Legit Proxy Server - for SEM - good/bad or just ugly?

[elhaix]

The SEM application we use uses a proxy server. My first red flag on this was “So, has anyone looked into how this affects our clients’ rankings, or positioning?”

So far no one can give me an answer.

I am well aware of the black-hat tricks (

http://www.seofaststart.com/blog/google-proxy-hacking),

but what we’re doing is legit.

Here’s how the proxy tool works:

For an SEM campaign, the SEM link points to our proxy server to serve up the client’s page. However, minor details have been changed for tracking purposes (which is why the proxy server is used), such has phone numbers, email addresses, images with phone numbers, etc.

Now that’s not a significant amount of copy that’s changed on a page, but since it’s an SEM campaign, does it matter?

Also, I am curious about this proxying method. I mean, it would be best to just go in and change the content right on the client’s site, and install tracking js pixels (Clicktracks), wouldn’t it?

The problem with the current setup is that there are no metrics once the client leaves a proxied site, that is, if there’s a link to a page that doesn’t have any changed content, that would go to the client’s site – off the proxy site.

Anyhow, if anyone could shed some light on this for me, that would be fantastic!