Last updated on August 22nd, 2022 at 04:51 am
Invalid traffic in Google AdSense is a real problem, as it artificially inflates an advertiser’s costs and publisher’s earnings therefore it is impertinent to know how to fix invalid traffic in Google AdSense. It can be accidental or intentionally fraudulent. It may also be caused by automated clicking tools, such as robots or traffic sources.
This article will help you understand and fix invalid traffic and filter out bot traffic. Read on to learn how to fix invalid traffic in Google adsense. But first, let’s talk about how to identify invalid traffic.
What is Invalid Traffic in Google Adsense?
Invalid traffic is a byproduct of deliberate activity that harms publishers. It can either occur through accidental activity or intentional exploitation of the advertising system. Publishers can use methods to encourage users to click ads by placing them in locations that are mistaken for other content on their site.
Other forms of non-human traffic are generated by search crawlers, bots, and known data centers. These types of traffic generate false impressions and clicks that do not qualify for revenue sharing.
While Google keeps much of its methodology under wraps, certain elements can help you detect Invalid traffic in Google AdSense .
Google’s forensic analysis, usually performed at the end of each month, can identify invalid traffic.
If an invalid traffic source is a common problem for a publisher, identifying it is essential. If you fail to identify invalid traffic, your account may be disabled or suspended, or even have its ad serving limits reduced or completely removed.
Sophisticated Invalid Traffic (SIVT)
What is SIVT? Simply put, sophisticated invalid traffic (or SIVT) is non-human traffic that is created with sophisticated algorithms and scripts that mimic human behavior. This type of traffic is hard to spot, but Google is aware of this problem and will suspend publisher accounts with high invalid traffic volumes.
Publishers can only incentivize users to click ads when they are confident that they’re being seen by real humans.
Bot traffic
You have likely heard about bot traffic and have probably tried to avoid it, but it’s still a problem for digital publishers.
Bot traffic is a nonhuman, automated form of traffic that is often more expensive than human traffic. Bots are often used to spread spam, advertise products and services, or simply to disrupt the user experience.
If Google finds your account contains significant amounts of bot traffic, they will limit the amount of ad impressions it serves. When this happens, you may be banned from Google’s network, or you could face other penalties such as being banned from using AdSense altogether.
The best way to deal with invalid traffic is to monitor your site for unusual patterns in ad impressions and clicks.
Fraudulent traffic
It also includes incentive clicks and PPC click exchange programs. Both AdSense and AdMob can detect this type of Invalid traffic in Google AdSense.
While invalid traffic can lower the publisher’s ad inventory and falsely inflate the website’s performance data, it also puts the entire account at risk. Google may even suspend your account if it discovers your fraudulent traffic.
Unintentional actions by website visitors
Unintentional actions by website visitors in the Google Adsense system can be extremely frustrating. If your site receives a large number of clicks but only a few of those are from visitors who actually want to buy something, you should know that this is entirely possible. Thankfully, there are a number of solutions.
Listed below are a few tips for reducing the chances of unintentional actions by website visitors.
- Avoid placing advertisements in places where they might confuse visitors.
- Ads should not be placed where they may be mistaken for content, such as the site menu or near download links.
- They should also not be placed on thank you or exit pages, as these may cause visitors to think they’re content and will not be clicked. Instead, they should be placed in areas that are clearly marked as ads.
How to Block Invalid Traffic in Google AdSense?
Read on to learn how to block invalid traffic in Google AdSense:
1. Logging
If you are concerned that you are losing money on click fraud, you should log your ads. This can protect you from getting a refund if someone clicks on your ads and then leaves without completing any secondary action.
There are plugins available for this purpose.
If you do get a duplicate click, you can track it by logging it in your Adwords account. In addition, you can monitor your keywords and ad budget.
While logging ads is one of the best ways to protect yourself, it can also be a great way to ensure that your ads are seen by the right people.
Google has dedicated services to help advertisers combat this problem.
2. IP Exclusions
IP exclusions for ads can prevent your ad from being viewed by fraudulent users. However, not every IP that sends you heaps of traffic is fraud.
For example, some Internet Service Providers change IPs frequently. For example, if the user is assigned IP address B and searches for an item on search engine A, the ad will be displayed, but the IP address B should not be excluded. Consequently, the ad will be viewed by the user and a click is registered.
If you suspect that someone is clicking on your ad, blocking the IP address is the first step in the fraud removal process.
It’s a simple process – log into your Google Ads admin console and go to the Campaign page. Then, go to Settings and click the IP exclusions link. Bot traffic can also be similarly blocked in this way. Most PPC platforms and marketing tools have inbuilt anti-fraud systems, but they do a minimal job to detect fraudulent clicks.
However, the best way to prevent this from happening is to block fraudulent IP addresses from being able to click on your ads.
