Something weird just happened on Google... possible AdWords malfunction?
I searched for 'mail' on the Google.co.uk domain, as I expected this to bring up a result for Gmail as usual so I could check my mail.
Bizarelly, I was presented with an AdWords ad in German listing Gmail, and when I clicked it, I was taken to the German domain for Gmail.
As far as my knowledge of AdWords goes, I didn't think it was possible for me to search in one language and be served an ad in another.
I've got no idea why this would happen. Maybe someone at Google is just having a laugh
What's even weirder is that I thought Google had been banned from using 'Gmail' in Germany due to a trademark infringement case ruling (see http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=40785)...
In fact, if you search on google.de for 'mail', you get an ad for Googlemail, which is the trademark Google is allowed to use there.
So why the out-dated ad, in German, on the UK domain?
[I have a screenshot if anyone wants to see it]
James |
Google doesn't seem to ever end its advertising campaigns. I still see adverts explaining that "Deja News is now Google Groups" |
Ads in different languages were discussed in this forum (some time ago), weren't them? |
Here's the answer from AdWords support:
Thank you for your providing us with a screenshot of the German ad which
you recently saw on Google.co.uk. I am happy to explain to you why you
may have seen this ad.
Firstly, Google AdWords offers the ability to target users by specific
languages and geographic areas. This means advertisers can design ad
campaigns for users who speak specific languages or access Google from
particular areas. An advertiser can choose to target their German
language ad to English speakers and/or English speaking countries. This
may explain why you encountered the ad in question. Of course, it is not
in an advertiser's interest to target their ads in such a manner, because
the Google AdWords programme rewards advertisers for having highly
relevant ads.
Secondly, we do review all AdWords ads to ensure that they comply with our
trademark policy. However, the ads created by advertisers run on our site
immediately. Since we show ads immediately, there is often a short period
of time when the ad is running before being reviewed and approved by
Google AdWords Specialists. Please note that we try to keep this lag as
short as possible.
Unfortunately, it seems you saw the advertisement before we had a chance
to review it.
I do hope this has effectively dealt with your concerns. We thank you
for spending your time to inform us of this issue and we appreciate your
continued support.
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