Recently, two agencies reported that their client’s Google Ads accounts had been wrongly flagged as selling counterfeit goods. This effectively shut off their ability to run ads and cost one company $150,000 in missed revenue.
The suspension occurred after the affected retailers uploaded their products to Google Merchant Center, a widely-used tool that allows product listings to feature in the shopping section of the search engine. January Digital Chief Executive Officer, Vic Drabicky, explained that their client, a large specialty retailer, suffered a fourteen-hour blockade which cost them this large sum of money. Another department store, who was unable to advertise for a period of eighteen hours, lost eighty to ninety percent of their web traffic that day.
Google employs both human reviews and Artificial Intelligent (AI) to detect such violations. However, from time to time, over flagging may occur due to various reasons. The company is willing to overturn their decision when the error is identified. In this case, Google detected the error in the same day and the ads campaign was reconfigured soon after.
The event showcases the risk that businesses face when their products are listed through Google Ads and emphasizes the vital role Google plays in driving web traffic and sales for retailers. Nonetheless, Vic Drabicky and the other agency executive had noted that it took some time for the main campaigns to go back and full throttle with the reinstated account.
Company mentioned:
The company mentioned in this article is January Digital, a digital advertising agency that offers a variety of digital marketing services. January Digital focuses on creating innovative digital advertising strategies that will maximize ROI and drive sales and traffic to the businesses they work with.
Person mentioned:
Vic Drabicky is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of January Digital. He is an experienced digital marketer with a deep understanding of the digital landscape and the technologies which drive success for companies. He believes in creating a strategy for every client to achieve their goals and objectives with a bright, data-driven approach.
