1: Go to YouTube.com
2: Enter your market's term in the box and click "search"
3: Watch some of the videos that come up. When you see one that you like (preferably with a decent length - the more time they spend on your site the better), just copy the "embed" code next to the video. Then, paste it in the code of your site where you want the video to appear.
That's it!
Let people interact with your site. Have a form on the page and encourage your visitors to give you their single biggest question they have about your market. Since many people want their questions answered, quite a few of them will take the time to think of their best question and then type it and submit it.And guess what? All that time they spend doing that, is beneficial to your AQS because they stay on your site longer. Not to mention that this is a great way to
gather market intelligence and see what are the burning questions your market has.
You can even have a form and ask people to submit their comments. Something like: “What did you think of this article?” Many people (especially women ☺) like giving their opinions. It doesn’t matter if they give you a positive comment or a negative comment – you are the only one who will read it. Plus, the negative comments can help you improve your site. In any case, if people spend more time on your site, your profits can only go up.
Another thing you can do is tell people to bookmark your site. Not because they will come back (most won’t). But Google actually wants to see your visitors bookmarking your site. Yes, they are tracking that as well. And they know it when it happens. And since people usually bookmark interesting sites, your site will rise in Google’s eyes.
http://adsense-trick-tips.blogspot.com/
Thursday, August 20, 2009
How To Improve Your Adsense Quality Score
Most people have no idea that this even exists. Yes, there is a quality score for Adsense as well – not just for Adwords. If your site has a low AQS (Adsense Quality Score), then it will be “smartpriced” and you will get paid less for the clicks your site generates. Since we are in the business of making more money, let’s see some of the things you can do to prevent this from happening.
It has been documented recently that Google gives importance to incoming links to your site when deciding the Adsense quality of your site. This is not necessary but, if you can get a few good links to your page (from CLEAN sites),do so.
Don't build link farms or spam networks. You may get away with it for a while but sooner or later Google's discounting mechanism will kick in and you'll start getting paid less per click.
By the way, if you have tons of spammy sites with your Adsense code on them, there's a good chance that Google has caught up on it and has discounted the money they pay you. And they can even discount the price you are paid per click even if you use a new white hat site.
You may want to get a second Adsense account and start with a clean "police record". This, by the way, is against Google's policies. But this is something you may want to take a look at. You would have to use a different company name, different credit cards and different address to receive the checks.
If possible, add some "related keywords" on your page. LSI or Latent Semantic Indexing has been all the rage lately.
Don't be confused by it. Just go to Wordtracker.com, type your main keyword and do a lateral search. Note down some of the added keywords that appear. For example, for the term "seduce women" you can add on your page some keywords like "pick up artist", "dating" etc.
Google basically wants to see pages where the content looks natural and is "how you talk". Yes, you will be paying for the traffic instead of driving it organically. But Google would rather see you use their general quality guidelines anyway.
Use Terms of service and privacy policy links on your page. Yes, this can result in a higher Adsense quality score. Do it.
Try to keep your visitor on your page longer. Why do you think Google created the Google toolbar? So they can spy on you - read their terms of service. It’s not just about "page rank". It's also about "people rank" - which means what do real people think about your site. So how does Google determine that? One of the main ways is by seeing how long people stay on your site. If they are staying there longer, then they are more interested in your content.
How can you do that? You can have something that engages people: A video for example. Even just from Youtube.com. If it's interesting, many people will stick around and, while the video plays, they can check out your Adsense ads, your affiliate recommendations and your optin form (yes, people like multitasking and they can do other things at the same time they watch the video).
The video's dimensions will be 425 width and 350 height. These are the default youtube video dimensions.
It has been documented recently that Google gives importance to incoming links to your site when deciding the Adsense quality of your site. This is not necessary but, if you can get a few good links to your page (from CLEAN sites),do so.
Don't build link farms or spam networks. You may get away with it for a while but sooner or later Google's discounting mechanism will kick in and you'll start getting paid less per click.
By the way, if you have tons of spammy sites with your Adsense code on them, there's a good chance that Google has caught up on it and has discounted the money they pay you. And they can even discount the price you are paid per click even if you use a new white hat site.
You may want to get a second Adsense account and start with a clean "police record". This, by the way, is against Google's policies. But this is something you may want to take a look at. You would have to use a different company name, different credit cards and different address to receive the checks.
If possible, add some "related keywords" on your page. LSI or Latent Semantic Indexing has been all the rage lately.
