|
Free Website Content - Adsense Tips
AdSense Tips
By S. Housley
AdSense allows website publishers to display
contextually relevant advertisements on their website. If
a web visitor "clicks" on an advertisement, the
web publisher will earn a percentage of the advertising
revenue generated as a result of the click. Many webmasters
have built content websites around the Google AdSense model.
In many cases the specific intent of the webmaster is to
profit from Google AdSense. Other webmasters use Google
AdSense to supplement their revenue. Regardless of the webmaster's
intent, the following tips will help webmasters looking
to profit from AdSense.
Top AdSense Tips:
1. Niche Sites.
Targeted niche sites that have a clear theme, tend to
generate more advertising revenue simply because it is easier
to achieve decent search engine placement. Be warned though,
you want to chose a niche where there is a sufficient number
of advertisements available.
2. Target Keywords.
When determining the sites focus, consider how much
the advertisers pay for the advertisements. If the site
is focused on ringtones, like Ringtone Central http://www.ringtones-central.com
the payout per click is going to be very small, as ringtones
are not high ticket items, advertisers will not spend a
lot on pay per click advertisements. With less obvious markets
use Overture to determine how much advertisers pay per keyword,
it is usually similar on Google. Search Overture for a keyword
then click "View Advertisers' Max Bids" in the
top right corner. This will show the Overture inventory
and how much is paid per keyword. Because the market has
become very competitive, it will be difficult to rank well
in search engines with a new website that is optimized for
the terms that have the highest payout. Consider targeting
terms that are moderately priced.
3. Aged Sites / Time.
Over time as a website is spidered by Google, advertisements
will generally increase in relevance. In general, older
websites will rank better in search engines. The closer
the advertisements relate to the webpage's content; the
higher the "click-through" the publishers will
see.
4. Coding.
In order to minimize a websites maintenance place the
Google generated AdSense code in the website template or
an include file. This will allow you to easily experiment
with different advertisement sizes and ad placement, and
keep the web maintenance to a minimum.
5. Tracking Channels.
In order to know how effective a specific website or
ad placement is use distinct channels and subchannels within
Google. This will allow you to discern what performs best
on a specific website. Using channels will tell you what
sites are making money, what advertisements are making money
and what ad position is the most profitable on a specific
website. Keep in mind that you should run an advertisement
for a full week, in order to properly test its effectiveness,
different days of the week will vary the web traffic so
comparing one week to another will give the most accurate
reflection of how effective a campaign performs.
When testing different advertisement sizes, placement or
color schemes be sure to leave campaigns in place for one
week, different days will often result in web traffic fluctuations.
Comparing web traffic, week to week will give a clear indication
of what ad formats perform the best.
6. Integrated Ad Placement.
Many webmasters have been successful at integrating
advertisements into a website. The easiest way to integrate
an advertisement into a website is to remove the advertisement
border. This will allow the ads to better blend with the
webpage. Google recommends contrasting the link colors with
the website colors to increase click-throughs. It is also
suggested that webmasters randomize the color of the advertisements,
so that frequent users will not naturally "filter"
the ads.
example of integrated ad placement: http://www.golf-clubhouse.net
or http://www.security-protection.net
7. Number vs Value of Advertisements.
Up to three advertisements can be listed on each page.
This decreases the value of the advertisements served, so
publishers should cautiously add advertisement units, as
it dilutes ad inventory. In other words you want to serve
the most expensive ads at all times.
8. Hot Spots.
Like web copy above the fold holds true with AdSense
as well. This means that advertisements that appear without
having to scroll will be read more frequently. Hot Spots
are areas on a web page that result in a higher percentage
of click-throughs. According to Google the highest paying
advertisements are located on the hot spots.
hot spots map - http://www.small-business-software.net/heat-map.htm
Google does not indicate if image advertisements or text
ads perform better, so webmasters are encouraged to experiment
with both.
9. Highest performing Ad Sizes.
According to Google the 336 x 280 rectangle, the 300
x250 rectangle and the 160 x 600 sky scraper result in the
highest number of click-throughs. Depending on the website's
design and layout, publishers may experience different results
with different ad sizes, placements and color schemes. Expirement
and track the results for each website to maximize the AdSense
payout.
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds and
podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for NotePage
http://www.notepage.net
a wireless text messaging software company.
**********************************************************
This article may be used freely in opt-in
publications and websites, provided that the resource box
is included and the links are active. A courtesy copy of
the issue or a link to any online posting would be greatly
appreciated send an email to sharon@notepage.net
.
Additional articles available for publication available
at http://www.small-business-software.net/free-website-content.htm
**********************************************************
|
