Increase Advertising Revenue and Site Visitors With Free Website Content
by Bobette Kyle

Content - in the form of well written articles and other useful information - increases your site's value to visitors. Participating in Google's AdSense program on those same pages can give your own profits a "shot in the arm."

For your site to be a good match for AdSense, you should have a significant amount of quality content on the site. Publishing articles of interest to your audience is a smart way to do this.

Generally, you have three options for generating quality articles for your site: (a) Write them yourself, (b) hire a writer/reporter, or (c) find content elsewhere. 

Many site owners do not have the time to write good, relevant articles themselves and do not have the money to hire a writer. These folks turn to content articles.

Content Articles

Several Websites (such as SoaringProfits.com and Marketing-Seek.com) and groups (such as Article Announce Business on Yahoo! Groups) provide content in the form of articles similar to this one. Individual authors will often supply articles as well.

Publishers are allowed to use an article - no payment required - provided they follow a few rules. Generally, the rules are similar to these:

• The About the Author or resource box must be published as part of the article. The resource box is "payment" for letting a publisher use the article. It is here the author has free rein to advertise or promote products and services. The resource box is generally 4 -10 lines long.

• The article should be published as-is, with change requests made to the author.

• No spamming allowed. If the article is sent to a list, the list must be voluntary - without automatic email additions.

• No use on offensive sites or in inappropriate newsletters. Guidelines generally list the usual culprits - porn, violence, etc.

Each site, group, and individual has slightly different publication guidelines so be sure to read them before using an article.

Advertising Revenue

Over the past few years, advertisers see less response from banner ads and other online advertisements, making them more reluctant to pay based on CPM (cost per thousand impressions).

This reluctance is reflected in the percentage of total online advertising spent on pay for performance programs. Pay for performance deals have grown from 4% of advertising revenue in 1998 to 21% in 2002 (Note 1).

Pay-per-click programs have largely contributed to the surge in performance deals. Keyword Search has jumped from 6% of total online ad revenues in fourth quarter 2001 to 21% during fourth quarter 2002 (Note 2).

Under the pay-per-click model, advertisers pay only when someone actually clicks on an ad. Two of the most popular pay-per-click programs are Google AdWords and Overture. Both place advertisements on their own sites as well as with search results of a few large search engines and directories. Largely, individual site owners could not generate advertising revenue through these programs.

Until Google launched the AdSense program for Website publishers.

Generating Advertising Revenue with Google AdSense

Google's AdSense opens the door for Publishers to generate advertising revenue through AdWords. Publishers put a snippet of javascript code on their pages through which Google serves highly relevant AdWord advertisements.

Google pays the publisher part of the revenue earned when someone clicks on an ad. The formula used to figure AdSense payments is not disclosed, as explained in the Google AdSense FAQ: "Although we don't disclose the exact revenue share, our goal is to enable publishers to make as much or more than they could with other advertising networks." (Note 3)

As of this writing, I have been an AdSense member for just over a week. I am not allowed to disclose payment figures. I can say initial results - both click rates and payments - significantly exceed my expectations. For examples of how I set up articles with AdSense on WebSiteMarketingPlan.com, have a look at some of the articles on the guest author page here: http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/Arts/GuestArticles.htm

To be considered as a publisher in the AdSense program, you must submit an application. Once your site is reviewed, Google will accept or reject your site.  Acceptance is not automatic. Before you apply, check your site against the   guidelines explained in the program's terms and in the FAQ.

Combining Content Articles with AdSense:
A "Four Way" Win

Once you are accepted into AdSense - or in preparation for applying to the program if you do not currently have enough content - correctly setting up pages with articles (Note 4) can create a "win" for all involved.

Your visitors win because they find more of interest on your site. AdWords advertisers win because their ads are seen in more places. The article's author wins through added exposure.

Most importantly, you win by combining articles and Google AdSense on your site. Participate in the programs responsibly and you're likely to experience increased, interested traffic as well as higher advertising revenues.

About the Author

Bobette Kyle draws upon 15+ years of Marketing/Executive experience, online marketing experience, and a marketing MBA as inspiration for her writing. Bobette is proprietor of the Web Site Marketing Plan Network (http://www.WebSiteMarketingPlan.com). She is also author of the marketing plan and Web promotion book "How Much For Just the Spider? Strategic Website Marketing For Small Budget Business." You can search all articles on the network through the marketing directory by going here: http://www.websitemarketingplan.com/directory

Notes:
(1) IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Reports (Conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers), June 2003, p.9.  April 2000, p.8.
(2)  IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Reports (Conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers), June 2003, p.10.
(3) https://www.google.com/adsense/faq
(4) For more ideas about effectively and responsibly setting up pages so they are attractive to both search engines and visitors, explore Jill Whalen's site, highrankings.com.