Why No One Clicks your Adsense Ads
June 15th, 2009 | 35 comments
I’m always getting Adsense related questions in my Private Internet Marketing Coaching Forum and elsewhere regarding CTR (Click through rate) and conversion. Many people put up mini-sites, which are monetized by Google Adsense, they promote them day after day, week after week and they make little to no money.
For NON-Coaching with Josh clients the first problem almost always seems to be that they started off targeting the wrong niche in the first place. In other words, they didn’t target a high-paying niche! So instead of earning $10 or more for every 10 adsense clicks, they are lucky to earn $3.
However, that’s not the purpose of today’s short post.
The purpose is to clear up the second and third, and most common reasons why people don’t earn enough money from their adsense monetized sites.
1. The display of your ad
2. The positioning of your ad
All it takes is a little testing and tracking of your ads with channels to figure out very quickly what colors and what positions convert the best.
The absolute, ultimate spot and colors of your ad will depend on your exact site, but 95% of the time, the following is true.
The BEST converting adsense ad is placed directly below each pages title (headline.) The ad is a large rectangle. The background is the same exact color as the background of your page. The title of the ads are the exact same color as the color of the links on your page. The color of the ad text should be the same color as the text on your page. The color of the border of the ad is the same as the color of the background. The color of the advertiser’s URL should be the same color as the text.
95% of the time, that will bring in the BEST possible CTR!
I couldn’t begin to count the number of people who have asked me why they aren’t making any money with adsense, only to go to their site and see their adsense ads are large, vertical skyscrapers, displaying in their sidebar, that might as well be screaming “I’M AN ADVERTISEMENT” due to the extreme colors that are used.
Take a look at this example:
There are 5 things wrong with this ad, that combined are killing the CTR.
1. It’s in the sidebar and although you can’t tell by the image, it is below the fold, meaning you can’t even see it unless you scroll down.
2. It’s a vertical skyscraper, which will convert more poorly than a well placed large rectangle.
3. The color of the ad titles are blue, while the color of the links on the rest of the page are gray.
4. The color of the ad text is black, while the color of the text on the page is gray.
5. The color of the advertiser’s URL is green, while the color of the ad text is black.
Should an ad stand out? Yes, absolutely, BUT think of this: A bum on the street stands out for an entirely different reason a well-groomed, clean-cut businessman stands out.
The ad that is stuck in the sidebar, using odd colors that don’t match the site’s theme is the bum. The ad that is right there below the title, using colors that match the theme is the clean-cut businessman!
(Sometimes you just don’t want a big ad gleaming in your visitors face. And for more serious sites you may want to gain the trust of your readers and develop a following, which is never a bad thing. In this situation I like to stick a small, horizontal ad directly after the post.)
img credit: Dave Bullock
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- New and Old Adsense Policies to Consider
- Should Newbies Concentrate on Earning Adsense Income?
- 10 Ways to Increase your Adsense Income
- “MFA” Made for Adsense does NOT Equal “Black Hat”
- Adsense Isnt Always the Best Money Maker
- Increase your Adsense Income through Section Targeting
- When to Target High Paying Niches & Low Paying Niches
- Should you Monetize your Site with Adsense or Affiliate Programs?
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15th June, 2009 at 3:39 pm
Interesting I should say. I am using a company called YieldBuild to optimize my ads. I just started a week back. Gotta see what they report after a month.
15th June, 2009 at 3:44 pm
Josh, you always give great advice, I love reading your articles. I was wondering – does the size of the ad make any difference?
And kind of a followup to that – I personally like the “look” of an ad when the text of an article flows around it. Kind of like the “Sad-faced” woman picture at the top of this article, if she was an adsense ad that is, and not a sad-faced photo. Usually that means using a medium-sized rectangle, or large rectangle, depending on the width of my article content.
Just wondering if that’s good or bad, if you have any experience with that. Thanks!
– Tony
15th June, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Josh, good point. Most of what I’ve read about adsense elsewhere talks about large rectangles within the text. But those haven’t converted as well for me lately. Do you have any examples of a “good” placement?
15th June, 2009 at 3:50 pm
I recently moved a high traffic site over to the layout you recommend and I must say that ctr seems to be up about 2% on average…. Cannot complain about that!
Thanks for the great post.
15th June, 2009 at 3:54 pm
Great post, Josh. I see this all the time — and when people change to better placement, they often see dramatic results. Thanks for the post.
Regards,
mark
15th June, 2009 at 3:59 pm
Out of curiosity, what do you consider to be a good CTR on your Adsense ads?
I’ve done very little experimentation with my Adsense color schemes. I usually have them blend (match) in with my template colors, but I did switch over to using the standard blue links that match the text link color on one of my sites without much of a change.
