Chasing the perfect layout with AdSense for search

AdSense publisher Next Small Things has long understood that search is the entry point for users to find what they're looking for on the web

In fact, the idea for CoolChaser.com, a MySpace layout creation and customization site (and Next Small Things's largest business to date), came from the observation that many web surfers were using the company's search engine to find instructions to change their MySpace backgrounds. The observation and ensuing business idea has paid off, and in just one year CoolChaser.com has gained a loyal user base: over 200,000 users are now finding or creating layouts on the site every day. "CoolChaser has become a one-stop-shop for layouts because of the ease of use and the choice and ability for users to express what they feel at the time," says founder Chao Lam. With over 20 million user-submitted layouts (and 3,000 created every hour), it was becoming increasingly difficult for users to find the layouts they were looking for. "We were getting a lot of requests from users to provide some sort of search mechanism so that they could easily find what they were looking for," developer Sachiko Kwan says. As an existing AdSense publisher, Kwan decided to try AdSense for search and was immediately impressed by the quick setup process and the accuracy of the results. With the new SiteSearch feature, Kwan was able to restrict the searches so users didn't have to leave the site to find what they were looking for. In addition, the new watermark feature allowed Kwan to add the search box without any rearrangement in the navigation bar.Most recently, Lam and Kwan began optimizing their search for better performance and user experience. If a user wasn't creating a layout, they were looking for one.

So Kwan moved the search box from the upper right corner of each page to the center of the header and also added a second search box to the bottom of every page, in case users who were done browsing needed to search again. On the search results page, she changed the ad borders to a lighter color to better blend in with the site's pages.

Within a week of making these changes, Lam and Kwan saw their daily search queries on CoolChaser increase by 40% and earnings more than double. Since implementing AdSense for search on CoolChaser, search has become the second most popular functionality behind creating layouts. Lam and Kwan continue to focus on user experience, and they are now working to refine search results using keywords and labels. "There's such an enormous variety of things people search for," Lam says. "AdSense for search is really working for us."

Posted by Sandra Tsui - AdSense Publisher Support

Inside Adsense Blog

Best Adsense Blog That Will Cause Visitors To Go Click Crazy

The best Adsense blog is no less than a faithful, reliable cash cow that will constantly yield significant amounts of revenue for the blogger.
But what does the best Adsense blog really look like? Here is an amazing Adsense secret that has the potential of lifting up your Adsense earnings to unprecedented levels or heights that you have never reached before. And quite likely the sort of Adsense revenues that you never dreamt about or thought possible.
In the best Adsense blog the valuable useful content that is so amazing that it causes readers to hunger for even more information, is merged with the Adsense ads in such a way that they look like one and the same thing from the same source. This means that the Adsense ads have the same color and background as the rest of the blog site. The result is that readers can easily and smoothly glide from the content to the Adsense ads without hesitation. This is what will result in dozens and at best hundreds or even thousands of clicks taking place at your Adsense blog.
People hate to be advertised to and the main characteristic of a best Adsense blog is that that the ads do not really look like ads but more like extra links to click for more valuable information and tips.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Christopher_Kyalo

Google Adsense Tips - What, How, Who, Why, When and Where!