Don't be confused by it. Just go to Wordtracker.com, type your main keyword and do a lateral search. Note down some of the added keywords that appear. For example, for the term "seduce women" you can add on your page some keywords like "pick up artist", "dating" etc.
Google basically wants to see pages where the content looks natural and is "how you talk". Yes, you will be paying for the traffic instead of driving it organically. But Google would rather see you use their general quality guidelines anyway.
Use Terms of service and privacy policy links on your page. Yes, this can result in a higher Adsense quality score. Do it.
Try to keep your visitor on your page longer. Why do you think Google created the Google toolbar? So they can spy on you - read their terms of service. It’s not just about "page rank". It's also about "people rank" - which means what do real people think about your site. So how does Google determine that? One of the main ways is by seeing how long people stay on your site. If they are staying there longer, then they are more interested in your content.
How can you do that? You can have something that engages people: A video for example. Even just from Youtube.com. If it's interesting, many people will stick around and, while the video plays, they can check out your Adsense ads, your affiliate recommendations and your optin form (yes, people like multitasking and they can do other things at the same time they watch the video).
The video's dimensions will be 425 width and 350 height. These are the default youtube video dimensions.
Email Marketing And How To Create Killer Follow Up Messages That Make You Money on Autopilot(2)
Something else that works great is what I call a "sellathon in a box." Basically,you can have one of your emails say: "For the next 3 days only, you can buy this product at 40% off. Here's the special link". Then, two days later, say something like: "Today is the last day where you can get product so and so at 40% off. Here's the special link". This is sneaky of course since the "special link" will be there for ever. And every new subscriber will be seeing this "3-day special." If you think that this is "manipulative", change your mindset. Your subscribers just got a great deal. 40% off. Plus, if they didn't want the product,why would they buy it in the first place? Plus, you made some extra money. There are no downsides to this anyway you look at it.
If you KNOW that you will take good care of your customers, it's your damn DUTY to do whatever possible to get their money and sell them the product that will benefit them. That way, you also protect them from other businesses who may not be as ethical or have good enough products. If you know you can provide products (as a merchant or affiliate) that will help your customers, do it with all your might.
Try sending your subscribers a surprise now and then. A special report you just wrote for example. Even 5 pages will do. Just make the content unique. Or, you can just purchase resale rights to products that your customers would enjoy and give them for free.
Here are some specific tips on what you can include in your messages (no need to use all of them in each message - just copy these ideas and use them whenever you like):
At the end of the message, you can add a PS and say: "In a couple of days I'll let you know about whatever." Many of your subscribers will be anticipating your next message. keep your people glued to your messages.
Another thing you can do is tell people what YESTERDAY'S email was about: "Yesterday I shared with you two simple things you can do during your workout to double the amount of fat you burn." If they didn't read yesterday's email, many people will say: "Damn, this is valuable info. I need to check it out."
Have "today's date" in the message. Every decent autoresponder can insert "today's date" in an email. This will make your message look more up-to-date and "current".
At the end of the message, say something like: "Please forward this message to your friends because thy will appreciate it :-). They can subscribe by visiting this URL."
Engage your reader. Tell them to email you and ask questions. Or tell them that you are available. For example, you can say something like:
"If you have any questions about this, feel free to rely to this email. I will reply personally in less than 24 hours."
Start your email with an interesting paragraph and tell them that you will show them how to do this and that. Mention the benefit early.
For example, instead of saying "Hi John", you can say something like: "How To Lose 23 Pounds of Fat in 4 Weeks With Only 5 Minutes Of Exercise a Day.
Hi John,"
Try having more than one link in the email (for the same offer). Ask people to click several times. Your email's purpose is to get people to check out the salesletter or offer you have on your website.
Something that builds a sense of loyalty and "community" is to say : "I received this question from Mike from California." Then, you answer the question in your email
Regarding pushing affiliate programs in your follow up, tell your prospects about a good idea that they can benefit from. But they will need the product you promote to bring the idea to fruition. For example, if you promote a heart rate monitor, tell people that they can lose twice more fat if they are exercising at a specific heart rate - and that they will need a heart rate monitor for that.
When you start your email, you can say something like: "Hi Mike,
I have been busy as a bee. My wife jut gave birth to twins!
Anyway, I just wanted to tell you about..."
