Jul 24
AdSense Trials and Tribulations
Hey everybody, “Happy Tuesday”. It’s been approximately two weeks since I first installed the AdSense code on this site and I have been less than happy with the results. So far I have made a whopping $1.21. Now I’ve had experience with AdSense before on other sites, and with the visitors I have - and the impressions I’m getting, I would think that I would have received more clicks. Having said that though, my other site is a content site so it really is a different animal compared to my blog.
Here are the big differences when it comes to AdSense on my blog as I see them:
- Page Impressions - A visitor to my blog averages about 3 where my other site averages about 7. Obviously, more page impressions mean more ads shown meaning more chance of conversion.
- Ad Placement - My other site was designed FOR AdSense ads. This one is not. Because of this, I don’t have ads in the best places.
- Integration - The theme I’m using is very unique in that you can change the color of the text and links on the fly. Of course AdSense 101 says that your ads should blend in with the normal color of the site. And mine probably do for say, a third of the time.
And Here’s How I Plan to Address Them:
- Page Impressions - I don’t plan to address this one right now. I already have the Related Posts plugin up and running so aside from this, I could use the MORE tag or just link to a lot of other posts that I’ve written but I dunno…I will link to other posts of mine when appropriate, but I don’t think I’m going to kick it into overdrive unless it’s really going to enhance my user’s experience.
- Ad Placement - These past two weeks have been a trial of sorts in regards to ad positions. I have everything tagged and tracked, so I know what’s getting clicked and what’s not. For the next two weeks, I’m going to change the positions once again and go back and compare. Hopefully at the conclusion of all this I’ll be able to strip off the ads that I don’t need/aren’t getting clicked so I can maximize my eCPM.
- Integration - *sigh* I don’t know if I’m going to do anything here at this point. It took me a while to figure out how to deal with the color themes on here, specifically how to change the header on color selection. If I want to make sure my AdSense ads are matching with the site, I’m going to have to pick a specific theme and strip the others out. I don’t wanna do that!!!
And there you have it. At the beginning of next month I’ll be able to show you better the fruits of my labor. Not only with AdSense but with Review Me and PPP too! And it’s also been a while since I’ve put my site stats up, so I’ll probably share that too just so we can all see how things are matching up. (#):) What about you guys? Has anyone else been experimenting and tweaking THEIR ads? Can you suggest something other than AdSense that has worked for you? Or if you can, just share your experience with Adsense!
July 24th, 2007 at 12:08 pm
Top Right Hand Side Bar
The top right hand side bar has worked the best for me my Google Adsense is steadily increasing.
On another website I just have one ad featured on the top right hand side bar. The amount I make per click is very good it’s beat my average per day on Vegan Momma.
On Vegan Momma I was making about $2.00 per day with Adsense and now it’s a little over $3.00. It’s been a little over six weeks and I’ve made $75.11 it’s not great but I will do better.
Adsense Targeting
I implemented this a few weeks ago and noticed that my ads did changed mainly the ads were about Veganism or Raw foods but now other ads are featured. My targeting is focused on the content that I write so I placed the code in singlepost.php I also have Google ignore the code in my comments section so I placed the code in comments.php
SEO Friendly
I tossed my Southern Highlands theme because it wasn’t too SEO friendly. Once I changed to one that was my numbers went up. My old theme junked up my blog real quickly. I hated that.
I’m a newbie to Adsense so I’ll be eager to hear what others have to say on ths topic.
I applied with Kontera I’m waiting to hear back from them.
July 24th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
@Opal - As always, you have something good to contribute to the conversation. This one in particular made me take a cause for the pause and analyze what you said here versus what I can see plainly on your site. I think I may try and add your right top sidebar adsense to my next ’round of experimentin’.
And on the SEO front, it’s probably worth it to check out my site for that stuff too. Good points about putting code in other php files where it might not be influenced by this or that. And Opal - I’m pretty sure I know WHY you’re not doing it, so I WILL and I’ll let you know how it pans out next monthish. Of course I’m talking about the inline ad.
July 24th, 2007 at 12:35 pm
Where’s your SEO category?
Also I’ve checked Google Analytics and have placed ads in my highest searched post. Those have received clicks. When I create the adblock I label them as l “Arch” so I know they are different than my regular adblocks.
