Updated: 11 Jul 2008
Google has recently announced the retirement of Google Adsense Referral Ads late Aug 2008. Adsense Referral Ads may not have monetized much for Google.
When it comes to Google Adsense, majority of publishers only use Adsense for Content. A few others use Adsense for Search. Lately, Google introduced “Referral Ads” with Google Adsense where the Publishers get paid only when the user performs the desired action i.e. generates a lead or completes a purchase as defined by the advertiser.
Why Referral Ads
Since Referral Ads are based on per Action basis, the returns per action are high ranging from 50 cents to $20 or more.
Who should use Google Referral Ads?
If you know your website users well- their demographics and psychographics; you can monitise well with Referral Ads. Select the relevant advertisers and categories for display with Referral Ads and place them at prominent place on your website.
FAQs for Referral Ads
How much will I earn from referrals?
Your earnings for referrals will vary depending on the product you’re referring. They may also depend the location of the user you’ve referred.
For non-Google products, each individual advertiser decides the actions they’d like users to complete on their site and how much they’re willing to pay for those actions. You can view the amount of this payment displayed on the product details page for each product. For every action the advertiser has defined, you’ll see your potential earnings listed in the Payment column.
You’ll be credited for non-Google referrals if a user who clicked on your ad completes the advertiser’s conversion criteria within 30 days of clicking.
Why am I not earning my maximum referral value?
When you first begin displaying referral ads, you may notice that the earnings you receive for an ad are less than the maximum referral value displayed for the referral. This is because initially, advertisers will only be asked to pay the minimum referral value as Google monitors your account data to determine that the conversions generated are valid. Once the validation period ends, your earnings will reflect the maximum value of the conversions as disclosed going forward. We’ve put these safeguards in place to make the referrals network more appealing to advertisers, therefore bringing more quality inventory and greater potential revenue to publishers.
When will I earn my maximum referral value?
Google will use your site’s activity history to determine if you are delivering valid conversions. Once we have sufficient data to ensure that advertisers are receiving valid conversions from your site, you will start receiving the maximum value of future referrals.
For example, let’s say you choose an ad with a minimum referral value of $3.00 and a maximum referral value of $10.00. You will earn $3 for conversions during the validation period. Once the validation process is over, the maximum referral value of $10.00 will be applied to future conversions.
For most publishers, the validation period should end quickly, but it will vary by publisher due to differences in the time it takes to collect the necessary account data. You’ll know the validation period has ended when your earnings for a referral ad reflect the maximum referral value displayed in the product details page for that ad.
How do I add a referral to my site?
To create a new referral unit and add it to your site, please follow these steps:
1. Sign in to your AdSense account at www.google.com/adsense.
2. Visit the AdSense Setup tab and choose Referrals as the product.
3. Choose your referral locale by picking a location and language in which your site’s visitors will most often view your ads.
4. Find ads that are appropriate for your site in one of two ways:
– Search or browse for products and services that you would like to display on your site. Remember, you don’t have to pick just one; you can pick multiple ads that we’ll automatically rotate based on performance.
– Alternatively, choose your referral units based on keywords you select, allowing you to take advantage of any ads that are later added to our system matching those words.
5. Choose your category, keyword, or product. What’s the difference?
6. Pick from available ad formats.
7. Select a color palette for text ads, and a custom channel if you wish.
8. Copy and paste the referral code from the Your AdSense code box into the HTML source code of your site.
The referral button you’ve added should begin appearing on your page in moments.
For more information on getting started with Referral Ads, please visit Quick Start Guide