There are many different autoresponder and list management solutions out there. Here’s the one I use:
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/KillerAutoresponderScript.html
I hope you find these email marketing tips useful. One thing I need to stress is that the most important thing you do is START. Don’t think that you need to have 100 messages set up before you start your campaign. Just having a couple initially and adding more as you go can work great…
If you KNOW that you will take good care of your customers, it's your damn DUTY to do whatever possible to get their money and sell them the product that will benefit them. That way, you also protect them from other businesses who may not be as ethical or have good enough products. If you know you can provide products (as a merchant or affiliate) that will help your customers, do it with all your might.
Try sending your subscribers a surprise now and then. A special report you just wrote for example. Even 5 pages will do. Just make the content unique. Or, you can just purchase resale rights to products that your customers would enjoy and give them for free.
Here are some specific tips on what you can include in your messages (no need to use all of them in each message - just copy these ideas and use them whenever you like):
At the end of the message, you can add a PS and say: "In a couple of days I'll let you know about whatever." Many of your subscribers will be anticipating your next message. keep your people glued to your messages.
Another thing you can do is tell people what YESTERDAY'S email was about: "Yesterday I shared with you two simple things you can do during your workout to double the amount of fat you burn." If they didn't read yesterday's email, many people will say: "Damn, this is valuable info. I need to check it out."
Have "today's date" in the message. Every decent autoresponder can insert "today's date" in an email. This will make your message look more up-to-date and "current".
At the end of the message, say something like: "Please forward this message to your friends because thy will appreciate it :-). They can subscribe by visiting this URL."
Engage your reader. Tell them to email you and ask questions. Or tell them that you are available. For example, you can say something like:
"If you have any questions about this, feel free to rely to this email. I will reply personally in less than 24 hours."
Start your email with an interesting paragraph and tell them that you will show them how to do this and that. Mention the benefit early.
For example, instead of saying "Hi John", you can say something like: "How To Lose 23 Pounds of Fat in 4 Weeks With Only 5 Minutes Of Exercise a Day.
Hi John,"
Try having more than one link in the email (for the same offer). Ask people to click several times. Your email's purpose is to get people to check out the salesletter or offer you have on your website.
Something that builds a sense of loyalty and "community" is to say : "I received this question from Mike from California." Then, you answer the question in your email
Regarding pushing affiliate programs in your follow up, tell your prospects about a good idea that they can benefit from. But they will need the product you promote to bring the idea to fruition. For example, if you promote a heart rate monitor, tell people that they can lose twice more fat if they are exercising at a specific heart rate - and that they will need a heart rate monitor for that.
When you start your email, you can say something like: "Hi Mike,
I have been busy as a bee. My wife jut gave birth to twins!
Anyway, I just wanted to tell you about..."
There are many different autoresponder and list management solutions out there. Here’s the one I use:
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/KillerAutoresponderScript.html
I hope you find these email marketing tips useful. One thing I need to stress is that the most important thing you do is START. Don’t think that you need to have 100 messages set up before you start your campaign. Just having a couple initially and adding more as you go can work great…
Email Marketing And How To Create Killer Follow Up Messages That Make You Money on Autopilot(1)
Email marketing is one of the easiest ways to make money on the internet. You can make profits quite literally with the push of a button. An entire encyclopaedia could be written on email marketing. But here are some of the things I have come to realise over the years:
First of all DO use follow up: Even if you only get a 10% optin rate, you will still make more money as you pile on more and more offers over time.
Follow ups allow you to move your visitors down the prospect timeline. They make your visitors hotter and hotter for your offer(s). Set them up and they'll never quit. You can be on the beach and your autoresponder can be sending the messages on complete autopilot. Even if someone doesn't buy immediately, he may buy a few days later just because you reminded him. Or, he could purchase a completely different product than the first one you recommended.
So, how do you create your email follow ups?
Some merchants offer you ready-made articles hosted on their site and automatically tagged with your affiliate id. You can just send a short email to your subscribers with a link to that. If the merchant doesn't offer "affiliate content", see if they have content on their sites and "borrow" it (modified). Give value to your visitors and then link to your recommended resource.
It ain't just about saying "gimme your money". That can work only if you have built a ton of value in the past. But in this case, you will be dealing with "targeted strangers". Be a sport and educate these people. You will be well rewarded.
Here's a good trick to get ideas regarding followup: If you are an affiliate for a specific front-end product, search for your merchants' product on Google. Find the affiliates who promote it. Join their list. See what they say. "Borrow" their system and ideas. You want to let other people and "systems" do the heavy lifting for you as much as possible.
Use personality, because you'll be more memorable, likable and profitable. Don't overdo it, but be human. People are tired of "plastic communication." They are not just "leads." REAL people read the emails you send out. So, make your emails for real people.
