AdWords Quality Score changes rolled out

Earlier this year, Google announced proposed changes to their Quality Score system. Those changes began to be implemented on Monday and the AdWords blog advises “changes will take effect in all advertisers' accounts over the next few days”.

AdWords’ new dynamic system calculates quality at the time a Google user executes a search, a key factor in determining bid amounts. Location, phrasing, and other factors will determine the score, along with click-through rates and landing page quality.

Perhaps the most controversial change is that minimum bid prices will be replaced by “first page bid estimates”. This, say some experts, will probably result in price hikes as companies vie for first-page placement on popular keywords.

The effect of the Quality Score changes have already been felt by some online businesses, such as Internet entrepreneur Dan Savage of Sourcetool.com whose plight has been reported in the NYT’s article “Stuck in Google’s Doghouse”.

Tags: AdWords, keywords, online advertising, quality score, search engine optimization