July 24th, 2007 at 12:47 pm
When I started blogging and thought it would be a quick way out of needing a day job I thought Adsense would be the answer. I have quickly realized that it just isn’t the case unless you are getting hundreds and thousands of visitors.
The way I treat Adsense on others pages is as a kind of content. I always take a quick note of the ads and if I want to visit any of the sites in the ads, even out of pure curiosity, I take the chance to click on them there and then.
I am convinced though that for some reason Adsense does not register all the clicks that you receive but I may be jumping on a conspiracy theory wagon here.
One day a few weeks ago I made $3.70 odd from 7 clicks. I have not made a penny since and seem to never have made a penny from page impressions, do you know how payment for this works?
So my final 2cents (more than I’ve made from Google in 2 weeks) is this. Adsense will hopefully one day be a small top up to the earnings of my online adventure but I don’t think it will ever support me.
I hope I will find some income from sponsored posts and when web savvy enough other websites. If anyone else has any good ideas for a newbie like me my ears are pricked!
July 24th, 2007 at 1:08 pm
@Opal - Are you referring to what category I put this post in? If that’s the case, there were times when writing this where I started walking on that fine line of talking about getting visitors to the site (seo) but I really wanted to stay more about the AdSense. Maybe tomorrow I’ll talk about ways to get more ppl here. (#):)
@Forest - For a couple months on another site of mine, I was making constant money from AdSense (like $25/mo) but all my traffic suddenly dropped off and my revenue along with it. So while I can’t jump on the conspiracy train, I do know the frusteration of AdSense not paying off the dividends. I do believe that some designs are better suited for it, but traffic is certainly a big factor and I think it’s harder to convert on blogs because our audience is often tech savvier than most.
Oh, and if you get PR and Alexa, you may want to try out ReviewMe, SponsoredReviews, or PPP.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:09 pm
@Forest Parks,
I think it can support you but you’ll need the traffic to get it and that takes time. I receive a few cents in paid impressions per day.
The highest paying reviews thought another company has been sponsored reviews. I placed a bid on three yesterday and was approved for them all. I’ve used the products and am still using one now. The total price for three reviews was $150. I have a week to complete them. That’s not bad at all.
July 24th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
@Bush,
I was wondering if you have a category dedicated to SEO I checked a few but they didn’t talk to much about it.
I’m not having problems with getting people to visit my website my traffic has doubled every month since April. It’s been a lot of work. That’s about the same time I started taking my blog seriously. I visit a lot of blogs, hopefully give helpful comments, so I think that has helped increase my numbers.
I still have a lot of lurkers on my website many contact me through email. I’m having a very hard time keeping up with my emails & comments.
My first full month with Adsense I made a little over $50, $51 to be exact. My goal, for the next four weeks is to make $60. I think my changes are very good.
The more I quality content I write. The more people visit. The more clicks I receive. I usually try to include reader participation in each post I write building a strong online community, for me, is very important.
I think this fall my Adsense will see a huge change, for the better, based on certain things I’ll be implementing. I also think when those changes fall into place I’ll see a significant increase in my traffic.
July 24th, 2007 at 2:22 pm
Sometimes you’ll get higher paying ads displayed and that’s good because it’s worth more per click and per impression.
The higher your PR, the more higher paying ads you’ll get. I think haha. Of course, your eCPM has a lot to do with it too.
I’m still working on the traffic angle.
July 24th, 2007 at 2:28 pm
@Opal - Yeah, I think you’re at that tipping point where something is going to happen and you’re just going to blow up. Whether that comes today, tomorrow or 5 years from now, I think it’s gonna happen.
And continuing with what you were saying earlier, I have read several people saying that you should (or at least give some thought to) writing link bait or articles sure to get picked up by the engines. This would probably help the AdSense but again for now I’m content to let everything go in the natural course of things. (#):)
July 24th, 2007 at 2:52 pm
@Bush,
I have problems with the link bait it still seems “weird” to me so I don’t do it. When I link I do it because I really like a person or am interested in what someone has done.
I did link to Dave Taylor a few months ago. He had written a book about coding. I was shocked when he stopped by and commented on my post but I didn’t do that to link bait, lol.
My post Six Tips To Naturally Lower Your Blood Pressure got picked in search engines it also got picked up by someone that tried to pass it off as their own. Nice. They tried to do that the day after I publishes it. I’m having problems getting them to take it down. Nice! Pfft!
