Can Google cause a recession?

[John Scott]

There have always been affiliate programs like CJ. There has always been PPC search like Goto (Overture).


But when advertisers want to reach specific audiences they have often turned to advertising on content sites. www.concrete-home.com is an example of such a content site. www.surebaby.com too.

But now Google steps in with Adsense, with a huge reach and low prices. I've seen with my own eyes advertisers stepping away from site sponsorships and turning to Google Adsense.

The monthly revenue of content sites may go up, or it may go down. I have a feeling it will go down for many. More and more sites are being put up specifically to cash in on Google Adsense. These people wouldn't even be online if it weren't for the potential income from Adsense.

As more and more content sites go up, they will lower the value of a click, and consequently the earnings of content sites will drop.

I see this as a threat. Google may very possibly be causing a recession amongst content site owners.

Adsense may very well be good for advertisers, but not for publishers.

[fishfreek]

Gosh JS I hope not. Some of us are banking on sponsors to pay the bills for the websites we run.

Hopefully this trend will only occur where the PPC is profitable. I know the targeted ads for my sites dont have any attractive PPC rate.

[John Scott]

I think a lot of people are finding that out. Google Adsense doesn't compare to the revenue you can get from some sponsorships.

[Pimpen 2010]

so would www.must-have-software.net be a "content" site?

[John Scott]

No, it would be closer to a link farm. See all those links to unrelated sites?

[Pimpen 2010]

Lol yup, got paid But besides the links...

[piramida]

John, but with more and more adsense-targeted content sites up the number of possible "clicks" won't go up I think - the number of users stays about the same new sites may draw your visitors away, true, but that's nothing different from everyday internet life.

What I'm afraid of is - forming 'adsense blindness' and small sites / click-rings clicking each others ads and scaring away advertisers since google has almost zero entry-level requirements. Though, of course, even if higher-paying advertisers will go away there would always be someone willing to take the empty space at 5c/click

[John Scott]

John, but with more and more adsense-targeted content sites up the number of possible "clicks" won't go up I think

That's what I'm saying. The clicks get spead out, and it dilutes the value of the click, and dilutes the value of each content site.

[fishfreek]

Of course its like a catch 22. To get traffic you either have to spam the world with links or have really good content that meerits people visiting your site. Then once you get a visitor you gotta keep them.

Sites emerging because of adsense would probably go away just as fast as they came when they realized that adsense was not the cash cow they thought it would be.

At the same time those of us who depend on money from sponsors to support the costs of a popular site might need to find other avenues of income to support expenses

[John Scott]

Actually, put bad content on the sites and more people will be looking at the ads instead of the content. It's like the Hong Kong company that buys up expiring domains - people get there and see nothing but links to click on.

[burgi82]

Originally Posted by JohnScott

Actually, put bad content on the sites and more people will be looking at the ads instead of the content. It's like the Hong Kong company that buys up expiring domains - people get there and see nothing but links to click on.

UltSeach! That is actually a pretty amazing story to me. There was an article on this somewhere.
About adsense. WHen I used google adwords to advertise, I always turned off the option on advertising on other people's webpage, because the ROI is just much lower. I think that as time will go, many advertisers will find the same thing, and stop advertising with adsense, or just pay significantly less per click.