Looking to add an extra revenue stream to your website or blog?
Look no further than Google’s Ad-based money-maker, Google AdSense.
Google AdSense is the go-to contextual advertising platform, the most advanced and developed of the bunch.
Want to say that Google AdSense isn’t the only platform out there that lets you monetise your web content. But it’s the market leader, and the only one you’ve most likely heard of.
What’s Google AdSense?
AdSense is a Google-owned program that allows website owners and bloggers to make money online by displaying ads. You’ve probably come across many of these ads on people’s websites and blogs.
These ads are paid for by advertisers, with Google taking the biggest cut and you, the blogger, taking the smallest. But still, Google AdSense can be a great way to monetise your website or to add an extra stream of income.
How Does Google AdSense Work?
Here’s a basic breakdown of how Google AdSense works.
You apply for a Google AdSense account. Upon approval, you’ll be provided with a code that you can add to your blog or website.
You also get to decide where you want the ads to appear, how you want them to look, and even the type of advertisements that you accept.
You immediately start earning (based on the views and the number of clicks the ad is getting). Once you get to Google’s minimum threshold of $100, you can request Google to either deposit the cash directly into your bank account or to send you a paper cheque.
What Type of Ads Does Google AdSense Serve?
The type of ads you’ll receive from Google AdSense will always vary depending on your niche.
You’re also allowed to select ad spaces, or where you want the ads to show. Google will negotiate for those spaces on your behalf. In which case, the highest bidder secures the spot.
The Ads displayed on your site will strictly be or at least closely related to your niche. These ads might slightly vary depending on what type of content you have on that particular webpage.
How Does Google AdSense Find Relevant Ads?
Google AdSense considers keyword phrases while serving these ads. It essentially tries to match the keywords that you’ve optimised your website content for with the keywords the advertiser specified.
The system is designed to analyse keywords, font size, keyword frequency, and the overall structure of your website to determine which ads suit it best.
On the advertiser’s side (on Google Ads), the advertiser has to set keywords, ad placement, and ad sizes.
The input from both the advertiser and publisher are then compared by the Google Display Network to find an ideal match.
The Targeting Options for Google AdSense
-
Contextual Targeting
The Google AdSense system searches for ads based on the keywords you’ve used on a webpage, having matched them with the keywords that the advertiser used on their campaign.
-
Placement Targeting
This is where the advertiser specifies their ad size or placement. It could be on the sidebar, above the page, below the page, and so on.
-
Personalised Targeting
This is where the ads are targeted to users with a specific interest, such as traveling or sports. Users must be allowed to opt out of a personalised ad for privacy compliance.
-
Run of Network
Run of Network allows advertisers to target every website in the AdSense Network, save for explicitly excluded ones.
Two Ways to Make Money From Google AdSense
There are two ways bloggers can make money from Google AdSense.
Based on Impressions: With this option, you get paid based on the number of views the page with the ad receives. How many eyeballs does the page with the ad attract?
Based on Clicks: With this option, you only get paid when someone clicks on your ads. One caveat, though: clicking on your own ads to trick Google into paying you, will only get your Google AdSense banned (we’ll be delving much into this later).
How Google AdSense Payments Work
Google has a minimum payment threshold of $100. You need to earn this amount in ad revenue to be paid by Google.
You also want to remember that Google makes payments 30 days after your invoice is due (net 30 term of payment). That means you have to wait for 30 days for your ad revenue to be sent to you.
Meaning, your September ad revenue (in case it hits the billable amount) will only be sent to you in November (the first week).
How Much Can You Make From Google AdSense?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mZ7ef88n-os
How much traffic should your site drive to make a decent amount of money off the Google AdSense program?
Perhaps the right question to ask is, how much money do you wish to make off this platform?
Let’s start with $3000 per month. This still puts you in the lower middle class. But it’s decent for a start and easy to calculate.
$3000 per month translates to $100 per day.
Now Gather Some Data
After setting your financial goals, the next thing you want to do is gather some critical data. Bear in mind that the CPC amount you earn will vary depending on the niche you’re in.
If you’re in a mid-range CPC niche, then you can earn about $0.25 with every click you get. This amount can be high in some niches and very low in others.
While some niches earn as low as $0.01 per click, others earn as much as $20 per click. In most cases, the niches that pay high CPC may require you to target a particular niche audience that’s not easy to come by.
After figuring out your CPC, the next thing you want to figure out is your click-through rate (CTR). If you’ve ever run ads before, just go through analytics to get a sense of how this works.
However, if you never have, then your only choice is to run the ads and find out what your CTR is. In most cases, the CTR tends to hang around 1%.
Do Some Calculations
This is where you do some little bit of maths to find out how much traffic you need to drive to your website per day.