Another thing I dislike is splogging see that is something else you can write about, lol. ;-)
July 24th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
@Brown - Really? I had NO IDEA that PR and your ad quality with AdSense was related. Hm. Is that really well known?
@Opal - Ha ha. thanks for giving me more ideas for posts. (#):) Oh, and I meant link bait as in writing articles that people naturally want to link to.
July 24th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
I wish like heck I could get the adsense plugin to work or at least know how to get the code to work when I paste it in a page. Nice site, btw. I really like the design of this template. Also, I don’t know if it is just me, or your server, but your site is taking a while to load. Hope you make a bit more on the adsense today. ;-)
July 24th, 2007 at 6:30 pm
@Bloggrrr - You know, maybe I should’ve mentioned that I don’t use the AdSense plugin! I’m guessing like Opal, I just throw the code into the right places in my php files.
And in regards to my server, it’s not…”you”. I don’t know WHAT’S up with Alexa right now, but their site is half down half up. Because I have the Alexa widget on my site, it’s making my site CRAWL. So thanks sincerely for putting up with it and I hope to see you around more. (#):)
July 24th, 2007 at 6:31 pm
@Bush,
Suppose they want to naturally link to crap, hee hee!
I usually get links to a few post per week but then again I’m not writing them for that reason. I write whatever is on my mind.
July 24th, 2007 at 6:47 pm
@Opal - Yeah, your site has the nice blend of business and personal that I think every blogger should strive for. *nod*
July 24th, 2007 at 7:22 pm
I understand the frustration with AdSense revenue. I have a theory about it that will be covered more thoroughly in an upcoming post (I’ve actually been writing it for a week now.) Basicaly boils down to the target audiance. Bloggers have all seen the same 4 or 5 ads all over the blogospere. If they were ever interested they clicked long ago. Also, I’ve noticed that I don’t get paid for clicks from asia and europe.
That’s my 2 cents ;-)
July 24th, 2007 at 8:59 pm
What kind of traffic do you get? Friends and feed readers?
Depending on your type of traffic, you will or won’t get clicks. I never get clicks from people that read my site. My clicks come from search engine traffic and non-technology oriented people.
Give it awhile to start working. Experiment with ad placement and such. Eventually it will start bringing in some supplement income, but it won’t ever be great income.
July 24th, 2007 at 11:28 pm
@Ad Tracker - I appreciate the 2 cents. (#):) Are you serious you don’t get clicks from Asia and Europe? How do you even know that? (And BTW, can’t wait to read the post!)
@Kyle - Like I said, I’m going to post some stuff next month with all kinds of stats. It’s too early for me to say anything in regards to my ads now since I just changed placements and such.
And you know, I didn’t think it could be great income either. But then I looked at connectedinternet.co.uk’s last month’s earnings $4K in AdSense revenue. Though you compare that with johnchow.com and he says he’s only getting $778!!! Nuts huh?
July 25th, 2007 at 12:17 am
@BrownBaron
Higher the PR higher the price you get..
is that true..??
I don’t think PR and price of ads are related as i got near about same price per click when i was at PR 0 and now when i was at PR 5 it has not increased further..nearly the same….lets see what happens when i get PR 6 :D
@Bush
working on traffic alone will give all answers of your queries..
with more traffic you can experiment with the ad placement and you will know instantly where your ads are best performing…and with some experience you can increase your CTR ..which will further increase your earning
July 25th, 2007 at 12:52 am
@Shashank - Yeah, I think I have enough now to start experimenting (which I have) but with a little more, I think I could have some definitive results. But, preliminary is better than nothing. (#):)
July 25th, 2007 at 3:53 am
The reason Connected Internet is making that much from Adsense is because the majority of its traffic comes from search engines. Like Kyle mentioned, most of the bloggers who visit won’t click ads. There are some that do as a gesture of thanks for a good post.
@Shashank:
Yeah, I think you’re right buddy.
July 25th, 2007 at 9:13 am
@Brown - Well I guess it’s time to make sure the site is SEO friendly then. (#):(
July 25th, 2007 at 12:38 pm
I agree with most of them . I am a regular reader of many blogs and i dont click on any ads .