My ads are primarily above the fold, a long rectangle and then a square ad. Those seem to convert the best as far as I can tell.
I just wonder what “average” is when it comes to CTR.
15th June, 2009 at 4:03 pm
Josh I’ve followed your tips on AdSense with much success.
I’m pretty happy with my click through rates not to mention cost per click.
Anyone with AdSense woes should heed your advice.
15th June, 2009 at 4:48 pm
I’ll start right NOW
… No more procrastination.
Thankx!
Kind regards
Rata
15th June, 2009 at 5:00 pm
The niche is also very important, i have had sites with the same layout and color scheme but the CTRS were dramatically different. It seems that if its a niche were people are looking for general info as opposed to trying to solve a problem the CTR will be lower.
For example my general mortgage site had a OK CTR but when i narrowed down to adjustable mortgage help the CTR literally doubled!
Thanks,
Darin
15th June, 2009 at 5:07 pm
Josh, I have had success with simple layouts, tight layouts and blending the text color of the ads with the posted text. Also, I have supplemented this income with adsense for domains. I took an old domain that was doing nothing, parked it with google and anchored a link to it where it made sense in the posting.
If you click my name you will see this italicized in some of the postings.
Regards….
15th June, 2009 at 6:22 pm
I agree with you 100 percent. My adsense earnings would increase if I use higher paying keywords. I need to drive more targeted traffic to my site. Thanks for the advice.
15th June, 2009 at 7:53 pm
When you are testing how many impressions do you suggest is enough in order to have a sufficient result?
/Mikael
15th June, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Thanks for the pointers. I’ve got to learn how to add the adsense code a the top of te post. I dn’t like playin wih code – is there an easy way to do it?
15th June, 2009 at 8:57 pm
Thanks Josh for this explanation. I have been getting the position right but adding too many colors and your explanation makes me see the difference.
Be there but be subtle.
15th June, 2009 at 9:01 pm
Good post. I really like how you talk about the colors. The colors are extremely important as they are the reason that your visitor subconsciously decides to click on the ads or not.
Titles don’t’ necessarily have to be the same color as the links on your website, although that is better. If that’s the case then you benefit from the advantage that your AdSense titles look like your content’s links. Making your ads look like content is the key. Something blue in general is good because blue looks like a link to your visitors. If they think that it’s a relevant/related link then your CTR will go up.
Placements are also important as you said. I’d disagree with your suggestion of a horizontal banner tough as they just get ignored as a consequence of a developed banner blindness. Rectangles are good, just like you said.
15th June, 2009 at 9:49 pm
Very accurate comment about ads. Thanks for sharing (as usual).
15th June, 2009 at 10:32 pm
I would just like to confirm this article.
My SEO mentor here in Davao, Philippines taught me a similar adsense strategy similar with the details above.
The only difference is that for the advertisers’ URL link, I use a green color instead of the same color with the post’s text stated in your article.
Ending? Color combination for the large rectangle is the same with the colors that appear on the Google SERPs every time you google.
And man, my CTR went up to 8% from the usual 2% and my increase gradually increases from day to day.
So to all bloggers and other Adsense publishers out there, this is a great article to start. And I can confirm that it’s really true. Check my blog posts in my blog now to compare the color combination.
Thanks and more power Josh!!
15th June, 2009 at 10:39 pm
I agree 100% with what you posted here Josh in regards to ad placement. Sidebar skyscrapers are terrible!
Sometimes a low paying niche is just that too. I have some sites that the average payout is 30 cents per click but that is the max that niche offers with adsense. If the traffic is enough for the keyword, then I am good with it.
BTW– my fave ad block is the long link bar placed up very high on the page. It works best when the searched keyword in Google shows up on that very bar at the top. Very high click thru.
Like someone searching “cheap dog bones” and then when they hit my site, the first listing on the left of the long link bar reads “cheap dog bones”
Now THAT is the golden ticket in my opinion.
take care, I always enjoy your stuff,
AL
15th June, 2009 at 10:40 pm
Well said Josh. Can’t be more clear than that. Also people, get your hands on the $5 mini-site formula ebook. Or get the Mark Mason Video about the $5 mini-site formula or better, get both. Everything is explain there… and it’s free.
15th June, 2009 at 10:41 pm
@luca
there is a WP plugin called “adman” that easily allows you to ad adsense at the top of the post, middle or the bottom.
it is a very very simple plug and does not get in the way of other plugins.
16th June, 2009 at 12:21 am
I am relieved that you actually gave specific advice on where to place ads and what colors to use. I’m tired of the usual advice— experiment with colors and positioning. This is what I love about you Josh, you always share concrete, specific advice.