Going with the 1% CTR. That means for every 100 visitors you attract to your site, only one is likely to click on your ad.
In which case, you’ll be earning $0.25 for every 100 visitors you attract to your site.
To make $1, you’ll need 400 visitors.
Now multiply that by 100 since we’re aiming at $100 per day, and that translates to about 40, 000 visitors.
40, 000 views in a day might look like much. But it isn’t when you have 400 blog posts. You only need 100 views on each post, and you’d have met your daily target.
10 Ways to Boost Your CTR and CPC
There are a few actions you can undertake to boost your CTR and CPC. We’ve identified a few in this section of the post:
-
Place Your Ads in a More Visible Position
Use heat maps and activity trackers to identify strategic positions with most clicks. The goal is to avoid banner blindness by placing your ads where they can be easily seen and clicked.
-
Use Larger Ad Formats
These ads come with no guarantee, especially when they interrupt your content. But they’re better off than small ads easily slipped out of the way.
-
Avoid Strange-Shaped Ads
These ads stand out. But they’re rarely picked by advertisers. Meaning, there’ll be fewer ads and reduced payments for them.
-
Rotate Your Ads
About changing your Ad Content, Google will automatically do it for you. What we’re referring to here is you changing your ad position, so users don’t get bored with them. Place them at different strategic locations and note the difference in the reaction they generate.
-
Try to Reduce Your Bounce Rate and Work on Increasing the Amount of Time Users Spend on Your Website
The easiest way to go about this is to work on your internal links and focus on generating more in-depth content. The more time people hang on your website, the more they’re exposed to your ads, and the more likely they’ll be tempted to click on it.
-
Implement a Custom Google Search Box
After your website grows, you can implement a custom Google search box. That way, Google can display their paid search results ads in your website’s results for an extra ad unit (read: more ad money).
-
Expand Your Niche
It’s good to be niche-specific while you’re starting out. But after you’ve established your authority and cemented your place in your niche market, you can branch out by looking for a similar niche or related one with a higher CPC. However, you want to make sure you’re picking a niche that’s so similar to your current niche to avoid rebranding or using excessive marketing effort.
-
Serve both Mobile and Mobile-capable Ads
If you can’t serve either of these, then you should at least consider implementing those lucrative little banners.
-
Restrict Geographic Targeting
Restrict your ads primarily to English-first countries such as Australia and the USA. These countries tend to pay higher CPC compared to countries such as China and India.
-
Buy Traffic the Legal Way
There’s no harm in paying for traffic. So long as it’s real traffic, not bot-generated one, you can bet Google won’t have any issue with it. What this means is that you can buy traffic through Facebook ads, as opposed to buying it from a guy on Fiverr or Seoclerk.
On the flip side, this is a line you’d want to tread more carefully, considering purchased traffic tends to have a lower CTR that could cut into your profits. It also robs the leeway to make money off the traffic you get, considering you’ll be paying to gain it rather than using organic means.
Eligibility Criteria for Google AdSense
Google AdSense is a great way to make some pocket change from a mi-sized blog or website. But it does come with its share of possible pitfalls that you may have to contend with.
Besides needing a decent amount of traffic to make any serious money on the platform, you want to make sure that you’re meeting all of Google’s eligibility requirements for AdSense,
as listed below:
-
You Must Be Above 18 Years
Google AdSense is only eligible for those above the legal age of 18 years. So as a precocious 16-year-old with a site, you must wait until you’re at least 18 years of age to start earning through the platform. Alternatively, you can use your parent’s information to register as you wait until you’re older to apply as yourself.
-
You Must Own the Site and Be in Full Control of It
You cannot monetise someone else’s website or content. You must be in control of your site and all of its content. In other words, any attempt to publish content that does not belong to you puts you at risk of getting banned from Google AdSense platform.
The only exception to this is when your site has syndication rights to republish content from a few selected sources.
-
Your Website Must Be Unique and Interesting
Google will first analyse your website content before approving it for AdSense. If they find out that your website is filled with scraped content or thin pages or content that doesn’t serve any value to the reader, then it’s no hard guess that they’ll decline your application. Nothing is scary, though—the bar isn’t that high. Just pick a niche and focus on giving people something they might actually like.
-
Your Site’s Navigation Must Be Clear
Navigation is what makes it possible for users to find their way around your website’s content. So, before Google approves your site or blog for AdSense, they’ll first have their team review it for navigation.
During the review process, here what Google expects your site to have:
-
- A navigation bar or menu that’s easy to access
- A menu bar with correctly lined up elements
- Easy-to-read text on your bar
- Drop-downs, links, and elements that work correctly, as intended
The “standard web design” everyone talks about doesn’t work with Google. You’re free to use anything that makes sense. Whether it’s an inverted sidebar, footer menu, or a vertical sidebar, provided it’s functional and straightforward, Google will not hold it against you.