Use a memorable name related to the market. For example: "The Fat Exterminator", if you are in the weight loss market.
Use ideas from the follow-ups of your competitors. What do they send? What do they promote? What do they say? Send tips, product recommendations,videos, testimonials, updates, articles etc. Always educate and give value – but don't be afraid to push some goods as well. That's what your list is there for.
Here's a great tip: Let's say that you offer people a free report for subscribing.You can also just tell them to consume your free report. For example:
Day 1: Give them the report. Tell them to download it to their desktop.
Day 2: Ask them their opinion on the report or if they have any questions
Day 3: Make them to consume part of the report. "Do you know what are the
three foods you can eat at night and not gain any weight? Open the special
report and read from the middle of page 11"
Day 4-10: Repeat day 3 with other parts of your report.
And of course, there's no reason why you can't create a second pdf report and do your consumption thing all over again. ☺
Have a conviction that your prospects NEED the products you offer or they'll suffer. How many autoresponder messages would you have in that case? 1? 2? How about 300? Until your conviction and belief reaches a 10, you will just go through the motions. It's your responsibility to find these people and help them. Ask yourself: WHAT'S THE PAIN THEY WILL GO THROUGH IF THEY DON'T GET MY PRODUCT?
Create a folder in Outlook Express that houses all the emails from great email marketers like Mat Furrey, John Alanis, Alex Mandossian, David De Angelo etc. Create an email swipe file and borrow the ideas you like.
The faster you get questions, the faster you can understand your market and maybe create a product. Ask for feedback any chance you get. You need to gather market intelligence and see what these people want so you can sell it to them. Ask your subscribers what their biggest problems are. Ask them what type of product they would buy and give them a multiple choice. For example:
Weight loss through Yoga
Weight Loss through Hypnosis
Weight Loss for busy people
etc...
Make sure you track the response you get from your emails. How many people opened your emails? How many of those clicked on your links? How many of those bought?
You can also presell the need for the product you are about to promote. For example, if you want to promote a new nutritional supplement that helps with the digestion of food, you can send a few emails prior to that talking about how many people have digestion problems and they don't even know that.
First of all DO use follow up: Even if you only get a 10% optin rate, you will still make more money as you pile on more and more offers over time.
Follow ups allow you to move your visitors down the prospect timeline. They make your visitors hotter and hotter for your offer(s). Set them up and they'll never quit. You can be on the beach and your autoresponder can be sending the messages on complete autopilot. Even if someone doesn't buy immediately, he may buy a few days later just because you reminded him. Or, he could purchase a completely different product than the first one you recommended.
So, how do you create your email follow ups?
Some merchants offer you ready-made articles hosted on their site and automatically tagged with your affiliate id. You can just send a short email to your subscribers with a link to that. If the merchant doesn't offer "affiliate content", see if they have content on their sites and "borrow" it (modified). Give value to your visitors and then link to your recommended resource.
It ain't just about saying "gimme your money". That can work only if you have built a ton of value in the past. But in this case, you will be dealing with "targeted strangers". Be a sport and educate these people. You will be well rewarded.
Here's a good trick to get ideas regarding followup: If you are an affiliate for a specific front-end product, search for your merchants' product on Google. Find the affiliates who promote it. Join their list. See what they say. "Borrow" their system and ideas. You want to let other people and "systems" do the heavy lifting for you as much as possible.
Use personality, because you'll be more memorable, likable and profitable. Don't overdo it, but be human. People are tired of "plastic communication." They are not just "leads." REAL people read the emails you send out. So, make your emails for real people.
Use a memorable name related to the market. For example: "The Fat Exterminator", if you are in the weight loss market.
Use ideas from the follow-ups of your competitors. What do they send? What do they promote? What do they say? Send tips, product recommendations,videos, testimonials, updates, articles etc. Always educate and give value – but don't be afraid to push some goods as well. That's what your list is there for.
Here's a great tip: Let's say that you offer people a free report for subscribing.You can also just tell them to consume your free report. For example:
Day 1: Give them the report. Tell them to download it to their desktop.
Day 2: Ask them their opinion on the report or if they have any questions
Day 3: Make them to consume part of the report. "Do you know what are the
three foods you can eat at night and not gain any weight? Open the special
report and read from the middle of page 11"
Day 4-10: Repeat day 3 with other parts of your report.
