Ad Quality Control

(Update Sept. 16 2009: Now that I can and do use AdSense's Category Filter, the situation outlined below has improved.)

One of the things I'm looking forward to about my own blog, compared to Associated Content or Bukisa, is having some control over the quality of ads that run alongside my posts.

The Problem

On AC and Bukisa, a lot of the ads are for weight loss advice that's unhealthy and ineffective compared to what you can get for free from government websites or your local library. Sometimes the site will peddle not just advice but also dangerous drugs (or, at best, placebos that will keep people from seeking out real treatment).

Others promise free screensavers, free music, free instant-messaging icons and free porn, but will inevitably lead to spyware, spam and poor-quality product. On sites that run ads, you get what you pay for. If you want decent and reasonably safe free downloads, you have to go to the Pirate Bay.

Still others are for the Church of Scientology. If you're not aware of why that's a problem, check out Operation Clambake.

Then we have the problem of "Made-for-AdSense" scraper sites. On these sites, an unscrupulous webmaster creates a page consisting of AdSense ads, sometimes combined with illegally copied content. If the ads on the scraper site have a much higher CPM than those that advertise the scraper, the site makes money for its owner. Besides inconveniencing readers, this comes at the expense of the webmaster unfortunate enough to host ads for the scraper site. Naturally, I don't want to be that webmaster.

The Partial Solutions

AdSense doesn't provide an option to block ads by topic. However, it does supply me with one tool: the Competitive Ad Filter. The CAF lets me input a list of domain names from which ads won't be hosted. So since I've put scientology.org on that list, you probably won't see any Scientology ads here.

A third-party tool that makes the CAF more effective is AdsBlackList. Although I can't afford to buy the premium version of their service, they do offer a free version. Enter the URL of your blog and a few keywords to describe it, and out will come a list of 200 domains to add to the Competitive Ad Filter. I did this, and I instantly began to see ads for real products rather than just for sites.

AdsBlackList may not filter out weight loss pills or Scientology, but it does get rid of Made-for-AdSense sites and those with a reputation for low CPM. Thus, it boosts both the quality of ads and the revenue.

How You Can Help

I've turned off AdBlockPlus for Life User so that I can monitor the quality of the ads you're seeing. But I can't do it on my own. You can help by posting a comment below if you see an ad on Life User that promotes:

A product that's dangerous to you or your computer.
A scraper site.
Click fraud.
A religion or cult.
Pseudoscience, quackery, conspiracy theories or belief in the paranormal.
A get-rich-quick scheme.
Discrimination based on race, sex, sexual orientation or disability. (This doesn't include pride in and appreciation of a particular race's culture.)
Conservative politics.
An unaccredited college.
Something that isn't available in the English-speaking country you're accessing Life User from, but doesn't say so in the ad text (especially if that country is Canada).
Weapons with no legitimate defensive purpose and no genuine value as collectibles.
Anything being sold using dishonest or grossly misleading claims.

Include the ad's text. I'll do my best to investigate and filter out unsuitable ads.