-
No Fake Traffic
This one is pretty obvious.
You cannot outsmart Google. Whatever trick you think you can use to game the Google system into giving you free money, just know they’re several miles ahead of you.
Fake traffic will not just get your application rejected; it will get you banned from ever using the platform.
-
Google’s Content Policy
Google has a content policy that dictates what type of content you can or cannot monetise with its AdSense program.
In this policy, they have clearly stated that they do not monetise pornography, adult content, excessive profanity, malware, threats, shock content, drug content, hacking content, weapon sales, and more.
Google will never accept your application if your content falls in any of the following categories:
|
|
|
|
-
You Cannot Monetise Copyrighted Content
Every piece of content that you publish on your website – whether text, image or video – should not bear any copyright claim. You have to make sure you have full permission to use the content for Google to approve your AdSense account.
Here’s the thing:
Your pages must contain the content you wrote yourself, images that you created yourself, and a logo that you either paid someone to create for you or which you created yourself. Any attempt to use someone else’s material, without first asking for their permission, will not only get you rejected or but also banned from ever accessing your AdSense account.
-
You Must Blog or Write in One of the Supported Languages
Google only supports a small selection of languages for its AdSense program. They’re doing this to make sure your ads are readable to those viewing them.
You’re allowed to use bilingual language with an unsupported language. However, you have to make sure the majority of your content is in one of their supported languages.
Here’s a listed of languages that are supported for Google AdSense:
| 1. Arabic
2. Bengali 3. Bulgarian 4. Catalan 5. Chinese (simplified and traditional) 6. Croatian, Czech 7. Danish 8. Dutch
|
9. English
10.Estonian 11.Filipino 12.Finnish 13.French 14.German 15.Greek 16.Hebrew 17.Hindi 18.Hungarian 19.Indonesian 20.Italian
|
21.Japanese
22.Korean 23.Latvian 24.Lithuanian 25.Malay 26.Marathi 27.Norwegian 28.Polish 29.Portuguese 30.Romanian 31.Russian 32.Serbian
|
33.Slovak
34.Slovenian 35.Spanish (traditional and Latin American) 36.Swedish 37.Tamil 38.Telugu 39.Thai 40.Turkish
|
41.Ukrainian
42.Urdu Vietnamese |
You have to note that some of these languages are supported for Google AdSense, but their support doesn’t extend to the AdSense dashboard. Plus, Google is in the process of rolling out its support in other languages.
-
Google Will Never Approve a Site with an Abusive Experience
Not just reject, Google will ban any site that has a history of being manipulative, false, harmful, or misleading. In other words, Google has zero-tolerance for any site that’s ever been involved in any form of malpractice or misconduct:
Examples of these practises include:
-
- Any site that lures users to click on their ads using page elements such as system warnings, chat apps, and dialogues boxes. To keep it short, Google is against anything misleading.
- A section of a page that’s clickable even though there’s no indicator for that.
- Misleading buttons and links. For instance, using a next page arrow that redirects users to a landing page instead.
- Scripts that manipulate browser history, resulting in a back button that redirects users to a landing page instead.
- Any attempt to lure users into clicking a button or link by making them believe that they have already clicked on it
- Any sort of malware installed on your website
Basically, any scamming attempt to get users to do something that they’re not aware of is enough to get your Google AdSense account banned.
Unofficial Eligibility Requirements for Google AdSense
Google has officially documented all the above eligibility requirements. However, there are a few that are not exactly documented but might be the reason your application never gets approved.
-
Your Website Must Have Technical Pages
Google hasn’t documented this anywhere. But it’s one of the few factors that might actually get your application rejected.
A technical page, in this case, refers to the big three: an about us, privacy policy, and contact us pages.
An about us page is encouraged because it helps to build trust by informing your users about who you are and the legitimacy of your brand. The same applies to your contact page. By providing your phone number and address, you make your business appear more trustworthy.
-
Your Website Must Be At Least Six Months Old
This is another one of Google’s Unwritten policies that could also affect the outcome of your application.
Google AdSense was a snap to apply when they were starting. But people began to take advantage of the system by submitting tons of low-quality websites. So, they decided to raise their standards.
They had to tighten their vetting process – and even though you can still get a one-month site approved, it’s an uphill battle when your site is new.
-
Sufficient Traffic for Your Website
Other factors held constant; Google will never reject your site for not having enough traffic. But there are times when they might be tempted to.
Additionally, you can’t earn enough when your website is not driving enough traffic. So yes, you need to work on your web traffic first before you even think of applying for a Google AdSense account.
