Google Related Links - definition
“Google Related Links” is a Google service that enables webmasters to display links related to their website content through a javascript call from a Google server. Depending on individual configuration, these links may include:
- relevant links to Google Searches
- relevant links to News Stories
- relevant links to Google Video
- relevant links to Similar Webpages
Unlike Google Adsense, on Google Related Links there are no paid advertisements and webmasters are not paid for displaying them on their website. “Google Related Links” was launched April 4, 2006.
Google Related Links - benefits for webmasters
Through usage of Google Related Links, webmasters can display links relevant to their website content, which may increase the website’s value from a surfer’s point of view and make it more attractive.
A second level benefit, which might be resulting for all Adsense Publishers in the long run, is described in the following passage.
Google Related Links - benefits for Google
Apart from the usual benefits by offering a free internet service, I believe in the theory that with “Google Related Links”, Google is trying to blur the visual gap between non-commercial Google Search Results and commercial Google Adsense.
As a long term strategy, I think they’re trying to build surfer’s trust to the visual appearance of “Google Related Links” with the purpose of gaining trust for Google Adsense Ads which may look quite similar in many cases.
Therefore, surfers might tend to confuse “Google Adsense Ads” with “Google Related Links” and be mislead.
Following this theory, here are the expectable results:
- + An increased Google Adsense click-through ratio, benefiting both publishers and Google
- - In the long run the CPC prices might drop due to reduced Adwords conversion rates from mislead surfers (who are less likely to pay for a product/service of an advertiser since they expected to see a free page)
Google Related Links are actually confused with Adsense Ads - the proof
Update: People have actually started confusing both Google Services. Seroundtable has covered this topic, some members of Digitalpoint Forums were actually thinking, “Related Links” would be a special type of Adsense for premium publishers.
Links Related to this article
More information on “Google Related Links”:
- Combining Adsense with Related links to increase revenue (german)
[…] As discovered by Optimized Promotion Blog, Google’s Related Links free website feature is mainly focused on blurring Adsense recognition to increase click-throughs. People have started confusing “Adsense Ads” with “Related Links” and the other way around. Adsense Ads are paid for by advertisers, Related Links are more or less non-commercial search results. The problem about this is that surfers cannot distinguish between both, they might be thinking that the link they clicked was a “related” non commercial one, but instead they’re redirected to an advertiser trying to sell them a product or service against their will. More info on this at Optimized-Promotion SEO Blog: Google Related Links confused with Adsense Ads […]