Adsense now allows us to choose ad font:

Google adsense has announced that it will give the publishers a choice to select a specific font for the ads.It is in it's initial phase allowing us to choose from the following font styles:
1.Verdana
2.Times
3.Arial

To set a font as the default for all AdSense for content units :
Sign in --> My Account --> Ad Display Preference section --> Edit --> Choose font --> Save




If you're creating a new ad unit, you can choose a custom font while generating your ad code. Alternatively, you can update the font for an existing ad unit, by editing that ad unit through the Manage Ads page.

Get relevant ads by using Adsense section targetting:

Section targeting is a feature which helps the publishers to get the ads which are relevant to the targeted section (like post title,post body etc.).In words from Google, Section targeting allows you to suggest sections of your text and HTML content that you'd like them to emphasize or downplay when matching ads to your site's content.

Let's see how to implement it:

1.Go to HTML editor of your site/blog.

2.Find this piece of code:

<data:post.title/>

3.Replace it with

<!-- google_ad_section_start -->

<data:post.title/>

<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

4.You will find at 3 places.Replace all those with the ones shown above (in step 2).

5.To implement section targetting on the post body (it's important), find this piece of code

<data:post.body/>

6.Replace it with

<!-- google_ad_section_start -->

<data:post.body/>

<!-- google_ad_section_end -->

This feature should help you in getting targeted and relevant ads.

Adsense gone from blogger blog:

Today, when I checked my blog, could not believe what I was seeing.My adsense ads were gone and replaced by irritating (but helpful to someone) PSAs (Public Service Ads).This generally means that either your account is on hold (due to PIN issue) or there are no ads to show.I checked my account to ensure that I was not banned from adsense.Then I checked my emails, searched for email from Google, but could not find any.Then I started surfing the forums where such problems are raised within no time.It was then found that there was a technical problem with Blogger.Most of the blogger blogs were going through same problem.

From: "Inside AdSense Team"

If you have a Blogger site, some of you may have noticed that your ad units began showing public service announcements (PSAs) in the last nine hours. This was due to a technical issue that we've now identified and resolved. As a result, you should now begin seeing paid ads on your pages again.

If you're still displaying PSAs after 24 hours, we recommend reviewing our Help Center and using our PSA troubleshooter.

Thanks to everyone who helped report this issue, and we appreciate your patience.

Posted by Arlene Lee - Inside AdSense Team

The glitch is finally fixed and the ads are back.No need to panic now!!!

Adsense approval gets tougher:

Here is something which may make you upset.Google has made their policies for adsense account approval tougher as comapared to what it was earlier.

What exactly has made it tougher?

1.Your site must be on a TLD (Top Level Domain): No more blogspots/wordpress blogs.Google wants you to buy a domain for your site.This might be a shock for those who have some cool blogspot/wordpress blogs .They won't be able to apply for adsense account with such sites.

2.The domain must be atleast 6 months old: Just having a domain name won't help as Google wants it to be active for last 6 months.

A lots of bloggers have complained about this policy change by Google.

1.One reason behind this might be to reduce the load on their approval system.

2.It is also being said that majority of the adsense account disabled are related with blogspot blogs.

Though the blogspot blogs won't be allowed for adsense account request, it is allowed to put adsense ads on them.That means if you already have adsense account or you got one for a site at TLD, you can still implement the adsense ads on your other sites (including blogspots/wordpress blogs) .

One thing which all must understand is that adsense account is not a right, but a privilage.One must take adsense as a business and hence should be prepared to spend a few bucks for it.

This strict step may increase the overall performance in terms of quality of ads, eCPM and number of advertisers.

Adsense for Games?

After ruling the internet world, Google has now decided to make an impact in the gaming industry.Google has developed an in-game advertising technology that allows it to insert video ads into games.
Google’s Bernie Stolar and Greg Schaffer spoke at the Casual Connect game convention ( in 3rd week of July), revealing the Google's plans to bring the "Google Adwords to Video games" via "Adsense for Games".