How to Apply for a Google AdSense Account
- Assuming your site meets all the 12 Google AdSense eligibility criteria, the next thing you want to do is to proceed with the application process.
- At the top-right corner of the page, click on get started, and you’ll be directed to a page that prompts you to enter your site’s URL and email address. You’ll also be asked to check between two boxes: the first allows Google to send you customised email messages on how to optimise your website’s content for Adsense, while the second one prohibits them from doing so.
- On the next page, you’ll be provided with all the instructions you need to connect your site with Google AdSense. You’ll also be provided with a snippet code that you’ll need to add in between your head tags (<head></head>). You’ll be provided with a clear, step-by-step guide on how to do this.
- Complete the form provided, which requires you to give Google more information on your site’s content.
- You’ll also be guided on how to insert this code on your WordPress site. Once you’ve inserted this code, go ahead and click on “submit.”
- That’s pretty much like it. Your site is now ready for review. However, you have to make sure the code snippet remains on your site until the review is done or until you hear from Google AdSense.
The response period may range from a day to two weeks. So, learn to exercise patience
How to Tell if Your Google AdSense Account Has Been Approved
Of course, you’ll be notified via email. But in case you miss to see that, you can log into your AdSense account. If you see ad stats, that means your account has been approved.
What Happens After Your Google AdSense Applications Gets Rejected?
When your application gets rejected, you have two things to try out.
Fix the Suggested Issues and Reapply
Google will not just reject your application. They’ll specify all the issues that prompted their decision and even offer you a chance to fix it and reapply. Remember that there’s no limit as to the number of times you can reapply. Every time Google rejects your application, just fix all the suggested issues and reapply again and again until they finally approve it.
Try Applying With Alternative Ad Networks
Google AdSense is not the only Ad Networks you can apply with. There are so many alternatives, less strict and not quite as rigid as Google AdSense.
Don’t despair when one door closes. Just try another as you wait to reapply and see what happens.
Google AdSense Alternatives
Here are more Ad Networks that are less strict than Google Analytics:
Media.net
Yahoo powers this Ad Network. It’s quite similar to Google AdSense, with a higher CPM than any other AdSense alternative on the list. Plus, it’s less strict and easy to get approved so long as you run a quality blog.
Advantages of Media.net
- You’ll earn an additional 10% for the first three months
- Minimum Payout: $100
- Payment Method: Payoneer, Bank Wire, PayPal
BidVertiser
BidVertiser is another Google AdSense alternative that pays for the valid clicks that the ads on your website get. It’s a great Google AdSense alternative should your AdSense application fail to go through or in case you get banned.
BidVertiser offers all kinds of ads: Text Ads, Banner Ads, Slider Ads. Mobile Ads etc. You can even promote your toolbar and get paid for it.
Minimum Payout: $10
Payment Method: Checks, PayPal
Infolinks
Infolinks is a leading advertising network for in-text ads. Better, new bloggers pocket 70% of the revenue share.
It’s so different from other ad networks and can even run simultaneously with other Ad networks, including Google AdSense.
The platform pays per click, with advertising options such as in-search ads, in-tag ads, in-text ads, and inframe ads.
Minimum Payout: $50
Payment Methods: Wire Transfer, PayPal, Western Union, eCheck, and Payoneer
Google AdWords Vs. Google AdSense: What’s the Difference?
The main difference between Google AdWords is while Google AdWords is an advertising platform for advertisers, Google AdSense is a monetisation platform for publishers.
In other words, Google AdWords was created for Advertisers, while Google AdSense was created for web publishers.
When you need to advertise your business or products on Google, Google Display Network, as well as the Google Search Network, the platform to visit is Google AdWords.
If you plan to drive targeted traffic to your site in the hopes that this traffic may convert to sales, then the platform to use is Google AdWords.
Google AdSense, on the other hand, is all about monetising your blog or website. It’s a platform that’s solely reserved for publishers. Publishers receive part of the advertising money every time someone clicks on an ad, as the rest goes to Google.
If your website has enough visitors or readers, Google AdSense can be a great way to generate some revenue on the side.
More Differences Between Google AdWords (Google Ads) and Google AdSense
The Two Were Launched at Different Times
Google Ads have been around for longer.
They were first introduced in 2000, while Google AdSense was launched in 2003.
This makes Google AdWords three years older than Google AdSense.
Different Ways of Setting up Your Account
How you set up your Google Ads account isn’t the same way you also set up your Google AdSense account.
If anything, setting up a Google Ads account is way easier – more like signing up on Facebook. All you have to do is create a Gmail account, and then proceed to sign up your Google Ads account using the email and a password. Next, set your currency preference and time, and voila! You have created a Google Ads account.
