SANTA CRUZ, Calif., June 5, 2006 (PRIMEZONE) -- Web analytics leader ClickTracks announced a $1000 credit towards software that helps Google AdWords users identify past click fraud events and claim part of the $90 million Google settlement fund.
On May 21, all advertisers who purchased online advertising from Google after January 1, 2002 were sent a court-ordered notice indicating the right to claim a settlement distribution for prior click fraud. All recipients of the email are eligible for the ClickTracks credit. According to the notice, those wishing to make a claim for past fraudulent clicks must identify each "affected ad" and submit a claim between June 19, 2006 and August 4, 2006.
John Marshall, ClickTracks founder and CEO, predicts some confusion. "Nearly every advertiser who received the notice needs to know what fraud occurred in the past in order to decide whether or not to make a claim," said Marshall. "We believe ClickTracks has the only product that makes it possible to go back in time and substantiate a claim for prior fraudulent clicks."
Special Credit
Advertisers who are part of the class action suit are eligible for a $1000 credit towards the purchase of ClickTracks Pro, JDC, or Agency edition, which include the Click Fraud report. The one-time credit reduces the price of ClickTracks Pro to $2495 and, for qualified consultants, a 20 dataset license of the Agency edition will be reduced to $1495. The credit applies to new customers who purchase a qualifying ClickTracks product in the month of June 2006. Details on the offer may be found at http://www.clicktracks.com/fraud_recovery_offer.php.
Click Fraud Reporting Technology
ClickTracks Pro, which includes the Click Fraud report, installs in less than an hour. The Click Fraud report can look back in time and report potential click fraud behavior that occurred in months or years past.
ClickTracks bases its detection on a statistical mean for a number of measurements taken for each campaign, and then compares that data across all other campaigns, pointing out ads which are worse than average in one or more ways. Some examples include ads that have:
-- a lower than average conversion rate -- a higher than average number of single-page visits -- a lower than average number of unique clients -- a higher number of clicks from China -- a higher than average number of sessions with no referrer
The report then allows marketers to substantiate suspicious campaign behavior by generating a detailed fraud forensics report suitable for submission to the PPC provider.
Free Class on Click Fraud Analysis
On June 21, 2006, ClickTracks will teach a free, live online class titled "How to know if you are a victim of Click Fraud." Attendees of this class will learn how to identify poorly performing campaigns and campaigns that have been victims of click fraud. The class will cover a recommended approach to applying for a refund, and give real-life examples of how others have identified, reported and resolved click fraud issues. Class registration information is posted at http://www.clicktracks.com/seminars.
About ClickTracks
Based in Santa Cruz, California, ClickTracks is the maker of award-winning web analytics software. The ClickTracks family of software was designed out of sheer frustration with existing web analytics offerings. Spending hour upon hour trying to understand web site visitors was certainly a motivating experience: there had to be a better way.
ClickTracks was voted 'Best Web Site Analysis Tool' in ClickZ's 2003, 2004 and 2005 Marketing Excellence Awards and was rated "Positive" in Gartner's 2006 MarketScope for Web Analytics. The company received a "Very Good" top rating from the InfoWorld Test Center for its 6.1 product suite, and a Computerworld Innovative Technology award in the web site management category. ClickTracks' software has been reviewed and featured on CNET, ZDNet, Builder.com, TechRepublic, Internet.com, CRM Magazine, Media Magazine, MarketingSherpa and About.com.
The ClickTracks company logo is available at http://www.primezone.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=2559