Stolar, Google's Game Evangelist, said, "I'm going to be very clear right now: Google is involved in in-game advertising. I'm going to say it one more time, in case there's any misconceptions here: in-game advertising. This is an area that Google believes will have tremendous growth over the next number of years. ... We are not going to be a publisher or a developer or a portal for games, at all. That's the jobs of everybody here. That's why we want to partner with you."

How will it work?
“AdSense for Games” will enable advertisers to purchase ad space within games and game publishers can integrate the system to monetize their products. Initially the system will only be available on web-based games but there are plans to include PC and console games in the future.
The advertisements will come in text as well as video formats.

Though Google has not officially declared the program launching date, but it is expected to arrive within next few months.It would be really interesting to see how Google proceeds with their "newbie"!

Adsense video units: Let the videos make money for you

Google is known for its ability to stay up-to-date.When they came to know about the boom in number of viewers of youtube videos, they launched the 'adsense video units'.Google succeeded in catching up the popularity of youtube among 'netizens' to open a new revenue stream.
Let us know more about these ad units:
The adsense video units are very simple to work with.Once your adsense account is linked with your youtube account (you must have a youtube account), you can get started within a minute or two.
Procedure:
1.Login to adsense account.
2.Under "Adsense Setup" tab, choose video units.After agreeing with the terms,you will be transferred to youtube.
3.You can choose the ad format (size of video unit, colour,keywords etc.) as per your requirements.
4.Get the ad code and paste it on your site.

What happens next?
A video will appear in the unit and Google starts displaying advertisements on some part of the video unit.The advertisements are perfectly relevant to your website content and may be irrelevant to the video being shown.
The picture shows the advertisement on the top left part of the video unit.
When the viewer clicks the ad, advertisement opens in a new window or tab.This ensures that there is no disturbance to the viewer while watching the video.

Read more at google adsense official blog.

Adsense referral ads will be retired during last week of August:

Google has decided to retire its referral ads.The reason behind it is that these ads have not worked well in the past and many publishers have complained about its efficiency.
Here is the official word from Google,
"We're constantly looking for ways to improve AdSense by developing and supporting features which drive the best monetization results for our publishers. Sometimes, this requires retiring existing features so we can focus our efforts on the ones that will be most effective in the long term. For this reason, we will be retiring the AdSense Referrals program during the last week of August."

They have advised all the publishers to remove the referral ad codes from their sites before the time limit as mentioned.

Possible Effects of this move:
1.Increase in Cost-Per-Click: The advertisers will now use their total money in Google Adwords, thus increasing the competition among each others.This may bring up the rise in the cost per click of both "Adsense for Content" ads as well as "Adsense for Search" ads.

2.There is a percentage of publishers who are earning well with this program.This move is a shock for them.A few sites, specially in business areas, were largely dependent on referral ads.

3.New affiliate program by Adsense: Google has launched a new affiliate program just after their decision to retire referral ads.
Official word from Google:
"Google Affiliate Network: As part of the integration of DoubleClick, the DoubleClick Performics Affiliate Network will now operate as the Google Affiliate Network for advertisers targeting users located in the United States. Similar to the AdSense Referrals program, the Google Affiliate Network enables publishers to apply for advertiser programs and get paid based on advertiser-defined actions instead of clicks or impressions. For further details, please visit: http://www.google.com/ads/affiliatenetwork/."

How to get targeted ads in Adsense?

It is really frustrating to see the ads which are not at all related to the topic of your blog (specially those matrimonial,blogging ads).The irrelevant ads do affect your performance in terms of revenue.
There are several factors which should be taken into consideration:
-->The visitor may come across the ads which are different from those which you see.The ads may look relevant for him inspite of the fact that you are able to see just those irrelevant ads.
-->The ads may be appearing because the advertiser is ready to pay more.
-->Some words included in your content can misguide the Adsense bot.The words like RSS, blog, post etc. may make it feel that the website is about blogging.