The Amazing Google Adsense Program is today towering like a Colossus in the Internet. It has helped some smart Internet Marketers to make huge amounts of money, while at the same time it is interesting to note that many new Internet Marketers and Internet Home-Based Business Entrepreneurs are receiving their first pay check from Google Adsense rather than the main affiliate program. Given below are the Asense Tips, What, How, Who, Why, When and Where of Google Adsense in a nut shell.
Adsense Tip: What is is Google Adsense:
Google Adsense is a program designed by Google that can generate advertising revenue for your website. Relevant Text and Image ads. targeted to your website content are delivered by Google. Additionally if you place a Google Search Box in your website, relevant text ads. are displayed when a search request is made by a website visitor. Google will pay you for all valid clicks. made by your website visitors on the ads. or search results pages. Another new addition is the Google Adsense Referrals Feature , whereby you can generate additional income by displaying Google’s Referral Buttons on your web pages.
Adsense Tip: How to get started with Google Adsense:
You have to apply to Google Adsense by completing an online application form at https://www.google.com/adsense. Once the application is approved, you will be able to participate. You then have to copy and paste a HTML code that is provided by Google Adsense into your web pages. The code creates relevant ads. to the content of the page. When a visitor clicks on it Google pays you.
Adsense Tip: Who can participate in Google Adsense:
Anyone who has a website can join the Adsense program but not adult and hate sites. You have to comply with Google's program policies. It is Free to join. Google has a massive advertiser base and they have ads. on the ready for all categories of businesses. They also have ads. ready to match different types of content sites, from a pet store site to that of a highly sophisticated technological site. Google Adsense can be used in many languages. It is also targeted geographically and hence Global business can take advantage of this and webmasters living in any part of the world can participate.
Adsense Tip: Why Participate in Google Adsense:
The obvious answer is to make money from home. It does not cost you anything if you have a website, so why miss the opportunity to make money from home. Google pays you monthly if your earnings reach $100.The Google Adsense checks are a blessing to a large number of newbies with low budgets eager to make money from home. Some webmasters feel that Adsense ads. can lead their visitors away from their site. This possibility is there but if you have a website with good content they will always come back.
Adsense Tip: When to Participate in Google Adsense:
The Adsense program is Web related and hence you must have a website to participate. Once your website is ready and the contents optimized, you can submit your application. The Adsense program is not restricted only to high page rank sites as some seem to think. Google approves most of the sites but ensures that they are of acceptable standard. Normally they are approved within 2-3 days. Once approved you can immediately participate in the Adsense program by logging into your account.
Adsense Tip: Where to place Google Adsense ads. in your Website.
The Adsense ads. can be placed anywhere in your web pages, but there are specific areas in your web pages that are recommended by Google which have been found to generate more clicks. According to Google and our own experience: Ads placed above the fold tend to perform better than those below the fold. Ads placed near rich content and navigational aids usually do well because users are focused on those areas of a page. Ads placed at the top of the page and at the left generally perform better than others. Ads at the bottom of long articles and those that are integrated or merge with the content too perform very well. Of course there are other strategies, such as creating high paying keyword content pages to suit individual sites and also generating more traffic to your site. These have to be implemented too, to ensure success.
The Google Adsense Program has come to stay. It is a great way to earn an additional income for most webmasters and a big income for some who have made the Adsense Program as the main source of income. Which ever way you look at it the Adsense Program is a happy hunting ground for all and these Adsense Tips can help you get started.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Kanaga_Siva

Adsense - Improve Your Earnings by 5 Folds

You may find many Adsense Gurus on the net, offering you thousand ways to improve your Google adsense earnings! Mind you guys, just buying some genius adsense template and expect it to produce thousand dollars a day is a sure impossibility!
I am telling you with my practical experience that nothing would work unless you are prepared to go that extra mile. You should get hold of the adsense secrets that are unique to your site. You must be prepared to make continuous changes and measure effectiveness on a continuous basis.
Following are simple but effective steps successfully followed by the author, which may help you to improve your adsense earnings by five folds or even more! However, keep in mind that nothing would work unless you customize these options to suit your requirements.
The Best Position - This is always the demarcation point which decides you should be earning in hundreds or thousands! You must identify the most likely position where the reader would be most tempted to click. At first you might have to follow what Adsense Gurus have suggested. However, you must keep in mind that what they have said is not unique to your site.
You should be bold enough to do your own research and identify the best positions unique to your site, ‘cos there could be exceptions to what Adsense Experts have proposed. Best example I can quote is ‘Plentyoffish.com’ a dating site which earns half a million Dollars a month just by displaying a single Google ad in each page with completely different link color format than the rest of the site using!
White Is In Demand - Having more white space around the article and the Ad will definitely increase your click through rate. In my case, this is one of the real secrets behind the high click through rate in my Adsense ads. Your objective should be to get the reader’s attention to the Adsense ad and the article. Therefore, it is important to have other areas blank as much as possible to centre reader’s attention to the Ad and the article. Remove all unnecessary items which are cluttered around the article and the Ad and have more white space on either side of the page.
What is Your Ad Size? - Highly effective Ad formats are 336x250 and 768x120. However, it is up to you to find out the best size for your site. These are the widely tested and accepted sizes. Try them out and see the outcome.
Be Discreet - I personally don’t prefer to server image ads in my Adsense campaigns because they dilute the effectiveness of the Ads. It is starkly obvious to the reader that they are clicking on Ads and the sole purpose of putting them is to make money! Just don’t make it so obvious! Instead, include text ads which are relevant to the theme. Place the ads where the reader is likely to seek a break while reading the article or your copy.
Artistic Way To Be Discreet - The font, color and texture should match with the rest of the page. This will make the ad looks like part of the article. You have the options to use either an ideally matching color or a contrasting color. Either way is effective.
Use The Maximum but Have a Balance - Always try to use maximum number of adsense ads in each page. Don’t lose balance however! Ads should not dominate the page.
Measure the effectiveness of Ad units - Always make use of Google Adsense channels to identify which position or format has produced high click through rates. Be prepared to change the Ad format, color and position according to your findings. These simple but effective methods surely drive you more income you never ever expect if you are prepared to follow those in your own way. Find out your way out today.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Theodore_Kirth