Google AdSense, on the other hand, is a bit complicated and strict to set up. Plus, you have to wait up to two weeks for your account to be approved before you can proceed with anything.
Pros and Cons of Google AdSense
Pros
- Completely free to sign up: Google AdSense is a revenue-sharing platform that can only make money if you (the publisher) also makes money.
- Easy to both use and manage: Google AdSense has a simple dashboard that you can use to create ad units, optimise then, check your monthly earnings, and even experiment with different things.
Cons
- Straightforward eligibility standards: If your content is original and your site meets all the eligibility criteria documented by Google, your site will be approved even if it’s only one month old.
- Secure Google Approved Ads: Google does all the safe-checking for you. So, at no point will your site feature obscene or abusive ads.
- Add multiple blogs, websites, and YouTube channels: Once your AdSense account has been approved, you can link it with multiple blogs, websites, and YouTube channels, and even manage all of them from a single location.
- Unforgiving if you violate their policies: Any violation of Google AdSense policies will instantly get your account terminated. It may take months for things to get back to normal, or you may even be completely banned from ever using Google AdSense again.
- Transparency issues: Google has never revealed its revenue sharing percentage. It’s a black box for publishers that want to understand the true potential of their earnings.
- No Trending features: New technologies such as Ad Refresh and customisable pricing have emerged with many of these ad networks adopting then. But for unknown reasons, Google prefers to keep its AdSense platform simple. They really don’t offer much in terms of ad optimisation features.
- Second-hand pricing model: While some other Google products such as GAM have adopted a unified first-price auction model, AdSense still uses a generalised, old-fashioned second-price auction. So, instead of the publisher getting the price that the highest bidding advertiser agreed to pay, they have no choice but to contend with the second-highest + 1 cent.
10 Advanced Google AdSense Optimisation Tips to Generate More Ad Revenue
According to statistics, 97% of potential local customers search for local businesses on Google. A stellar website will help communicate with the audience and sell your brand to them. However, you may want to monetize it to create a new stream of income.
That is when online ads come into the picture. Website monetization has become easier thanks to Google AdSense. The platform allows users to easily set up accounts, and if used correctly, it can quickly boost your revenues.
Even though this strategy has tremendous benefits, you need to put in some effort through AdSense optimisation to see results. While Google tries to make the platform simple for users, you have to keep learning ways to improve it. Once you have understood how to post the ads on your website, the income growth will be unbounded.
Here are 10 tested and proven hacks on how to set your site to maximize AdSense earnings.
-
Make Your Site Sticky
People visiting your website may not click your AdSense ads right away. If they leave after looking at only one page, it means that you have lost an opportunity to earn. Therefore, you need to create engaging content.
Engaging content will ensure every visitor to your website wants to read more about your business.
There are many ways you can use to make your site sticky. First, ensure you have straightforward navigation at the top of your site. This way, visitors can quickly access the essential information.
Next, link each piece of content to other articles that give further information. So, if your visitor doesn’t like the page they’re on, they may click on a link to other topics that interests them.
Finally, put more content links in the sidebar. These links will help your visitors know your most renowned content and your most shared and commented-on content.
These visitors may also want to know why those particular pieces of content are popular. As a result, they will stay on your website for longer. The more your sites are loaded, the more adverts they are likely to view, resulting in increased Google AdSense earnings.
-
Optimize Your User Experience
Use experience is something that many website owners struggle with in Singapore. You may have the best content and the best ad placement, but if your site loads slowly or doesn’t load on mobile devices, all that is useless. This is because many people will leave your site before they even get to read your content or click your ads.
Therefore, you must take a few measures to improve your website. First, conduct some easy tests using Google’s Test My Site tool to confirm that your site is mobile-friendly and loads quickly. This tool will alert you if there is any problems that need to be resolved.
Next, create an account on Google Analytics and Google Search Console if you haven’t. Google Analytics will help you track your traffic numbers. So, if you see a dip, you can investigate it immediately.
On the other hand, Google Search Console provides several tools to assist you in figuring out whether your website has any performance difficulties. It will also help you detect other faults that may be causing trouble for your visitors.
The best thing about the tools mentioned above is that they are entirely free. They also have premium options to help you improve the user experience on your website.
-
Find the Right Keywords for Your Site
Besides creating compelling content, you should also try to find out the keywords people use when searching for your website. Using the right keywords will help you optimize your site for search engines. Optimizing your website will lead to more organic traffic, which equals more clicks, leading to more Google AdSense earnings.
You can search for these keywords using the Monster Insights Search Console report. One of the best things about this report is that it gives information on the number of clicks, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), and average position of every search term.
