10 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}
10 {{ upvoteCount | shortNum }}

Can you explain this CTR drop?

by AdamJ85
8 replies
  • SEO
    • |
Hi all,

I added a new ad unit in the top left of my site (as suggested in a message from Google) and it worked brilliantly - at first.

In the weeks since, the CTR for that specific unit has steadily declined and is now about a third of what it was for the first few weeks. (It was added in mid-September, stayed at a high level until mid October and then dropped throughout late October and November).

CPC has stayed roughly flat.

Why do you think this is?

I thought it may be banner blindness. Something new attracted attention for a few weeks, but then people began to ignore it. But around 80% of my visitors are new visitors, so it seems unlikely that ad blindness would be a big problem, doesn't it?

Maybe it's the ads being served to the unit and I was lucky to get some appealing ads for a few weeks?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated!
#ctr #drop #explain
  • Profile picture of the author daniel jacob
    is your site traffics the same as when you first added a new ad unit? it sound that your site traffics is down. i would look into and compare the site traffics.
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8689652].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author AdamJ85
      Originally Posted by daniel jacob View Post

      is your site traffics the same as when you first added a new ad unit? it sound that your site traffics is down. i would look into and compare the site traffics.
      Thanks for your reply, though that's not the problem. It's the click through RATE that is down, not the number of clicks, so traffic level is irrelevant.

      For the record, traffic is actually slightly up. The number of visits from different traffic sources remains the same (mostly search).

      I have noticed that tablets and desktops seem consistent - it's mobile clicks that have dropped off...
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8691309].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author johnben1444
    This has been the issue for sometime now and irrelevant ads..
    Signature
    Grow your social media account, Spotify Streams, YT Views & IG Followers & More
    Software & Mobile APP Developer
    Buy Spotify, Facebook Bot & IG M/S Method
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8691362].message }}
    • Profile picture of the author muchacho
      Originally Posted by johnben1444 View Post

      This has been the issue for sometime now and irrelevant ads..
      So you think this is why a lot of people's CTR has taken a tumble over the last few weeks/months - because Google are showing ads not related enough to the content and therefore people aren't clicking the ads as much, as it doesn't interest them?
      {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8693515].message }}
      • Profile picture of the author johnben1444
        Originally Posted by muchacho View Post

        So you think this is why a lot of people's CTR has taken a tumble over the last few weeks/months - because Google are showing ads not related enough to the content and therefore people aren't clicking the ads as much, as it doesn't interest them?
        YES........

        It's one of the major reason, some people have even turn off Google ads from their sites due to this annoying development.

        I actually did myself but had it reinstalled.
        Signature
        Grow your social media account, Spotify Streams, YT Views & IG Followers & More
        Software & Mobile APP Developer
        Buy Spotify, Facebook Bot & IG M/S Method
        {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8694780].message }}
        • Profile picture of the author muchacho
          Originally Posted by johnben1444 View Post

          YES........

          It's one of the major reason, some people have even turn off Google ads from their sites due to this annoying development.

          I actually did myself but had it reinstalled.
          What I'd like to know is why don't Google allow us to see which ads are being shown on our site that aren't being counted as quality clicks - in other words, what people are clicking on but then coming back to my site, due to not being interested.

          It would then allow us to block that URL and in time help them and help us. Or better still - if they know an ad isn't getting the right sort of clicks from our site, don't show it anymore.
          {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8694945].message }}
          • Profile picture of the author yukon
            Banned
            Originally Posted by muchacho View Post

            What I'd like to know is why don't Google allow us to see which ads are being shown on our site that aren't being counted as quality clicks - in other words, what people are clicking on but then coming back to my site, due to not being interested.

            It would then allow us to block that URL and in time help them and help us. Or better still - if they know an ad isn't getting the right sort of clicks from our site, don't show it anymore.
            That would make sense to everyone except Google.

            If traffic clicks an Adsense ad then Google makes money from Adwords. I don't think Google cares about user experience enough to turn down Adwords money.
            {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8695010].message }}
  • Profile picture of the author yukon
    Banned
    I stopped running Adsense on my sites because of all the irrelevant ads Google was displaying (local ads). I've tweaked thousands of pages over the last 6 years trying to cater to Adsense relevancy.

    I was earning 4x the money year over year the first half of 2013 (damn good money), then in July it was like someone flipped a switch & CTR tanked, all I could see that changed was the Adsense ads were mostly crappy irrelevant local ads.

    My traffic volume is like clock work, very steady traffic flow.

    I'm done with the Adsense cat/mouse games.

    I'm currently in the process of converting one of my sites into an ecommerce site where I'll be selling my own products (downloads), no affiliate networks involved. It's risky doing this major site overhaul but I'm doing it regardless.

    My main advantage is I have several legit same niche sites that'll be used to feed traffic to my ecommerce site. The ecommerce domain was started in 2010 so I do have an advantage with established relevant backlinks also feeding traffic into the site. I'm getting traffic as I type this comment & the site isn't even ready yet, lol. I pulled an all nighter working on the site overhaul last night, mostly learning WooCommerce...
    {{ DiscussionBoard.errors[8694866].message }}

Trending Topics