Using Google Adsense on your website is probably one of the easiest ways to generate revenue online, but that's definitely not true for everyone. In fact several online newcomers often complain that they hardly get many clicks and the clicks they do get generate only pays them a dollar or two or even a few cents.
So what's the secret to getting Adsense to generate enough income to make it worth your while? Here are a few tips that have worked for me.
Niche sites produce higher payouts
Niche web sites typically generate more revenue simply because of the better search engine placement they get from being tightly focused. But not just any niche will do. The idea is to choose a niche that does well in the advertising market and that merchants are willing to pay more for advertising. Finance and loans is one such example.
Target the right keywords
To complement the above statement you need to find the keywords. High paying keywords will point you to the high paying niche markets.
So you definitely want to find the keywords that pay the most. Overture use to have a nifty keyword bidding tool that told you how much was being bid for a keyword however that tool is no longer available, too bad because I really liked it :- ( But after searching around for some time I came across Keyword Country
I found it to be quite useful for finding keywords. I've used Wordtracker a lot and still use it for my websites, blogs and advertising but found that it doesn't give me the CPC and the variety of the high paying keyword data that I need for using Adsense.
The problem is that a keyword may have a cost per click (CPC) of $50 or more, but its estimated cost per click (EPC) may only be $0.80. Consequently the problem to overcome is finding keywords that have a high CPC but also offer you a high EPC; you also need to know that there are enough advertisers for keywords. So you need a good tool that's going to give you this information accurately and Keyword Country does a great job of giving you thorough data.
Placement of Adsense Ads
Google suggests that the wider ads perform better and this is because of their reader-friendly format.
If you have an article page, placing ads directly below the end of the article typically perform better. That's probably because when a visitor finishes reading an article they are thinking about what to do next, if there's a compelling ad right there for them, they are likely to click on it.
AdSense blocks wrapped between the quality content also works well. You can use the medium or large rectangle format and place it in the flow of your content or to the right or left of it for best results.
For the websites having poor quality content, placing the Ads before the start of the content works well, but keep in mind that if you have a poor quality content website, you might get a high number of clicks, but you will be getting low priced ads. On the other hand, if you have quality content that keeps the visitors interested you may get a low CTR, but you will be getting high priced ads and regular visitors.
If you have horizontal links at the top of your page or at the bottom of your page that look like this:
Home | newsletter | About | Free Ebook | Archives | forum
Try displaying one of the following Adsense horizontal link units directly under your horizontal links:
(468×15) Displays up to 5 links
(468×15_4) Displays up to 4 links
(728×15) Displays up to 5 links
(728×15_4) Displays up to 4 links
Blend your ads
If you can blend your ads into your website so as not to make them look like ads you're likely to get more clicks. For example, removing the border and changing the background color so it blends with your sites background color is a popular strategy.
Use the same color schemes for you ad that your website uses. If your headline text color is green then using green for your ad's title will help it blend better. I like to keep the text of the ad in black and I use a dark gray color for the actual link color. Some suggest that keeping the link color in blue is better, however preferences vary there and I haven't experienced much of a difference in click through either way.
Blending your ads is pretty standard stuff but I'm amazed at how many people don't do this.
Use the Adsense Heat map
Google's done their homework in this area and based on tests and experience their Adsense Heat map illustrates the best locations on your web page to place your ads for higher click through.
It's also a good idea to keep your ads above the fold of your website. Keep in mind that this map is just a guideline and everyone will experience different click through rates, so it's always wise to experiment and take notes on what works and what doesn't.
Google Adsense Update:
Google Adsense just recently updated (Feb, 2008) their Google AdSense Online Standard Terms and Conditions located at:
https://www.google.com/adsense/localized-terms
If you use Adsense you would have received a notice to agree to the changes. What you may not have noticed is that Google is requiring Adsense users to update their website's privacy policy.
If you look closely at the terms and conditions under the 'program participation' section, you will notice at the end of the paragraph the statement that says:
"You must have and abide by an appropriate privacy policy that clearly discloses that third parties may be placing and reading cookies on your users’ browser, or using web beacons to collect information, in the course of ads being served on your website. Your privacy policy should also include information about user options for cookie management."
This means that if you use Google Adsense Ads on your website you must place a notice within your privacy policy that mentions the above. If you need an example you can have a look at my Homenotion.com privacy policy
For a lot more quality professional tips, Joel Comm, the Adsense specialist, is practically giving away his Adsense Secrets
Best,
Elizabeth
Tags: adsense · colors · google · headlines · keywords · marketer · marketers · marketing · niches · tips · wordtrackerNo Comments
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