And of course, there's no reason why you can't create a second pdf report and do your consumption thing all over again. ☺
Have a conviction that your prospects NEED the products you offer or they'll suffer. How many autoresponder messages would you have in that case? 1? 2? How about 300? Until your conviction and belief reaches a 10, you will just go through the motions. It's your responsibility to find these people and help them. Ask yourself: WHAT'S THE PAIN THEY WILL GO THROUGH IF THEY DON'T GET MY PRODUCT?
Create a folder in Outlook Express that houses all the emails from great email marketers like Mat Furrey, John Alanis, Alex Mandossian, David De Angelo etc. Create an email swipe file and borrow the ideas you like.
The faster you get questions, the faster you can understand your market and maybe create a product. Ask for feedback any chance you get. You need to gather market intelligence and see what these people want so you can sell it to them. Ask your subscribers what their biggest problems are. Ask them what type of product they would buy and give them a multiple choice. For example:
Weight loss through Yoga
Weight Loss through Hypnosis
Weight Loss for busy people
etc...
Make sure you track the response you get from your emails. How many people opened your emails? How many of those clicked on your links? How many of those bought?
You can also presell the need for the product you are about to promote. For example, if you want to promote a new nutritional supplement that helps with the digestion of food, you can send a few emails prior to that talking about how many people have digestion problems and they don't even know that.
Where The Money Is Really Made: Split testing
You should also split test your site's pages to extract even more profits. You just look at the numbers, you delete the version that is producing less and you keep the version that makes you more. SPLIT TESTING IS WHERE THE MONEY IS MADE AND NOBODY'S DOING IT!
Stop “quessing” what will work. Even top marketers who guess, USUALLY GUESS WRONG. You have to test. People are unpredictable.
Tiny little increases in response can mean HUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE increases in the amount of money you take home every month. This is what the Japanese refer to as “Kaizen.” Small incremental improvements in several parts of the process, over time lead to exponential growth. And the easiest way to accomplish this is to become a fanatical tracker and tester!
If you get a high enough conversion rate, THEN YOU OWN THE UNIVERSE. You can pay more for PPC, you can put more into SEO (buy more links, tools and labour) and pay your affiliates more.
I use two pieces of software depending on the situation. For quick split testing of my landing pages, I use http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/TagutchiSplitTesting.html
This split-testing tool uses Tagutchi. I won’t turn this manual into a testing tirade – but tagutchi is the fastest way to get reliable test results…
This is a fantastic program. You can install it on your site. The software will work even if you want to split test pages on other domains you build, as long as they are add-on domain names of the same hosting account. It works like a charm with the hosting company I use:
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/Hosting.html
Another piece of software I use is
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/3rdPartyTracking.html
This allows you to do simple A/B split test and also track your traffic sources individually so you see which produce a positive ROI and which not. This is a service that runs on the company's servers. You don't need to install it. The reporting capabilities it has are very detailed...
If you are testing two pages, you can name them CarInsuranceNevada.html and Car-Insurance-Nevada.html or carinsurancenevada.html and car-insurance-nevada.html etc...
I understand that most of the people who do Adsense arbitrage usually want the lazy solution. That's fine. I like the lazy solutions too. But I also understand that lazy isn't always the most profitable way to go. You should always test your Adsense and the other elements on your page and see what works best.
For example, you can test a 250X250 square with blue links against a 250X250 square with red links. All you do is create a “clone” of your first ad –you just change the colours of the links AND you use a different tracking channel so you know exactly which of the two ads brings better earnings.
Or, you can test a big rectangle against a half banner. The big rectangle is the favourite ad format of most Adsense publishers. But the half banner will not show the bottom 3 lowest paying ads and will also focus the attention of your visitors to one ad. Could this make you more money? You’ll only know if you test!
Your business will improve over time (with split testing). You will make more and more net profits as you move along. Don't get upset if you lose money initially. Be a student of the process. That’s how you will really learn to market…
Stop “quessing” what will work. Even top marketers who guess, USUALLY GUESS WRONG. You have to test. People are unpredictable.
Tiny little increases in response can mean HUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE increases in the amount of money you take home every month. This is what the Japanese refer to as “Kaizen.” Small incremental improvements in several parts of the process, over time lead to exponential growth. And the easiest way to accomplish this is to become a fanatical tracker and tester!
If you get a high enough conversion rate, THEN YOU OWN THE UNIVERSE. You can pay more for PPC, you can put more into SEO (buy more links, tools and labour) and pay your affiliates more.