3. Ban option
To ensure your AdSense account is free from bots, use invalid click prevention tools. These tools will prevent bots from clicking your ads and will protect your Google account as well.
You can also use your own data to show that your site is compliant with AdSense policies.
4. Use of Analytics
Analyzing engagement patterns can help you identify which traffic is legitimate and which is fraudulent.
Use of Analytics can help you identify the origin of traffic as well as clicks. You can check the bounce rate, click activity as well as many other important parameters from there which will help you identify any fraudulent activities.
5. AdSense Ad limit & Invalid Click Protector WordPress Plugin
AdSense Ad limit & Invalid click Protector WordPress Plugin is a plugin for all these features and is a top plugin for protection against Invalid Click Activity.
It works with any Ad provider and has best ad synchronization. The best thing is that it provide 99.9% defense against bot traffic and also has MAC ID recognization.
Overall, it is one of the best plugin in market and is also quite affordable at 200$ a yearly price only.
How can I protect AdSense Account From Click Bombing?
Click bombing happens when someone with wicked intentions come to your site and bombard hundreds of clicks thus, getting your AdSense account banned.
There are a number of solutions that can prevent such Invalid traffic in Google AdSense, but none is 100% safe. Big competitors can afford endless resources to do this, so nothing is guaranteed. But some solutions offer more advanced click fraud protection than others.
Even how, we’ve listed some of these options in this article. Hopefully, you’ll find them useful!
1. Use of Plugins for Invalid Traffic in Google AdSense
As described previously, plugins like AdSense Ad limit & Invalid click Protector WordPress Plugin can protect your AdSense account from click bombing as well as any such type of invalid click activity.
This plugin wraps the ads and limits the clicks of the users. It can also provide protection based on location and country.
In addition to this, Security plugins can help you in avoiding/blocking most of the bot traffic or fraudulent activites, which may be harmful to your sites.
These plugins can also help you in the identification of IP addresses with location which you think are responsible for such activities.
Analytics plugins like Google Analytics can help you identify the pattern as well as behavior of all traffic. It can also integrate with AdSense and can give you details of location wise clicks and other activities.
2. Using CDN like Cloudflare
Cloudflare main purpose is to protect websites against Distributed Denial of Service attacks (DDoS), but it also offers many other services like DNS resolution, web hosting, CDN, SSL certificates, etc. You can also use it to block specific IP addresses or even entire countries from accessing your website.
It also sets up a firewall on your website with which you can protect your site from invalid traffic. It is one of the best for protection against click bombing.
3. Timely Reporting to Google AdSense about Invalid traffic in Google AdSense
Another way to avoid account ban from click bombing is to report the invalid clicks to AdSense. This will help them investigate the clicks and stop the traffic. If you do this, you’ll minimize the impact of click bombing on your AdSense account. Click here to get to the Google page for this type of reporting.
4. Don’t Waste Money on Cheap Traffic
Buying Cheap traffic like 50,000 visitors for 5$ is 90% dangerous to your website as this is all bots and fake traffic generated using softwares.
So, don’t waste your money on buying any suspicious or cheap traffic. This is also how to prevent invalid clicks adsense.
5. Jealousy in Human Nature
Lastly, stop promoting your AdSense earnings to strangers. People especially nearby you hate seeing people making a lot of money through AdSense or any other source. And if they can’t stand the sight of your high-traffic website, they’ll try anything to disable it.
Check out other article on Invalid Clicks: Adsense invalid clicks: How to protect your Adsense account + 1 Free Plugin
Does a High CTR Mean Elimination From AdSense?
Does a High CTR Mean Elimination From AdSense? No, a high CTR does not mean you will be eliminated from AdSense, but it certainly does mean that you are not making enough money to make your site profitable.
A CTR of 5% is a good CTR however, if it is above 5%, you need to be concerned as Google AdSense will test such sites with unusually high CTR and in most cases, these sites are banned for many mistakes. Some of the common mistakes are Click bombing, using local keywords, and clicking bots. These tactics will all increase your CTR.
But how do you ensure that your ads are relevant? Check he detail below:
1. Click bombing
A high CTR means elimination from AdSense for a blog that doesn’t have many outbound links. A blog with no outbound links will have a higher CTR, but it’s also difficult to optimize for high CTR.
The best way to improve CTR is by testing new strategies and changes before incorporating them. By following these tips, you’ll be on your way to increased revenue from your blog and AdSense account.
To increase your CTR, target high-quality PPC ads. The more quality your ads are, the higher your earnings will be.
You should aim for a CTR between 0.50 and 3 per cent, as most bloggers have a CTR between 1 to 3 percent on average.
If you suspect your blog is being abused, check your Google Analytics and other web logs for suspicious behavior. If you discover a high CTR, you can expect to be removed from AdSense.
