Google Cash Detective vs AdSpyPro
How They Work
From the AdSpyPro web site;
- You log into your copy of AdSpyPro® to create a campaign of the keywords that you’d like to track and spy on.
- AdSpyPro® proceeds to scour the Internet and collect PPC ads, identifying the affiliate ads vs.. the non-affiliate ads.
- AdSpyPro® then tracks those ads for the length of time that you’ve told it to, and gathers up all kinds of juicy competitive information for you.
- Reports are generated and provide you with the “profit signals”. Yep, those are your go-ahead campaigns, the one’s that will stuff your pockets with cash
Visiting the GCD site offers only a “Sorry, We Sold Out” message, but there are explanations of how it is supposed to work out there. Here is one from Internet Marketing Newswatch, quoting an email from Chris Carpenter (the creator of GCD);
- “The Detective is a great tool for someone new to affiliate marketing because it is like having your own personal mentor. Like a mentor, the Detective shows you what types of ads will perform best for your keywords. It shows you what merchants are converting.
- By studying the results in the Detective, you can clearly see what the best practices of a given niche are. This keeps you from having to buy ads in order to test and discover these things for yourself. Ultimately, the Detective saves you a ton of money!
- With a single click in the Detective, you can see all the versions of a competitor’s ad that were tested. You see what keywords they have stopped using. In minutes, you can scroll through data that would literally take days to gather manually. The Detective saves you a massive amount of time!”
I think this quote is clearly what Chris and GCD are meant to be about;
“If you are new to PPC marketing you will be studying those who are more experienced. Everyone will be growing together. You will see the profitable business models that are working day in and day out, bringing their owners automated profits. This is the real world education that can transform you into a super marketer in a very short time.”
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There have been comments about installation…
AdSpyPro
“I usually pay to install anything like this but I thought why not give it a try. The video and manual were easy to follow.” - Tom Dean
“I usually pay for install too, but video makes it look pretty simple so I may try it.” - 5starAffiliatePrograms
“Easy install, great product.” - Roger Davis
“If I think I can purchase AdSpy Pro (or any software) and install it on a standard shared hosting account and immediately load it with 50 campaigns and hundreds or thousands of keywords and expect everything to go ok I am only fooling myself. And I surely cannot blame the software at all. The limits here are strictly the capacity of my hosting. If I expect to operate at this level then I should be prepared to fork out a couple hundred dollars per month on a dedicated server and install the script on that baby and let er’ rip. But I also better be prepared with a huge list of working proxies and a way of keeping that huge list maintained with active proxies.” - rocksolid (who appears to be involved in the development of the product)
“You have to install on a hosting that has cron jobs available.” - also rocksolid
“You absolutely cannot use Godaddy.com hosting for this script. They are one of the most restrictive hosting companies on the net and they really should just stay in the domain business as when it comes to hosting they are the craps.” - also rocksolid
“I just purchased this morning and paid for the installation too ($30). It was installed for me in under an hour.” - Mike
Google Cash Detective
Ouch…
“It installed OK but didn’t work on my first host and seems to work on my second host but very slow. Help desk ticket issued but no response yet.” - Tony Stai
“I bought gcd today also and it installed fine, but is not working correctly.
On one server even when starting with a few keywords it just keeps processing and eventually times out. On the other server, when I put in a list of keywords it only works for the first keyword. And it takes forever to load.
I tried the Cron manager and that solved the problem.” - gator93
“The Cron manager takes 7 seconds per keyword to run, and I’ve already loaded 10K+ keywords in 20+ niches. I won’t have solid data on these topics for weeks to even try and implement the Google Cash strategies.” - kfinney
“I was told HostMonster is cancelling all Google Cash Detective accounts, even those already set up and running. Reason given is the anticipated heavy drain on their servers.” - bdgr100
“Well, my account was suspended and I call Hostmonster and they told me the gcd script was running 10,000 queries per second so it takes up too much of the cpu time and that’s why they shut me down. Their advice is to use the script on either a dedicated server or VPS.” - howard924
“I’m having a hard time believing that anyone would tell you this could run on shared hosting without a hitch.” - Linda
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Phew - that’s about enough eh? For your important consideration - I own neither product and have not installed nor made use of either. What I have attempted here is to use a cross section of purchasers’ comments from a Marketers’ forum where folks are knowledgeable and experienced. I searched through quite a number of other forums (no less than a dozen) and found no new threads about either of these products (though some may have appeared since). The comments appear to be very negative about Google Cash Detective. That is not by my design nor are the largely positive mentions of AdSpyPro. I offer no affiliate links for either. They are simple to find if you Google them.