How to get targeted ads in Adsense?
Here are some ways to make sure that you always get relevant ads:

1.Keyword density:Concentrate on the topic you want to share with the readers.Find out the words about which you want the ads to appear.Try to use those words more in your posts.

2.Competitive ad filter:This feature introduced by Google will help you to keep the irrelevant ads away from your website.Right click on the ad, select "Copy Shortcut" and paste in notepad.Copy the part between "adurl= " and "&client" and paste it in the competitive filter.This will block that ad.

3.Section targetting: This is the feature provided by Google itself.Google allows us to ask their bots to serve the ads which are related to some specific section (like post title, post content).To implement section targetting, refer the post: How to implement adsense section targetting?

4.Add Meta tags

The <meta> tag provides metadata about the HTML document. Metadata will not be displayed on the page, but will be machine parsable.

Meta elements are typically used to specify page description, keywords, author of the document, last modified, and other metadata.

The <meta> tag always goes inside the head element.

The metadata can be used by browsers (how to display content or reload page), search engines (keywords), or other web services.

<head>

<meta name="description" content="Free Web tutorials" />

<meta name="keywords" content="HTML,CSS,XML,JavaScript" />

</head>

Adsense for Search: A way to earn more irrespective of the topic of your blog

Adsense for Search is also the speciality of Adsense.Google has used it's power of search engine for making lot of money from it (Google Adwords is major source of income for Google).The best thing about Adsense for Search is that you can earn very high revenue per click irrespective of the topic of your blog.
It works in the following manner:
1.Publisher has to put the Google search box on his/her blog.
2.When a visitor searches for something (through that search box), he/she comes across the search results page with some ads on it.
3.When the visitor clicks the ad, you will get paid.

Where do these ads come from?
These ads are part of the Google's famous marketing program, Google Adwords. The advertisers bid on the specific keyword to get their ads on top.So, the popular keywords return very good results in terms of revenue.

It has been found that the visitors have tendency to search for the keyword which is not always related to the topic of your blog.
e.g.If you own a blog which is about the types of flowers, plants etc.You will surely not earn much from the clicks( say $0.07 per click) on ads coming under "Adense for Content".But you always have bright chances of earning 20 times more ( upto $1.4 per click) through adsense for Search.That's the biggest advantage of it.

The Search box works better when positioned on the right top part of your home page.

Adsense Referral Ads: Earn extra

This is a very unique feature of Google Adsense.You can choose any Ad ( irrelevant ads also work here) and publish it onto your website.These ads are a bit different from the common Pay-Per-Click type of ads.Best thing about referral ads is that they return very good results in terms of revenue earned.On an average, you can earn upto $1-$2 per click( pretty good).In best cases you can even earn upto $25 per click( that's interesting!).

When a visitor clicks the referral ad, he will have to complete the further process.It generally includes form filling, signing up, joining the company etc.You may earn nothing inspite of the fact that you have got clicks, because the visitor has not fulfilled the advertisers demands.
The referral ads are totally under the control of us.We can choose which ad is to be displayed, of what size etc.
An example will make it simple:
A bank wants to get customers for their insurance plans.They know that once the customer joins they will earn average $400 profit per year per customer.So why not pay $20 to one who brings you the customers.
Similarly, the social networking sites need members and hence are ready to pay $1 to the referrer.

Try these ads with different formats (Text formats work better).These ads will surely bring up extra income from your site without affecting it's design.

What is Invalid click?

Many publishers ask a question: I have got 50 clicks and my earnings are $0.00.Why?
If you are going through the same situation, read this article carefully because you might be the victim of Invalid click activity.
When a visitor clicks the ad, he is of course interested in that ad.He will go through that ad and will try to get what he wants.This ad click is valid and you will get paid for that.
On the other hand, if a visitor just clicks the ad without showing any interest in it, the advertiser may to pay for this click.

What is an Invalid click?
-->Clicking ads on your own blog
-->Using robots for periodic clicks
-->Use of softwares for generating clicks

You must immediately contact Google if you are the victim of Invalid clicks.
Click here to contact Google.