2. Local keywords
The CTR of your ads is a factor in how much revenue you make from them. For example, if your site has a dating niche, you should consider placing advertisements on the site about dating websites.
Although these ads might not have anything to do with the content of the site, they are relevant. The ads may also promote eBooks on dating or websites. However, high CTRs may affect revenue, which means you should test all your changes before you implement them.
If you want to increase your revenue, you must optimize your ads. High CTRs will help you reach the top of the SERPs. In addition, high QS will help you reduce wasted spend. And high CTR means you can outperform the average many times over.
It is essential to target specific long-tail keyword phrases.
3. Informational keywords
If you’re an ecommerce business, you probably target a transactional keyword. Such keywords are intended to drive sales, which is why they tend to have a high CTR.
In contrast, informational keywords are phrased as questions and tend not to indicate the intent to purchase. Nonetheless, they are cheaper and have less competition. By using informational keywords, you can attract a more specific audience.
The first thing to do when optimizing for informational keywords is to identify the category that users are using to search for the products and services you offer.
Informational keywords tend to show up on SERPs where people are looking for information rather than a product. This means that you should use keywords with question words and related queries.
Informational queries also tend to rank highly in organic results, while paid results are less likely to have a high CTR.
4. Click bots
A high CTR can lead to a few things. If you have too many clicks and a high CTR, your account could be at risk. There is no such thing as a perfect CTR, however.
It is not possible to benchmark a high CTR with the CTR of your competitors. Every website is different, so the comparison can be difficult or even useless.
Therefore, the best thing to do is to test and experiment with various settings and methods before you incorporate them into your AdSense account.
5. Quality score
If you have ever placed a paid search ad with Google, you have likely heard about the quality score. This scoring system is based on a variety of metrics. Here is a breakdown of how to determine your Quality Score.
If you want to maximize the amount of money that you earn from your AdSense account, learn more about this feature. Once you understand how the system works, you can take steps to improve it.
In terms of quality, Google considers slow page load times to be regional average plus three seconds. If your pages are loading slowly, this will hurt your Quality Score.
To improve the speed of your website, try installing Google’s Page Speed Chrome & Firefox extension. Secondly, try to make your landing pages as relevant as possible.
Google considers low click-through rates on ads to be poor. For the highest click-through rates, use three extended text ads. Lastly, use the most relevant keywords for your ad copy.
6. eCPM
If you want to earn big from AdSense, you must target ads that have a high PPC. In some niches, a single click can earn more than a hundred dollars. You should also calculate the eCPM.
However, you cannot share your CTR or eCPM with anyone else. Many bloggers have CTRs between 0.50 and three percent.
To understand the factors that contribute to your CTR, you must understand how your website is optimized for search engines.
A high CTR does not mean a high income. The amount of money you earn will depend on the number of visitors to your website and the eCPM of advertisers within your niche.
Also check our Check our Full Guide to Google AdSense CPC, CTR, CPM / RPM & Earnings with Best Rates in 147 Countries
What is Good CTR in Google AdSense?
What is a good CTR in Google AdSense? There is no specific figure for good CTR, however, CTR from 2-5% is considered good. As per Google AdSense Help Center, page CTR can be calculated using the following formula:
Page CTR = (Clicks / Page Views) * 100
For Example, if you have 400 page views and clicks are 6, your page has a CTR of 1.5%.
A website that caters to a niche will have a higher CTR than one that does not. The reason for this is that people are more likely to click ads that relate to the content of the website.
Furthermore, a site that has a high-quality content will have a higher CTR.
The highest CTR is found on the top ad, as it’s the first thing a user sees. However, if your site has low-quality traffic and only has search engine traffic, your CTR will be low.
You need to change your ad position if you want to obtain a higher CTR. In Google AdSense, CTRs are largely dependent on the position of the advertisement on the page. Google will show relevant advertisements based on the interests of the user.
The higher the CTR, the higher the money you make from AdSense. A good CTR is between 0.50 and three percent and even till 5%. AdSense cash making is based on the number of visitors, the amount of money advertisers are willing to pay for the advertisement, and the percentage of users who click the advertisement.
Improve your CPC after reading this Article How to Increase AdSense CPC (Cost Per Click) in 5 Steps
In general, bloggers with a high CTR tend to earn more than five hundred dollars per month from their website.
A high CTR is the most valuable for a website owner. It means that your site is relevant to the content of your visitors, and that viewers are interacting with the ads. It also means that viewers found your ads useful and relevant, and you can increase your CTR with this strategy.
Remember to test changes before incorporating them into your site. Testing is the best way to increase your revenue and CTR.
Check out our article in case of worst possible situation which is getting banned from Google Adsense. Click on this link Banned from Adsense? Here’s What should you do – 5 Easy Steps
Check out the following video regarding the details on Invalid Traffic in Google Adsense, Ad Limits and How to Solve them Step by Step.