I almost forgot to mention the difference in price between the two! Despite the “Sold Out” notice at GCD (there was a bit of a “rumbling” that more copies will be made available) Google Cash Detective was selling for $397 (post-introduction) and AdSpyPro is currently selling at $67. a copy.
Your experiences and opinions are more than welcome in the comments. Please, feel free to leave them there…
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POSTED IN: Web Happenings
24 opinions for Google Cash Detective vs AdSpyPro
b5media - Happenings in the Business Channel
Jun 11, 2007 at 5:00 am
[…] at Work Boxers compares Google Cash Detective and AdSpyPro, two tools designed to approve Google Adwords […]
kevin
Jun 12, 2007 at 4:01 pm
Google Cash Detective has been disabled by my host for “causing problems”. If I am having problems then many others are too. Since I haven’t even started a campaign yet, it can only be problems with the software….
Not sure about Adspypro….
I though this would be a good way to “equalize” my adwords campaigns, and eliminate part of the learning curve; but now realize that once again, I have been suckered into the dream of making income on the internet.
The bottom line seems to be: people that own products or services and can have them sold by “afilliates” will make money. These are the “guru’s”.
Example: Chris Carpenter sold 500 copies of Google Cash Detective in less than 24 hours @ $400-$555 a pop. You do the math.
I purchased a copy and am simply out $400 + dollars.
I am fed up…..don’t really care whether Adspypro works or not….
I’ll go back to my stupid boring dayjob (thank god I didn’t “kill” it!) and work myself to death.
Here’s to all of the “guru’s” out there! You suck!
I would spend the $67 on Adspypro, who knows? maybe it won’t get disabled….at least it’s cheaper.
Good Luck!
If anyone has something positive to add; feel free to email me.
I’m just tired of the hyped up squeeze pages put up by @3$53holes that are always glad to take your money, but really offer nothing of substance.
Sucker in Louisville
The b5media Franchise: 200 Blogs, 3 Million Monthly Readers Strong
Jun 13, 2007 at 8:55 am
[…] at Work Boxers compares Google Cash Detective and AdSpyPro, two tools designed to approve Google Adwords […]
Google Adwords Keyword Tool
Jun 13, 2007 at 9:59 am
[…] an endless discussion about keywords and search engine ranking. Because of “tools” like Google Cash Detective and AdSpyPro (and many others) there has been an associated discussion of free keyword […]
charl
Jun 14, 2007 at 7:37 am
Bought AdSpyPro yesterday. Took about half and hour to set up, been running fine. I don’t think it has as many ‘cheat’ tools as GCD (eg instant copying of ads etc) but it’s still a thrill to see what amounts to hours of manual keyword/ad analysis being done on the fly. But a promise of instant cash? No way!
The b5media Franchise: 200 Blogs, 3 Million Monthly Readers Strong at
Jun 16, 2007 at 5:05 pm
[…] at Work Boxers compares Google Cash Detective and AdSpyPro, two tools designed to approve Google Adwords […]
Stephen
Jun 25, 2007 at 6:00 am
I happen to own both Google Cash Detective and AdSpyPro. GCD has NEVER worked properly for me. The GCD support folks have installed the latest version and it still is unable to perform at ALL. I used their suggested host and was shut down for a while but has recently been restored. I have requested a refund, but have yet to hear from anyone. As for AdSpyPro…. EASY to install and it works EXACTLY as advertised. This software is NOT intended to be used for HUGE campaigns that need proxies to get the job done. But for the price it is well worth the money. For me there is no comparison….I give AdSpyPro and excellent ( 9 out of a possible 10) rating while I would give Google Cash Detective a Poor (ZERO out of 10). As far as the price $397 for GCD and $67 for AdSpyPro…. well again AdSpyPro is way ahead in that category also…
mark
Jun 25, 2007 at 6:09 am
Thanks Stephen…
Anyone else?
Rob
Jul 9, 2007 at 7:48 am
Bought AdSpyPro a month ago and still cant get it to work . The support is abismal, taking over a week to respond to each request!!!!
Dave
Jul 16, 2007 at 9:17 am
Hey guys - you might like to check out ZamDoo - which is more feature rich than GCD, and free right now (we’re in beta testing, and all accounts are free until we launch).
