Today, we will shed light on a very serious topic – “Click Spam And Its Effects On Advertising.” Everyone, whether they are involved in the government or corporate sector, must be aware of this practice as it is harmful to both sectors.
We will discuss click spam and how it affects advertising practices in detail. We will also talk about some ways by which these fraudulent practices can be prevented. So, let’s delve into this amazing blog.
How Do You Define Click Spam?
Click spam (also referred to as click flooding) can be defined as a fraudulent action that involves providing fake clicks to advertisers’ ads. It is a very harmful practice that threatens advertisers’ money and businesses. Click spamming results in increased ad clicks, but these clicks are not genuine. These are actually done with the help of bots or by some other illegitimate means.
These clicks are not made by users who are genuinely interested in your business and thus are fake. Click spam occurs across various channels, such as social ads, banner ads, native ads, etc.
How Does Click Spam Work?
Now, let’s understand how the fraudulent practice of click spam takes place. It involves the following steps:
Infected App Or Website
The click spam fraud begins with the user downloading an infected app or surfing an infected website. The user does not notice, but this infected app/website sets a malware code on his mobile.
In-App Purchases And Ad Clicks
Any activity done by the user, such as an in-app purchase and an ad click, results in the click spammer making money. The more clicks and purchases, the more money the click spammer makes. The worst part is that the malware code allows the spammers to make clicks on the user’s phone without his/her consent and knowledge.
Distorting Actual Data And Analytics
These ad frauds drain the marketers’ precious money and distort the actual data and analytics, placing some platforms above those that are better than them. Since data and analytics are not correct, it leads advertisers to make wrong decisions.
Types Of Click Spam
Yes, you read it right. There are even types of click spam. These include :
Background Clicks
This fraudulent activity happens when the user uses an app containing malware code. The spammer clicks the ads in the background without the user’s knowledge. This results in an increased number of clicks.
Impression As Clicks
This refers to the fraudulent activity of making the impressions appear as clicks. This practice not only scams the advertisers but also spoils its image. The ad network the advertiser is connected with also faces a degradation of its image.
Click Injection
This is also a well-known click fraud. It involves a malware app downloaded by the user that detects any new app downloaded by the user on his/her phone and makes ad clicks in that app. Obviously, this happens without the user’s knowledge.
Click Spoofing
Click spoofing involves fraud publishers (fraudsters acting as publishers) deceiving advertisers into believing that their ads are getting genuine clicks through various methods, such as manipulating IP addresses and distorting analytics data when, in reality, they are not.
Impacts Of Click Spam
There are various types of click spam impact. These Include:
Wastage Of Money
Obviously, these spams are fraudulent activities. Advertisers do not need to pay any money to reap benefits from the actions that spammers do or show that they do. These ads are fraudulent as spammers show the advertisers their organic clicks as paid clicks. So, advertisers pay for something that they have earned through their own hard work.
Bad Effect On Return On Investment (ROI)
The traffic that advertisers get is bot traffic and genuine users. Thus, these fake clicks do not actually result in conversions, which causes a loss to the advertisers. Consequently, the return on investment (ROI) is adversely affected.
Distorted Data And Analytics
The fake clicks that the spammers provide to the advertisers distort the actual data and analytics. Due to this, advertisers can not access their data and analytics properly and make the right decisions. Not being able to make the right decisions due to the unavailability of correct data is harmful to the growth of advertisers’ business.
Adverse Effect On Brand Image
Another pernicious effect of these fake clicks is that they affect the brand image of the advertiser’s business because the audience will understand at some point that the clicks and conversions the advertiser claims are not true. The worst part is that even the advertiser does not know about this distorted data.
What Can Be Done To Prevent Click Spams?
Although there are no proven ways to stop these spammers, one can employ several strategies to prevent themselves from getting spammed. These strategies include:
Keeping An Eye On Click Patterns
This is an exhausting but powerful strategy that advertisers can use to detect click spam. They can detect any unusual click patterns. Now, what are these unusual click patterns? They include unusual time intervals between the clicks and the installs, a large number of clicks from the same IP address, etc.
Fraud Detection System/Tools
Advertisers can use various fraud detection tools to detect any unusual click patterns. Machine learning tools and artificial intelligence (AI) are used by these tools to detect any fraudulent click patterns.
Click Validation
Advertisers can validate the authenticity of the clicks through various methods, such as fingerprinting and digital ID tracking of the systems.
Do Business With Popular And Reputable Ad Networks
You must choose a reputable ad network for promotion and marketing purposes. Also, do proper research before contracting an ad network. Your research should be done based on the ad network’s professionals’ average experience and expertise. You should also look at the client reviews about the ad network. One of the primary reasons for partnering with a good ad network is that it provides advanced security.
Optimize Target Advertising
A good advertising network also provides the facility for target advertising. The benefit of target advertising is that it lets you choose your audience on the basis of various factors, such as age, sex, and location. This way, you can focus on people that you believe are your potential customers.
Stay Updated
Advertisers must stay alert about changes in the advertising industry because only then can they stay updated about things like the latest technology for creating engaging ads and preventing an online business from clicking spam.
Best Advertising Network For Providing Security From Click Spam – 7Search PPC
7Search PPC is a name that you should always remember because it provides you with an advanced three-layered security system, combining imaginative in-house and third-party fraud detection systems. Along with advanced security, we also provide several other features, such as:
1. Powerful Ads: We provide several ad formats that can be used according to your needs. These ad formats are text ads, banner ads, in-page push ads, native ads, popunder ads, and video ads (coming soon).
2. Easy-To-Use Interface: Our ad network also provides a user-friendly interface so that you face no trouble while using our website.
3. 24*7 Customer Support: If you face any problem, you can contact us anytime as we are available for you 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. We try to resolve your query as soon as possible.
4. Self-Serve Platform: 7Search PPC is a self-serve platform. This means that you have complete control over the management of your ad campaigns.
5. Multiple Payment Options: We offer various legal options for you to pay. These include credit cards, debit cards, cryptocurrency, etc.
Conclusion
Click Spam is harmful to the advertiser’s pocket as they pay for traffic that is either organic or fake. It also undermines the advertiser’s brand image because, at some point, the audience gets to know that the real data doesn’t match what they claim. The worst part about this is that even advertisers don’t know the reason for this unmatching of the real data and the apparent data.
There are various ways by which these spams can be protected, such as monitoring click patterns, using fraud detection tools, optimizing target advertising, connecting with popular and reputable ad networks, and staying updated about the evolving technology.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What are the types of Click Spam?
Ans. The types of click spam are:
- Background Clicks
- Impression As Clicks
- Click Injection
- Click Spoofing
Why partnering with a good ad network is crucial?
Ans. It is crucial that you partner with a good and reputable ad network because it can provide you with various features, such as various ad formats (text ads, banner ads, native ads, etc.), 24*7 customer support, and, most importantly, advanced security.
How can advertisers check the authenticity of the clicks they get?
Ans. Advertisers can check the authenticity of the clicks they get through various mechanisms, such as fingerprinting and digital ID tracking.
What are the ad formats that the popular ad network 7Search PPC Offers?
Ans. The ad formats offered by 7search PPC:
- Text ads
- Banner ads
- In-page push ads
- Popunder ads
- Native ads
- Video ads (coming soon)
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