This information is beneficial since it can be used to improve your website for related keywords. It also aids in the discovery of content subjects for which you may write and rank.
Another advantage of using the report is that you can discover which keywords you should target to boost your AdSense earnings. Advertisers, for example, could be interested in transactional keywords or search phrases that lead to a sale or conversion.
-
Follow Recommended Ad Styles Best Practices
To increase your AdSense earnings in Singapore, the style and size of your advertisements may make the difference between ads that your visitors notice and click and ones that they ignore.
When choosing ad styles, the objective should be to increase visibility and reduce ad blindness. To get better results, Google recommends using colours that already exist on your site to write the ad texts and links.
The following are some of the proven strategies that can drive people to click links to create ad styles.
Blend – Use the same colour as your page for your ad units’ borders and backgrounds.
Complement – Use colours already on your website, but don’t match the background and borders exactly where the advertisements are positioned.
Contrast – Pick colours that stand out against your site’s background for your ad units.
-
Try Using AdSense for Search
Photo credit: Google AdSense
For a better user experience, most websites in Singapore have a search bar on every page. The search bar assists readers in finding the material they want to read easily. Therefore, you can try using Google AdSense for Search.
AdSense for Search enhances your earnings by displaying Google Ads on related search results and at the top of the page. Publishers put AdSense for Search on their websites together with a few codes. Users are then required to put some keywords on the search bar to get their desired results.
It is important to note that the website owners only earn when users click the search results.
If you are yet to activate AdSense for Search, you may do so in a short time by following some simple instructions. You should first click on Get started with AdSense for Search, paste the code on your website, and you are ready to go. It is also important to note that you cannot modify the code in any way.
After activating the AdSense for Search, you can proceed to use it in the following two ways. You can set up custom search engines or custom channels.
Setting up Custom search engines usually results in very high Revolutions Per Minute (RPM). On the other hand, setting up Custom channels allows you to understand better what works and what doesn’t. Therefore, it allows you to optimize this Service effectively.
You can also make the Google Search bar look like an ordinary search bar by customizing it. Website owners can customize the appearance of the search engine by modifying the layout, colours or selecting from already existing themes. You may also choose whether or not particular websites should appear in the search results.
-
Run A/B Tests
Photo credits: towardsdatascience.com
You may compare one of your ad settings to its variant by running tests. You can run tests using the A/B testing tools where you are required to split the traffic on your site between the original ad setting and the variant. This makes it easier to assess performance.
Additionally, to perform tests, you won’t need to modify your ad or page code.
Experimenting allows you to make more informed decisions regarding the optimal ad placement position. As a result, you have complete control over creating, monitoring, and selecting the winner among your ad settings.
When carrying out these experiments, Google keeps informing users about the experiment and how they may participate.
Publishers are encouraged to try Google’s suggestions to get more organic traffic and consequently boost ad revenue. There are two types of tests you can conduct, namely:
-
Blocking Controls
Publishers may use the AdSense Blocking Controls experiment to test general ad categories, sensitive ad categories, and ad serving.
For General ad categories, website owners can block adverts from clothing lines, the internet, real estate, and vehicles. The general ad blocking category is possible only for adverts in a limited set of languages, regardless of your site’s language.
The sensitive ad category can help in blocking adverts from drugs, casinos, religion, and many others.
For ad-serving settings, you can control ad format and auction patterns in AdSense. Such settings include blocking user-based ads or allowing other ad technology vendors in your account.
Auto Ads
Experiments with auto advertising allow you to test web pages with and without auto advertisements. You can determine whether auto ad placements perform better or worse than the ad units you put on the web pages depending on the results of this test.
These tests will assist you in increase the RPM of your ad units. Your duty is to conduct the experiment, and after that, AdSense will pick a winner automatically when the experiment is over.
The experiment normally takes between 60 to 90 days. However, you may stop the experiment before it ends and pick a winner. As soon as the winner is chosen, AdSense instantly assigns modifications to that particular ad, and it starts appearing on your site immediately.
-
Use Link Units
Link Units are worth putting on your site since leaderboards and rectangles can generate a lot of money. Therefore, you should pay special attention to them.
You can use these units up to three times on a page to see if you can increase your ad revenue quickly. To get clicks, ensure the link ad units match the web content.
Link units, like the other ad units, have two options. They include responsive and fixed link ads.
It is not enough to just place ad units on your website. Be sure to place them in strategic locations and choose the correct ad size. The size of the ad also determines your revenue.
The horizontal link ad unit sizes are 728*15, 468*15, while the vertical link ad unit sizes are 200*90, 180*90, 160*90, 120*90.
According to a SEMrush study, the most common sizes that attract the eye and generate significant income are 729*90 and 300*250.