For more details visit http://www.zamdoo.info!
Cheers, Dave.
Rick
Jul 24, 2007 at 3:21 am
I love these blogs, good work!
But You are missing one important tool in your ‘versus’.
Name the cash alchemist tool (called the million dollar converter).
First of all, you don’t have to install this tool on your own server to start spying on other their ads. This means:
- No troubles installing it
- No fear of getting banned by your host
- No fear of getting banned by google.
It also has the advantage that changes are made directly for everyone. No need to update the software on your software and being two weeks too late. Changes are going fast on the internet!
But the most important failure that the two other products have is that it shows which ads are, THEORETICALLY, profitable…. But they don’t offer a tracking and conversion option for your own ads! And that’s where cash alchemist beats the other spying tools completely. It contains a second tool which tracks all your ads and sales through affiliate programs and give you a report back, which gives you the option to track, tweak and test, which is a critical need for any serious marketer. And it’s embarrassing that the other tools don’t have this.
Best Wishes,
Rick Vugts
Thierry
Jul 26, 2007 at 5:04 am
Google cash detective is a scam. I never work properly, they change the rules to charge you more once you already have pay, the support is the worst I have ever see (no answer to the email and when they answer they don’t reply to the question) and I have request seven times to get my moneyback and don’t even receive an answer.
The Cayman Host
Jul 27, 2007 at 8:45 am
Glad I came across this post because I’ve seen a lot of traffic to my own sites on the very same subject.
It appears that opinion is still hugely divided over GCD and whilst some people have had nothing but problems, others have overcome them and are up and running.
Perhaps the initial launch of GCD was a little economical with the facts and heavy on the hype and a lot of people bought the product without really understanding what it was. Technical difficulties, installation problems, hosting issues, all combined to totally demoralize those without the technical know-how to deal with them, coupled with inadequate support from the vendor this resulted in a lot of unhappy customers.
I didn’t buy GCD and have tried to redirect all my visitors to places where they can get help. I’m still following the story with interest. AdSpy pro, another script, seems to be getting a more positive press from customers but I see from this thread that some people have issues with that too.
I don’t think GCD was or is a scam - it was probably released too early with too many bugs and without a decent infrastructure in place to help those who invested a not inconsiderable amount in the product. Version 2 has since been sold to another 500 people - amazing after all the bad press and I’m interested to see how the whole thing will pan out.
Terry
Jul 28, 2007 at 9:16 pm
I purchased GCD in the first offering of 500. Well, it’s been interesting. Concur with other comments here in that it was full of bugs, a nightmare to install and configure, and support really sucked (when they answered they often didn’t address the problem directly, then asked you for the same information over again). I lost nearly a month going back and forth with them before it was finally working right.
I’ve had it running long enough to find some “profitable” campaigns, which I have started running on yahoo and adcenter. Only one out of the five I’ve tried so far are actually in the black.
Now an interesting thing has happened. My keywords stopped crawling several days ago so I emailed support…no response. Got to checking, no emails at all from GCD or their people in the last several days after almost daily update and training notices. I tried logging into the online GCD and usergroup websites, can’t log in there anymore either. It now says the username and password they emailed me are invalid. No response to my inquiry about it several days ago.
Hmmmm…. What’s up with GCD???
Would like to hear from anyone else who has purchased GCD and suddenly can’t use it or reach anyone there.
mark
Jul 29, 2007 at 4:45 am
Can anyone help Terry?
ppc2020.com - Pay per click vision 20/20
Jul 29, 2007 at 8:41 pm
As a programmer & affiliate marketer, I’ve had written my own server-side scripts that does such “detective” work for a long while before all these tools become commercial. I’m sure there are others with similar combo skill-set like me doing the same quietly and for good reasons. I’m therefore not surprise why all these technical and ethical issues surfaced.
Anyway, for those technical issues relating to server over-loading (if it’s one that installs on your own server), just cut down on your list of keywords - limit to more targeted long-tail “buying” keywords instead (maybe just a couple of thousands MAX?). If there’s an option to set any “delay” per query, spread the number of queries evenly over a day. Also, try enabling those proxy servers settings which will help in distributing certain loads and avoid suspicion from search engines thinking they are queries from bots.
