People returning to their feedreaders after the SMX conference and elsewhere found new AdSense policy changes awaiting them.
A couple of substantial changes hit AdSense, as site publishers likely discovered shortly before spewing Shredded Wheat across their monitors. Google’s Julie Beckmann talked about the two big ones on the AdSense blog.
For one, Google will now permit the placement of three link units on a page. The idea seems to be one that gives site publishers more reason to be satisfied with only having Google on their pages, since a variety of units can be placed in some of the trickier spots.
The big update concerns the Page Quality Guidelines. Google has been cracking down on arbitrage, where people buy cheap ads that direct visitors to more profitable ad-filled pages.
This new guideline sounds like it is targeted directly at arbitrageurs, despite the nod to creating useful site content Beckmann made:
This new policy requirement doesn’t mean that you can’t use online advertising; it simply means that if you do, you need to be sure that the way you advertise meets with the guidelines, whether it’s through AdWords or through any other advertising program.
However you advertise your site, it can always benefit from significant and relevant content, clear navigation, and the other points in our quality guidelines.
If you’re paying for an ad that leads to a more profitable AdSense ad on your site, Google probably knows you’re doing it already. Hoping they won’t catch it may not be the most sensible strategy here.