Try different ad units in several locations on your site to see what works best for you. But, the essential factor is to analyze and optimize. It would be great to use the report generated to analyze ad behavior, revenue generation, cost Per Click (CPC), and RPM before acting on it.
-
Try Various Targeting Options
After learning how to choose the best ad sizes, you should now focus on where to place the ads. Ad placement is one of the critical factors that will determine your Google AdSense earnings.
Here are three of the best places to position your ads.
Ads within Content
Placing your ad at the center of the article guarantees grasping the visitors’ attention. They may either click on the ad or engage with the information on the page.
Under The Navigation Menu
The ideal position to capture a user’s attention is below the navigation menu and above the text, with an ad size of 728*90. The ad is small enough not to interfere with your site’s content while still trying to get people to click the ad.
Sidebar Whitespace
This includes the web page’s sidebars on both sides- on the left or right. Long vertical advertisements are known to get a lot of impressions and clicks. This is because they’re big and have striking images that grab people’s attention.
-
Invest in AdSense Arbitrage
Photo credits: publift.com
According to Google’s official policy, you can use third-party services to generate traffic to your site.
This practice has its risks since it can either boosts your earnings or reduces them. So, it is your duty to acquire quality traffic that does not compromise your site’s efficiency. Check to see whether the traffic you’re buying is not a bot or fraudulent. This might lead to invalid clicks.
You can do the following to get traffic for your Google AdSense.
-
- Use native advertising networks like Taboola to promote your content
- Run targeted Facebook ads
Watch this YouTube Video for more insights on how to earn more using Google AdSense.
https://youtu.be/mZ7ef88n-os
Which are the highest-performing Google AdSense banner formats and sizes? This is the most common question that beginners ask when they sign up on Google AdSense. Generally, some of the ad formats on Google AdSense are more perceptible than others. Therefore, they are bound to garner more clicks and leads in Singapore, thus generating more revenue for website owners.
As an advertiser or website owner, you need to know about the highest-performing Google AdSense banner formats and sizes. Similar, you should know where to place them to guarantee the best results.
How to Set Up Google AdSense Ads Properly in WordPress
You must sign up for an AdSense account before getting started. By default, you can come across Google AdSense ads on your site’s sidebar. Similarly, some of the WordPress themes have dedicated areas for displaying these ads.
Nonetheless, the easiest way to manage Google AdSense ads on WordPress is through the use of ad management plugins. AdSanity is the most recommended ad management plugin since it is easy to use and also allows you to insert ads easily into sidebars. Posting content is also easy.
Google AdSense typically comes with multiple ad formats and banner sizes, which you can add to your site. Even so, you have to keep in mind the fact that not all of those banners and formats produce the desired results.
Ads that are easily visible when your pages load and are closer to your content will get higher click-through rates (CTR). This highlights the significance of choosing ads that come in sizes that are easily noticeable. If you select ad sizes that are either too large or too small, users won’t pay attention to them.
You also have to consider the number of advertisers who are running ads in the format that you have chosen. Some ad banners and formats are popular with advertisers. This means that when you use them, you get larger inventories as well as better paying ads.
Some ad formats and banners are optimized for mobile. If most of your users access your site via mobile devices, these ads will undoubtedly perform better on your site compared to other sizes and formats.
Often, website owners try out different banners in a bid to determine the formats and sizes that work best on their sites. On their part, Google AdSense technicians regularly run tests to determine how ads perform on participating websites. These are some of the best performing ad formats and banner sizes.
-
The Medium Rectangle (300×250)
If you are looking for an ad format that supports text and display ads, and can also work with mobile layouts, consider using The Medium Rectangle. Arguably, the most incredible thing about this ad size is the fact that it is easy to find on your sidebar and within the content areas without annoying users.
It doesn’t come as a surprise that The Medium Rectangle often gets a more significant ad inventory. Consequently, it attracts better-paying ads to your website. The ad format is perfectly-sized for most in-content ads and also has the best click-through rates for most sites.
-
Large Rectangle (336×280)
This ad format is larger than The Medium Rectangle. Similarly, it is also more noticeable but may not fit onto all website sidebars. The ad format also isn’t mobile optimized. If the content area of your website or the sidebar is narrow, the ad can squeeze your content. This isn’t good as far as the user experience is concerned.
The Large Triangle also outperforms The Medium Triangle on your site, especially if it’s placed within your website’s content area between paragraphs. The ad format supports both text and image ads. Due to its ideal placement and size, The Large Triangle can also attract a good ad inventory.
-
The Leaderboard (728×90)
The Leaderboard is a typical banner ad size, which is perfect for website headers. It supports both image and text ad formats. Nonetheless, The Leaderboard does not support mobile ads.