July 25th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
@Madhur - Yeah, I agree too. I guess I forgot to put it here but I think I put it in another post of mine that the audience of your viewers I’m sure plays a big part in AdSense ads. Blog readers are usually more tech savvy than most resulting in lower clicks.
July 25th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
You need to run a celebrity blog like Perez Hilton. All those young kids will click on anything ;)
July 25th, 2007 at 1:45 pm
@Kyle = PHhHHH. The hell with that. (#):)
July 25th, 2007 at 1:49 pm
I’m still not convinced I should ad Adsense to my blogs. I have never had any luck with it on blogs or forums. I have one 12-page site that sometimes makes $20/day and that is the best luck I have had with Adsense overall.
We have to think about what kind of people are reading our sites. Are they ad-blind in general? I think the people who come to the site I amentioned above are a very special demographic, one of the few that is not blind to ads yet.
July 25th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
@Angie - Well $20/day is still pretty strong for extra side cash don’t ya think? I think there are a lot of people who would like to be in that position.
And yeah, I think you’re right in-regards to being “ad-blind”. That’s a good term too.
July 28th, 2007 at 7:43 am
[...] make a lot from them were others who have more “popular” sites do not (johnchow etc). Someone on my site said that this was because your site gets a lot of search engine traffic. I was wondering if this [...]
July 28th, 2007 at 7:54 am
I’m a bit ashamed that this is my first comment on your site :-(
Anyway, I think even before considering your traffic mix or choice of topics, there are things you can do to improve your adsense earnings if you are serious about trying to make some cash:
- lose the sidebar ad as it will bring your average CPC down because of Adsense Smart Pricing
- evaluate whether you need the big header as it’s pushing your content and ads down, and it’s creating ‘noise’
- consider losing the left-hand column as it’s creating noise around your main ad unit, and is taking up part of the hotspot. Removing it would also give you space to put the best performing 300×250 unit in the hotspot
- add section targetting to your site - vital
- consider your theme colours. In EVERY test I’ve done on usuability at work, blue links always work best as they scream ‘click me’ to novice internet users. They will draw more attention and the rest of your site would benefit as well. The same goes for white backgrounds - makes things easier to read
July 28th, 2007 at 11:20 am
@Everton - With a comment like that and your recent post on your site, I think I can give you a pass. (#):)
Wow. I knew some little tips and tricks for ad placement, but you’re really breaking it down into a science. Thanks for the tips, I’m sure they’re useful for every user but I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to break down my little ol’ site for me.
I think over the next month or two I’m gonna do a lot to try and implement a lot of the advice you have and see how it affects what I already have going. (I’m sure we all can guess what effect it will have). Thanks again!
August 3rd, 2007 at 6:02 am
[...] post (a true gem), and then went a step further as to come to my site and completely break down my obvious shortcomings! Here are highlights from his suggestions and how I’m trying to address [...]
August 3rd, 2007 at 11:31 pm
Hey Bush!
Sounds like Everton’s someone I should get to know. :)
I, too, recently learned about those AdSense tags from their forum. You may have noticed on my blog there’s plenty of ads that have a drum flavor to them because, duh, of my blog’s theme which has nothing to do with drums! So I’m planning on testing those tags out very soon.
Not sure I understand the suggestion to remove the ad in the sidebar though. That’s so common and a perfect spot for it. If you’re making money on it, then why not keep it?
The All-in-one SEO plugin is something I’m trying to tame myself. Guess I should modify all my posts before I get too much farther down the road and save myself the extra work. :)
August 4th, 2007 at 3:41 am
Mark - Adsense Smartpricing 101:
Google wants to make the most money possible - nothing wrong with that. At same time wants to give best CTR for advertisers - again nothing wrong with that. So, if you’ve got a sidebar unit that’s getting a low CTR which is bringing your site’s average CTR down then google will put it’s higher priced ads on a different site that has a higher CTR - that’s Smart pricing. So, by removing an ad unit that has a low CTR you can improve your site’s overall CTR meaning your best ad slots will get higher priced ads which in many cases will mean you will make more money, even though you’ve lost the income from the sidebar unit.
Same applies to sites as smart pricing is done at an account level - i you have a site with a poor CTR then remove adsense as it will affect your earnings on sites with higher CTRs.
August 4th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
@Mark - Mark, Everton. Everton, Mark.
@Everton - Thanks for stepping up and answering Mark’s comment! Shocker you did a fantastic job. (#);)