimates that Google criticizes.

 

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==> Millions Of AOL Searches

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/fn/4116578.html

Essentials: While AOL moves towards an advertising based business
model, they slipped up by publishing 19 million search queries
from 658,000 AOL search users. What appears like an honest
mistake last week has proved difficult for the company to explain
away. Even if no personally identifiable information was released
directly, revealing these search data allowed analysis that
outted some users easily identified by their search activity.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation filed a complaint with the FTC
describing AOL's mistake as warranting notifying the affected
users, and providing a years worth of credit monitoring against
identity theft. In the keynote by Eric Schmidt at Search Engine
Strategies last week, the Google CEO commented on the privacy
issues search engine queries raise, and that such information is
some of the most sensitive assets the company has under heavy
guard.

 

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==> Yahoo! Project Panama

http://www.clickz.com/showPage.html?page=3623100

Essentials: Yahoo! showed advertisers at Search Engine Strategies
some of the features they can expect of the upcoming project
panama upgrade to the Yahoo! search marketing platform.
Confirming a new ad ranking system that includes quality factors
outside bid amount alone, Johns Slade mentions how this can lead
to "a great position for less money."

Other useful features include an alert system that will notify
advertisers when their budget is low, if their credit card fails
or when campaign performance dips below a certain target. A/B
testing is featured with optimization settings that will
automatically show higher performing creative, and several new
opportunities to advertise with images, coupons and phone calls
are planned for the system.

 


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==> Big Online Spending With SMB

http://www.netb2b.com/article.cms?articleId=28830

ComScore reported last week that non-travel online retail sales
is on track to break $100 billion in 2006. Large enterprises have
reacted by attracting users and sales with online marketing
initiatives, but the online platform for marketers has proven
especially adept at providing leverage to small to medium sized
business over competition from large enterprise where adaptation
to the online medium has been relatively slow.

In a study of small to medium sized businesses, more than half
(52%) reported spending the majority of their marketing budget
online, and 62% reported participating in natural search engine
optimization. More than a third (37%) reported they intend to
increase their online spend. This differs dramatically from the
typical major enterprise, where it is common that the online
marketing spend is less than 10%, and only a few dabble with
natural optimization at all.

 
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