The @dsense Game

Carefully playing the @dsense Game is important to your success.  Diversification may be valuable for more than just your financial investments.

In my post, “Free Blogging, or Pay to Play?” I use my original blog, “The Blogged Word” as an example of how I began blogging and gaining experience.  Once I started to experience some traffic, I initiated a Google Adsense account and began to see a few nickels show up in the account.  Nothing to retire on, but rewarding to see it begin just the same.

I would be the first to admit that this was not quickly becoming my sole source of income.  In fact, I hadn’t even made enough to trigger the $100 payout when I received a notice from Google indicating my account had been suspended for invalid click activity.  Very surprising to me since I had been very careful, almost paranoid, about not clicking on my own ads inadvertently.

Let’s be clear, Google doesn’t have people sitting in a big room looking at clicks to find violators breaking the rules.  However, they have sophisticated algorithms that look for patterns, IP address origins, and many other profiles that sound an alarm.  For some reason, the click activity patterns on my low volume site signaled the posse and I’m out.  I’ve filed an appeal – and another submission with additional information – and am now awaiting their decision.

In researching my dilemma (and I’m not alone!), I’ve found a number of interesting perspectives.  Some say that due to the low overall traffic at my blog, it became easier for the “bad patterns” to emerge.  Easier to generate a large percentage when the base is small.  One that does not pertain to me (at least not yet) is what a competitor can do to you.  Repeatedly clicking on your ads can trigger the G Police.  

At helium.com, you’ll see a fine introduction on how to protect your account from suspension.  There are many techniques and other tools available to help protect you and will be good information to share in a future post.  For now, it is important to simply alert the budding blogger that while Google Adsense is a wonderful opportunity for monetizing your blog, it is fraught with danger by relying on just one advertising revenue stream.

Two topics for future posts are promised: the ongoing saga of my attempt for Google reinstatement and a look into the plethora of advertising options beyond the Big G.

Dave