I use two pieces of software depending on the situation. For quick split testing of my landing pages, I use http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/TagutchiSplitTesting.html
This split-testing tool uses Tagutchi. I won’t turn this manual into a testing tirade – but tagutchi is the fastest way to get reliable test results…
This is a fantastic program. You can install it on your site. The software will work even if you want to split test pages on other domains you build, as long as they are add-on domain names of the same hosting account. It works like a charm with the hosting company I use:
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/Hosting.html
Another piece of software I use is
http://www.Adsense-Arbitrage-Voodoo.com/3rdPartyTracking.html
This allows you to do simple A/B split test and also track your traffic sources individually so you see which produce a positive ROI and which not. This is a service that runs on the company's servers. You don't need to install it. The reporting capabilities it has are very detailed...
If you are testing two pages, you can name them CarInsuranceNevada.html and Car-Insurance-Nevada.html or carinsurancenevada.html and car-insurance-nevada.html etc...
I understand that most of the people who do Adsense arbitrage usually want the lazy solution. That's fine. I like the lazy solutions too. But I also understand that lazy isn't always the most profitable way to go. You should always test your Adsense and the other elements on your page and see what works best.
For example, you can test a 250X250 square with blue links against a 250X250 square with red links. All you do is create a “clone” of your first ad –you just change the colours of the links AND you use a different tracking channel so you know exactly which of the two ads brings better earnings.
Or, you can test a big rectangle against a half banner. The big rectangle is the favourite ad format of most Adsense publishers. But the half banner will not show the bottom 3 lowest paying ads and will also focus the attention of your visitors to one ad. Could this make you more money? You’ll only know if you test!
Your business will improve over time (with split testing). You will make more and more net profits as you move along. Don't get upset if you lose money initially. Be a student of the process. That’s how you will really learn to market…
How To Maximize Your Adsense CTR - AND Earnings Per Click
Here are some things I have found out by using Adsense to build my business in the last years (in no particular order):
You will have 3-4 ads on your page MAX. (NOT ad blocks. ADS). The fewer Adsense ads show on a page, the higher the average earnings per click for you.
If you place more ads on your page, they will show ads that rank lower on Adwords (and are cheaper). You don't want people to click on ads that pay you $0.05. You want them to click on ads that pay you $0.50! Adwords are generally disproportionately expensive on the top positions. After a while, the bids "normalize" and you won't get paid as much for showing that "Adsense" on your site.
Also keep in mind that many options confuse people. Give them few links to click on.
Don't forget to create channels to track your ads. You can set up a new channel by following this path inside your Adsense account:
Adsense set up Channels Add new custom channels
Be descriptive in your channel name so you know what is going on and you don't get confused. For example, if you have a page on golf clubs and you are testing a 250X250 square on the top left of the screen, use a name like: golfclub250X250left
Also make sure that you don't use channels you have used in ads in previous different markets. I have found that this can confuse the system some times and your page can show ads for the OLD market you were in. This happens especially if there is not a lot of ad inventory in the new market you are in.
Make sure you use an "alternative URL" when setting up your ads. You may be able to see the ad just fine. But others may have super aggressive firewalls installed - and they may not be able to see the ads. You can set an alternative URL when you set up your Adsense ads. You can insert something like: http://www.yoursite.com/Subdirectory/alternative.html
Have something that would make sense to be there. Maybe links that point to your favorite affiliate programs. You can even model those links or ads after the Adsense ads that would appear on your page. Just use your affiliate link to link to those pages.
Let’s say that the alternative URL you use is a page on your site is called alternative.html. After a few days/weeks, check your server logs and see how many times that page loaded. This means that these many times your Adsense ads didn't appear.
If you get 1000 clicks from Adwords and you only get 900 impressions, that's ok. But if you only get 200 impressions and 800 of the people see your alternative ad, then something may be wrong with that market (or your page). In any case, keep in mind that an alternative URL can save your butt...
Many webmasters like the big rectangle. Why? Because it works! It gets very good CTR. However, I'm not sure that most people have actually tracked the profitability of their ads. Different markets can respond differently BUT, here are a few things to consider:
The 250X250 square, has almost the exact same look like the big rectangle. One ad below the other. But it shows three ads instead of four. What does that mean? It means that you give your visitors fewer options to choose from (but not too few) and they may decide to click more easily. Not only that but you now eliminated the 4th ad which would be, on average, the lowest paying of the four.
Can we push this even more? We can. We can create a similar block of ads with only two ads this time. Just create two 234X60 half banner ads and put one under the other. You now have a "mini rectangle" with only two ads. In many markets, two ads is the sweet spot not only as far as CTR but also as far as earnings per click go.