For the likes of Terry’s problem, check into the log files for any error messages from these scripts (all decent ones should produce some kind of logs) - Sorry, I’ve not tried GCD yet, so I can’t pin point. You can browse all the server files on the GCD folder and see which files have the latest timestamp - they are either the data files or log files (if any). See if anything within make sense to you.
Good luck!
Hans Chee
mark
Jul 30, 2007 at 6:06 am
Hans Chee,
Thank you very much for your valued input!
Terry? Folks? Hans Chee appears to know whereof he speaks… anyone want to give his thoughts a run?
Ed
Aug 1, 2007 at 3:31 pm
Google Cash Detective BEWARE. Do NOT BUY this product. You will be Sorry! It doesn’t work! The latest is that the self hosted version has been blocked by Google for many users. The hosted version is full of hidden charges that they do not tell you about until you sign up for the product.
Your keywords are put in a large database where all members have access to them.
“Customer Service” and support is an absolute joke!!!!
They will lie to you and tell you that they are processing your refund but it will never show up.
[edited by admin] DO NOT BUY THIS. YOU’VE BEEN WARNED……
mark
Aug 1, 2007 at 6:06 pm
Folks - opinions, experiences, even feelings are okay but please don’t go “name calling” unless you have proof! If there is something hinky about GCD don’t put yourself in a position (or me in a position) where we can be called out legally or morally.
Jon
Aug 7, 2007 at 5:15 pm
I’m not sure if anyone should purchase Google Cash Detective. I definitely regret buying it last month. I’m tracking lots of keywords with many different categories and it’s not useful to me at all.
You most definitely would not be able to get a refund from GCD. They say 30 day money back guarantee but make it hard as possible to find any e-mail or phone number to reach them with, I don’t know any way of reaching them. If anyone knows e-mails or phone numbers for them please tell me. I e-mailed Chris Carpenter with no response (I replied to a message I got after buying the GCD)
I really need to contact someone because they’re going to charge me for the automator which I don’t use or know how to use and I’m desperate to cancel! I do not want that to be charged to me on a monthly basis. I cannot afford it and I don’t use it.
Please nobody buy the Google Cash Detective. It’s just a way to steal your money with no option for a refund. Now they’re going to get me with the monthly bill for the damn automator! God help me! How can they do this to people?! I’m so frustrated….
mark
Aug 7, 2007 at 7:20 pm
Jon, I have a thought - if you’re using a charge card (can’t imagine any other way) dispute the charges now! Repeated requests without response warrant this action imho. You do not have to suffer because of the shortcomings of someone else!
Dave, a note - please… you’ve attempted that comment a couple of times now and it is waaaaay too much an advertisement for your product. I’m not approving the comment. Work around it.
Ed
Aug 7, 2007 at 8:19 pm
Some charge card companies require you to try and work it out with the vendor for a period of time before they will get involved. I found this out the hard way. Do NOT BUY Google Cash Detective under any circumstances!!
New Ad Spying Technology from Xyberwidget
Oct 16, 2007 at 7:51 pm
[…] Of course this has obviously been designed to supplant the shortcomings of a few previous products. […]
lockie
Nov 11, 2007 at 10:07 pm
Hi guys
Just to ad comment about GCD and Its operators , They are thieves , Ill tell you why on the launch of this product it was near impossible to get it .so after many attempts I finally got to a payment processor for the software only for it to say the card was denied , so I tried another card and it was denied also which was strange because I have plenty of funds In both accounts , so ok I thought I missed out on it , and moved on, but 2 monthe down the track I found out that GCD had deducted the purchase amount from the accounts ,so I contacted them to advise them of their mistake , and it took me ages to get them to believe me I didn’t have their product and no longer wanted It,so eventually they returned the moneys but I lost out on card charges , But wait this gets Better , now I find out that Mr Chris Carpenter and his associates at GCD have been deducting a monthly fee for their product from my 2 accounts for a product I don’t have and I’m not subscribed to them or any of their connected company’s,so to date as of the 12/11/2007 they have deducted a total amount of $661.00 , so I tried to contact them and guess what they won’t reply to all or any of my requests ,so I have now cancelled my card and trying to recoup my funds from the c/card company , So to all of you Don’t buy anything associated with Chris Carpenter or Scott Case who is his partner in GCD ,
Just one more not I’m trying to locate or find out who his merchant provider is because If we can get that info we all can then ring the company and tell them our situation, so then maybe with enough complaints they will take action on our behalf , This is my contact details for any info on this guys merchant account provider.
cheers lockie
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