posted on February 11, 2004 01:15:30 PM new
I think everyone has seen this before. You run a search for something on Google and the search results contain multiple links to eBay affiliate spam pages that then bounce you back to eBay. It's a real mess.
I started to tally these eBay affiliate pages on Google and found over 2 million of them so far.
I've decided to turn it into a new sport, SPOOGLING. If you find some of these eBay affiliate spam pages on Google, feel free to post them to http://www.spoogling.com
posted on February 12, 2004 11:28:02 AM new
It's made Google just about useless. Have done a number of searches in the past few weeks and just get page after page of affiliate links garbage sites. Here's hoping Google rewrites their algorithm real soon!
posted on February 12, 2004 12:30:19 PM new
I was going to post something on this subject. It so annoying. No matter what I am looking up one of these sites shows up. I rarely find what I am looking for and most of the links are out of date. Ok..... I feel better now.
posted on February 12, 2004 02:28:47 PM new
My sentiments exactly! Google has become practically useless to me. After I search on eBay I then go to Google; most of what I find are OLD links to ebay auctions. Waste of time.
posted on February 12, 2004 05:16:06 PM new
Auctionbytes-Update, Number 106 - November 02, 2003 - ISSN 1528-6703
Are eBay Affiliates Spamming Google with Your Words?
By David Steiner
AuctionBytes.com
November 02, 2003
Over the past few weeks, AuctionBytes received several reports from eBay users who noticed something strange when searching Google. According to the users, when they clicked on certain links within Google search results pages, they were taken to an eBay search results page instead of the site listed.
We were curious about this phenomenon, particularly because these types of eBay pages don't normally show up on Google searches. After looking at many of the links, it was discovered that nearly half a million pages redirecting Google searchers to eBay all belonged to one eBay Affiliate participant.
As we followed the story, we learned from eBay that they had started a pilot program with approximately 20 of their most successful affiliates in an effort to get eBay listings a more prominent ranking on search engines.
We also learned that eBay was giving this particular Affiliate free access to its API program and allowing him to copy auction descriptions from eBay onto his own sites.
The Affiliate used the auction descriptions to populate his pages with relevant content and boost his Google rankings. The automated process he used harvested auction descriptions from eBay to fill his Web pages with terms and content to attract Google's spiders.
Then, using "doorway pages" and "cloaked URLs" - techniques not allowed by Google - he used this premium search-engine placement to redirect Google traffic to eBay search results pages using his affiliate links, making it a potentially lucrative operation.
The fact that eBay is attempting to drive traffic to its site could be viewed as a positive move. After all, some might say, eyeballs are eyeballs. But giving free API access (and free rein) to Affiliate spammers is a questionable move, and seems like a free license to abuse Google's policies.
Also disturbing to some is eBay's claim that it has the right to sublicense sellers' auction content, as outlined in section 6.3 of the eBay user agreement, and use it in controversial marketing efforts like this.
eBay has no motivation to curb the activities of spammers like this - especially if the results are bringing new bidders to their site. But as more affiliates copy this technique, it will begin to push other relevant - and competitive - sites to the back of search results pages. Searchers who hit links on Google results and end up being "search-jacked" to eBay may become frustrated.
Online marketplaces, malls - and possibly your own retail site - will likely feel the negative impact of corporate spamming as their results get bumped off the top spots on Google, even if more relevant than the spam sites.
Ultimately, the burden falls on Google to keep their search engine results relevant and free of spamming techniques like this, otherwise their search engine could simply become a billboard for affiliate programs.
Indeed, after AuctionBytes reported on this case of search engine spamming last week, Google started pulling the Affiliate's sites from its index. But eBay sellers are still uncovering pages that Google missed. In fact, in the process of writing this article, a reader sent me several more links that "search-jack" a user.