What about having only one ad then? This would definitely give you the highest earnings per click. But one ad usually doesn't give people that much of an option. If it's not compelling enough, they won't click it. I would have at least two ads on my page.
Note: if you use the trick with the two half banners one on top of the other, make sure that you use different channels. I found that, if I use the same channel name, the exact same ad can show twice on my page! Use different channel names. It makes sense from a tracking standpoint anyway.
Use the same font on your page that Adsense ads use. Not all ad blocks use the same font so you need to play Sherlock Holmes:
If you use Firefox, right click the ad, select "this frame" and then "view frame”
If you use Internet Explorer, right click the ad and select "View Source."
As an example, here's the font used in the large rectangle:
Title: font-size: 11px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;
Text: font-size: 10px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;
If you have been doing Adsense for any length of time, then you have probably heard that you can place images very close to your ads in order to draw attention there. Note that putting graphics close to your ads to encourage a higher CTR is not allowed by Google. In their own words: "[Adsense publishers] May not place misleading images alongside individual ads."
Can you still do it? Yes. Do many people do it? Yes. Will the Adsense cops get you? Maybe. But they will usually send you an email and let you know that you should remove the graphic. In order for them to do a manual review of your site, you must be getting quite a few impressions and clicks. By the time that happens, you will probably be on a whole new level success-wise and money-wise. Again, using images is not allowed. But I can tell you "off the record" that Google doesn't always enforce their rules. Many of their rules are deliberately vague so they have flexibility in how they develop their services...
As an extra “safety measure”, add borders around your image. Google believes that this makes the images more “distinct” so that your visitors won’t be confused…
Something that has been talked about a lot on forums and in Adsense guides, is the best colour for your Adsense ads. Your safest bet is to make the background colour of your ad AND the border of the ad the same as the background of your page (usually white). That way, the ads will blend with your content and they will look more like helpful resources and less like ads. The links in your ads should usually be blue or dark blue since online surfers have been conditioned to click blue links.
BUT HERE’S WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING:
Sometimes, you can get even better results by doing “whacky” stuff. Like using red or black links in your ads for example. Read the next section and you’ll understand what I’m talking about…
You will have 3-4 ads on your page MAX. (NOT ad blocks. ADS). The fewer Adsense ads show on a page, the higher the average earnings per click for you.
If you place more ads on your page, they will show ads that rank lower on Adwords (and are cheaper). You don't want people to click on ads that pay you $0.05. You want them to click on ads that pay you $0.50! Adwords are generally disproportionately expensive on the top positions. After a while, the bids "normalize" and you won't get paid as much for showing that "Adsense" on your site.
Also keep in mind that many options confuse people. Give them few links to click on.
Don't forget to create channels to track your ads. You can set up a new channel by following this path inside your Adsense account:
Adsense set up Channels Add new custom channels
Be descriptive in your channel name so you know what is going on and you don't get confused. For example, if you have a page on golf clubs and you are testing a 250X250 square on the top left of the screen, use a name like: golfclub250X250left
Also make sure that you don't use channels you have used in ads in previous different markets. I have found that this can confuse the system some times and your page can show ads for the OLD market you were in. This happens especially if there is not a lot of ad inventory in the new market you are in.
Make sure you use an "alternative URL" when setting up your ads. You may be able to see the ad just fine. But others may have super aggressive firewalls installed - and they may not be able to see the ads. You can set an alternative URL when you set up your Adsense ads. You can insert something like: http://www.yoursite.com/Subdirectory/alternative.html
Have something that would make sense to be there. Maybe links that point to your favorite affiliate programs. You can even model those links or ads after the Adsense ads that would appear on your page. Just use your affiliate link to link to those pages.
Let’s say that the alternative URL you use is a page on your site is called alternative.html. After a few days/weeks, check your server logs and see how many times that page loaded. This means that these many times your Adsense ads didn't appear.
If you get 1000 clicks from Adwords and you only get 900 impressions, that's ok. But if you only get 200 impressions and 800 of the people see your alternative ad, then something may be wrong with that market (or your page). In any case, keep in mind that an alternative URL can save your butt...
Many webmasters like the big rectangle. Why? Because it works! It gets very good CTR. However, I'm not sure that most people have actually tracked the profitability of their ads. Different markets can respond differently BUT, here are a few things to consider:
The 250X250 square, has almost the exact same look like the big rectangle. One ad below the other. But it shows three ads instead of four. What does that mean? It means that you give your visitors fewer options to choose from (but not too few) and they may decide to click more easily. Not only that but you now eliminated the 4th ad which would be, on average, the lowest paying of the four.
