Bogus Internet Ad Sales - Don’t Be Fooled, Pt. 1

15. December 2011 by Frank Goad.

My answering machine let me know I got a call after I left last night (it’s very considerate like that). It was from “Ashley” who claims to be “… the data service provider in (my) area for Google, Yahoo and Bing … ” and that she has ” … industry openings in my area.” Of course, I need to call quickly or they’ll disappear. Oh my! I’d better jump on that. … Not.

First, it was obviously a robo call because of the stutter-start where her name was repeated twice in exactly the same way, complete with recording noises. But that’s the least insidious thing about this.

Google, Yahoo and Bing don’t have a “data service provider” (?) in my area - especially for advertising - and that is a bogus claim anyway because no one agent officially handles all three search engine companies’ advertising sales. They are competitors and in no mood to share sales. This isn’t like a car dealer who can offer multiple manufacturer’s products; search engine companies don’t sell franchises. You can become certified as an expert with their products and services, but not a franchisee.

Next, she promised ” … front page placement on all three.” That’s pretty much what the search engines promise, too, and on every other page behind it when you buy from them due to their rotation system. If she could promise that on every search without having to put a huge bid figure on my ads, then I’d be interested.

To do that requires a gigantic ad budget and probably the use of black hat techniques that, if the search engine company finds out are being employed (and they usually do - they’re way smarter than 90% of the black hat folks out there), they ban you from advertising and often scrub other valuable accounts like Google Places or Yahoo Local and often delete your account. That means whatever progress you’d made on the web with search rankings is set back; sometimes, folks find themselves back at ground zero. In reality, you can place the ads yourself very easily and certainly without the markup “Ashley” is going to tack on to your bill, should you be crazy enough to use them. Worse, they might well be trolling for credit card numbers, ready to blow up your credit.

In the end, though, buying advertising without a strategy gives results that are far below what you could get if you have a strategy. Search engine ads are only one small part of the territory you have to cover these days. Knowing which things are most likely to work for you and how to employ them the right way is where I come in. Be assured, though, this isn’t an ad for me (well, maybe a little) but, instead, a plea for you to approach advertising in a planned way. The results are much better and you’ll get a far higher return from your investment.

I’ve placed a call to “Ashley” and went into “her” voice mail. I’m betting she won’t be the one calling back. I’ll continue this saga should anyone call back. I have a lot of questions for these folks and have every suspicion they’re completely bogus. Stay tuned, crime fighters!

Posted in Google, fraud, Yahoo, Bing, black hat, Internet crime, scams, building business, business, search, search engines, cyber security, Advertising | Print | No Comments »