16th June, 2009 at 6:54 am
Excellent article.
Why dont you guide us in selection of a good niche for newbies like us
16th June, 2009 at 1:35 pm
Josh,
I know this article is not meant to be a “please look at my site and tell me what I am doing wrong”…..but I just wanted to say that since I changed my template over a few weeks ago, my adsense it basically “no cents”……I guess I need to do something different. Thanks for the suggestions.
16th June, 2009 at 4:12 pm
Link units below site navigation also gives good CTR. I often include link unites in my sidebar to get good CTR.
On my blogs large rectangle on left gives better results than when I place it on right..
It might just be me though.
I have also got decent results with placing ad units just after the post. May they work like call to action for some readers.
17th June, 2009 at 7:32 am
I know the big rectangle block looks kind of ugly and I fought against it for so long but it is a fact…it works far better than any other ad placement and my CTRi approx.60% more effective since changing it
18th June, 2009 at 12:12 am
Hi Josh,
Yes, it is very true that postioning of the ads make a lot of difference. For a good start with adsense, it is good to have the ads placed at the top of the page or embedded within the content at the beginning. Also, another at the end of the text.
These are the few positions tested and proven to convert.
Colorwise, they should blend with the overall look and feel and theme of the templete.
Hope this is helpful.
18th June, 2009 at 11:07 am
Hey Josh,
I agree. I disagree. There is so much confusion on this subject but as you said, and I think a lot of us might have missed, test it!
How do we know without testing?
Adsense is one of the easiest CTR testing you can find.
Find you most visited pages, track your CTR on position, color.. etc.
Thanks for the tips.
Paul
18th June, 2009 at 1:04 pm
@ Tony – The large rectangle converts the best in most cases. In some cases it depends on the layout of the page.
Wrapping text around the ad in my experience converts just about the same as without it wrapped. Test it for yourself and see though.
@ Forest – Awesome, great to hear!
@ Mark – That’s why I recommend your themes, they work
@ Angie 10% is a good Adsense CTR 30% is excellent. Anything below 10% is poor.
@ Michelle – Thanks Michelle. Glad I’ve been able to help. Your sites look great too!
@ Darin – True statement. Different niches will deliver different CTR’s in some cases.
@ Mikael – At least 100 uniques (not impressions.) Impressions include your own views of your pages.
@ Luca – You’re best bet is to use a pre-made adsense ready theme like Mark’s Adsense WordPress Themes.
@ Hendrik – You’re right, titles don’t ALWAYS have to match the link color, but it’s usually best. I didn’t recommend horizontal banners, so not sure where you got that?
@ Allyn – I haven’t done a whole lot of testing with the link units, but I plan to in the future. Thanks for the heads up.
@ Phillipe – Thanks, I appreciate it.
@ Sona – http://www.5dollarformula.com/
18th June, 2009 at 8:51 pm
I have just started doing what you said, placing rectangle adsense. Thanks for a great article.
19th June, 2009 at 5:52 pm
I think that bloggers need to determine right from the get go which type of blog they are creating. Because the type of blog you choose, will determine the content, layout, monetization, promo plan, etc.
Are you wanting an:
Adsense blog
Affiliate blog
Ebook blog
Combo blog
The one question that has been running in my mind for about a good week now is:
“Should Adsense bloggers get rid of their blog sidebar?
Most bloggers (myself included) have a plethora of junk on their sidebars that completely take away from Adsense focus. With sign up for my Twitter, sign up for my newsletter, sign up for my Facebook, Blog Catalog, etc. A reader/visitor doesn’t know which to pick.
When what you MOST want is an Adsense click.
So maybe Adsense bloggers need to do away with their sidebars, deliver strategic content, then make sure the focus is only on Adsense.
What do you think about Adsense bloggers and the sidebar, Josh?
20th June, 2009 at 12:18 am
I am one of those newbies that put large ads, all over. I am purging all the ads except one. It seems the more ads I had put the less views I got. Thanks for the concrete advice.
4th July, 2009 at 8:39 pm
Ohh dude, you are so right! I make websites for companies and i’ve recently started to develop some websites for adsense income and it rises slowly, testing testing testing! Very nice tips, thanks for sharing
8th January, 2010 at 12:07 am
Josh, I’ve heard from others that Google doesn’t like people putting ads directly below titles as it can mislead people into thinking they are not ads.
Can you comment on this? Is there any danger of Google banning your account for doing this?
8th January, 2010 at 3:13 pm
@ Jeff – Please see http://www.ethicalim.com/ppc-advertising/new-and-old-adsense-policies-to-consider/
30th October, 2010 at 1:54 am
Ad placement is critical. I rearranged the placement of my ads a while back and it exponentially increased my click-through rate.