Can we push this even more? We can. We can create a similar block of ads with only two ads this time. Just create two 234X60 half banner ads and put one under the other. You now have a "mini rectangle" with only two ads. In many markets, two ads is the sweet spot not only as far as CTR but also as far as earnings per click go.
What about having only one ad then? This would definitely give you the highest earnings per click. But one ad usually doesn't give people that much of an option. If it's not compelling enough, they won't click it. I would have at least two ads on my page.
Note: if you use the trick with the two half banners one on top of the other, make sure that you use different channels. I found that, if I use the same channel name, the exact same ad can show twice on my page! Use different channel names. It makes sense from a tracking standpoint anyway.
Use the same font on your page that Adsense ads use. Not all ad blocks use the same font so you need to play Sherlock Holmes:
If you use Firefox, right click the ad, select "this frame" and then "view frame”
If you use Internet Explorer, right click the ad and select "View Source."
As an example, here's the font used in the large rectangle:
Title: font-size: 11px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;
Text: font-size: 10px; font-family: arial, sans-serif;
If you have been doing Adsense for any length of time, then you have probably heard that you can place images very close to your ads in order to draw attention there. Note that putting graphics close to your ads to encourage a higher CTR is not allowed by Google. In their own words: "[Adsense publishers] May not place misleading images alongside individual ads."
Can you still do it? Yes. Do many people do it? Yes. Will the Adsense cops get you? Maybe. But they will usually send you an email and let you know that you should remove the graphic. In order for them to do a manual review of your site, you must be getting quite a few impressions and clicks. By the time that happens, you will probably be on a whole new level success-wise and money-wise. Again, using images is not allowed. But I can tell you "off the record" that Google doesn't always enforce their rules. Many of their rules are deliberately vague so they have flexibility in how they develop their services...
As an extra “safety measure”, add borders around your image. Google believes that this makes the images more “distinct” so that your visitors won’t be confused…
Something that has been talked about a lot on forums and in Adsense guides, is the best colour for your Adsense ads. Your safest bet is to make the background colour of your ad AND the border of the ad the same as the background of your page (usually white). That way, the ads will blend with your content and they will look more like helpful resources and less like ads. The links in your ads should usually be blue or dark blue since online surfers have been conditioned to click blue links.
BUT HERE’S WHERE IT GETS INTERESTING:
Sometimes, you can get even better results by doing “whacky” stuff. Like using red or black links in your ads for example. Read the next section and you’ll understand what I’m talking about…
How To Clean Up Your List
I recommend you sort the list alphabetically. It will make going through it easier. Select Data Sort Ascending.
As you go through your list of keywords, you will see some terms that just shouldn’t be there because they are too general or untargeted. For example, you may see a keyword like “recipe.” This has more to do with cooking and less with weight loss.
Or, you may find a term like “spoon” (unlikely but these things happen sometimes). You need to note down the “bad term” as a negative keyword in your negative keywords file.
Don’t be too “anal” – just go through the list quickly and note down everything that looks weird. Pay special attention to very short keyword entries becausethese are general keywords that can bring a lot of untargeted traffic (which is undesirable). For example, somehow the term “dog” may end up on your list. This is something you need to pick up.
To clean up your list of keywords, you can use this free tool: http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-list-cleaner/stripper.php
Just enter your list of keywords in the text area. Add your negative keywords in the text area. Check “Strip Any Phrase Including a Bad Word:” (only that). Then, click “Clean Me Up Scotty!”. Your list is now clean.
As you go through your list of keywords, you will see some terms that just shouldn’t be there because they are too general or untargeted. For example, you may see a keyword like “recipe.” This has more to do with cooking and less with weight loss.
Or, you may find a term like “spoon” (unlikely but these things happen sometimes). You need to note down the “bad term” as a negative keyword in your negative keywords file.
Don’t be too “anal” – just go through the list quickly and note down everything that looks weird. Pay special attention to very short keyword entries becausethese are general keywords that can bring a lot of untargeted traffic (which is undesirable). For example, somehow the term “dog” may end up on your list. This is something you need to pick up.
To clean up your list of keywords, you can use this free tool: http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-list-cleaner/stripper.php
Just enter your list of keywords in the text area. Add your negative keywords in the text area. Check “Strip Any Phrase Including a Bad Word:” (only that). Then, click “Clean Me Up Scotty!”. Your list is now clean.
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