The prominent placement of this ad format within or after your website header means that it gets lots of ads. The size of the ad format and its prominent placement also means that it can perform incredibly on most sites.
-
Large Skyscraper (300×600)
Also known as Half Page, this full-sized vertical banner can attract significant attention from advertisers especially those who are looking for more ad space that they can use to pass across their message when retargeting.
The popularity of this ad banner among publishers has been growing in recent years since it gives brands more exposure. Therefore, Large Skyscraper attracts best-paying ads. The banner can be placed on the sidebar or alongside the content. However, it may not work for all websites due to its size.
-
Large Mobile Banner (320×100)
If you are searching for mobile ad formats, look no further than Large Mobile Banner. It has a striking resemblance to The Leaderboard ad format especially when it comes to ad effectiveness. Large Mobile Banner is most effective with mobile devices. It works best if you place it before or just below your website’s header.
Most Internet users access websites via mobile devices. Therefore, this ad format guarantees a better ad inventory. It can get incorporated into your site as a non-intrusive ad or as an alternative to The Medium Triangle ad format.
-
Mobile Leaderboard (320×50)
When compared to Large Mobile Banner, Mobile Leaderboard is only half the size. It’s also marginally less effective and even less intrusive. However, this ad format offers an exceptional ad experience, especially on small mobile devices.
On Mobile Motherboard, mobile ads are particularly popular among advertisers. This means that the ad format gets a unique ad inventory. If you place it correctly, the ad format can work well with your website’s mobile traffic.
-
Wide Skyscraper (160×600)
This is a typical ad banner, which is designed to accommodate narrow sidebars. Wide Skyscraper supports both text and image ad formats, thus its popularity among advertisers.
What makes this ad banner popular is the fact that it is less intrusive. Similarly, it easily blends with any web design that you choose. Nonetheless, Wide Skyscraper is less effective compared to greater half-page banner ads that tend to attract more user attention towards ads.
-
Portrait (300×1050)
Portrait is a significantly longer and broader vertical ad banner. The ad banner has a large size. Therefore, it can attract brand-centric advertisers who are looking for more ad space to communicate their message.
For excellent results, you should place this banner ideally next to your content or within the sidebar. Here, it is more noticeable since it allows users to go through your page’s content. However, implementing this ad banner is tricky since it will affect the user experience.
-
The Billboard (970×250)
Arguably, The Billboard is among the most brand-centric ad formats. Since it’s a full horizontal banner ad, you can place it either at the top or at the bottom of your pages. The fact that this ad format offers unlimited space to advertisers means that it often gets better ads.
The Billboard has a small ad inventory. It can also be a hit or miss when implemented since you can never be sure that this ad format will attract a high number of ads for your site. The number of advertisements that The Billboard will attract depends on your website’s content and keywords.
-
The Square (250×250)
Typically, larger ads are more noticeable than smaller ads. Nevertheless, not all sites are designed similarly. If you’re using a simple WordPress theme, The Square can work best for you.
In this case, this ad format can fit seamlessly into your layout and be noticeable in the process. On the flipside, however, The Square‘s ad inventory is small. Therefore, the ad banner will most probably attract low paying ads only.
This ad format can only work well if your site is in a highly competitive niche. In this case, The Square can function effectively without affecting users’ experience.
More Tips on How to Optimize Your Ad Space
Often, users ask how they can increase their earnings with Google AdSense. The answer to this is multi-dimensional since every website is different. The following tips can help you realize your website’s full potential when using it to generate revenue through Google AdSense.
-
Test Ad Placement
You should try out different ad formats so that you determine which one of them guarantees better click-through rates. Also, you must test different formats so that you decide which one gives better ads.
-
Display Several Ads
One of the advantages that Google AdSense offers you is that you can display several ad units on one page. Consequently, you can try different ad formats and placements to determine which combinations work perfectly for you.
-
Put Your Users First
In as much as ad revenue plays a significant role in the survival of many websites, you must think about your users. In this regard, you shouldn’t place ads in a manner that negatively affects user experience since this will affect your site’s user engagement, and also your WordPress SEO.
-
Optimize the Performance of Your Site
A fast website is likely to have a more engaged audience than slower websites. This means that faster websites have a higher click-through rate for their ads. Therefore, you should speed up WordPress to boost performance.
Conclusion
Generating revenue for your website through Google AdSense is easy. Nonetheless, you shouldn’t do this at the expense of your users’ browsing experience. Choosing the best-performing Google AdSense banner formats and sizes will go a long way in enhancing your website’s reputation among advertisers.
Get in touch with us for the best digital marketing and web design services in Singapore. Our team will create stellar Google Adsense banners that will increase your website traffic and conversion rate. We look forward to working on your website.