Adsense compatibility with adsense alternatives:

Google Adsense is known to have very strict TOS (Terms Of Service).They don't allow other Ad networks used along with them.If you place ads by a similar Ad network as that of Adsense, they might just remove you from their program ( hence many publishers are always under immense fear of getting banned from adsense!!!).

Let us learn more about adsense compatibility with adsense alternatives.
According to Google,
"You're welcome to display Google ads on the same site or page as other third party advertisements provided that the formatting or colors of the third party ads is different enough from that of the Google ads. In other words, if you choose to place non-Google ads on the same site or page as Google ads, it should always be clear to the user that the ads are served by different advertising networks and that the non-Google ads have no association with Google. If the formats are naturally similar, we ask that you choose different color schemes for the competing ads."

That clearly means that you can not publish the Ads which look similar to the Adsense ads.
Let us take one example.
If you have chosen the 468 x 15 format (small horizontal banner) for publishing Bidvertiser ads, alongwith the adsense ads, you are threatening the TOS of adsense.You can choose the different colour pattern such that it can be clearly differentiated from adsense unit.

What's the conclusion?
You can display the ads by any other ad network alongwith the adsense ads if those ads can be differentiated from that of the adsense ads.

Text Ads or Image Ads? Which are better?

There are two types of Ads: Text Ads and Image Ads.
It is very important to know which type of Ads should be placed where and what size should be used.
Text Ads:These Ads are relevant to subject of your blog.If you have published text Ads, the visitor gets more choice to choose the Ads.It is therefore the best Ad type.It has been found that most of the webmasters earn the most from text Ads.
These Ads should be placed very near to the content of blog.Placing above and besides the post(content) works really good.Use of large rectangles, small banners look better in point of view of the visitor.

Image Ads:These Ads do not offer much choice for your visitor to choose the Ad from.The image Ad generally consists of a single Ad.
These Ads may be placed as a sidebar or top banner.Because the visitor gets attracted towards it quickly, placement should be done in the sidebar.

7 most common mistakes that violate Adsense TOS:

1.Clicking your own Ads/ Telling others to click your Ads:
This is the most common mistake done by publishers.You are not supposed to ask someone to click your Ads.Google finds out these cheaters quite easily.

2.Changing the code:
Removing some part of Adsense code or adding something to it is not allowed.Some of the publishers tried to remove "Ads by Google" from the Adsense code.As a result,they were banned from Adsense.

3.Putting the Ads in emails

4.Putting Ad blocks more than the limit:
You can not put more than 3 text(including Ad links block) and 2 search boxes.

5.Illegal labeling of Ads:
Labeling the Ads with words like "click here","help me","click and watch" etc. is against the Adsense TOS.
You can label them as "advertisements" or "sponsored links".

6.Using other programs like Bidvertiser, Adbrite:
The programs which work in similar way as that of Adsense should not be run simultaneously with Adsense Ads.
Yahoo, Chitika will work with Adsense.

7.Placing Ads on pages which do not contain any content:
Placing Ads on Pop-up windows,Login page, Welcome message is not allowed.Advertisers pay for the Ads kept on the pages containing some content.

How to create an Adsense account?

If you are thinking of making your website/blog a money making machine, just sign up for Google Adsense.
Follow these steps carefully:
1.Click here to Signup
2.Enter your payee name same as that in your bank account
3.Enter correct postal address because you will receive a PIN and the payments on this address.
4.The country name may not be changed once you enter.(In rare cases, it is possible that some of us might not be living at a fixed destination.In this case, enter the country you visit frequently)

Once you have filled up the form,you will have to wait till the Adsense team approves your account.They will check your information, your website/blog.It takes around 7-8 business days.
(You can get a quicker reply if you sign up through your blogger account).
Be patient and don't panic if it is taking more time.Keep in mind that you will be taken care of because Google earns a lot via its publishers.

How to get Ads on your website?

You will receive an email from Adsense team that your account has been approved and you can get started.It might be a bit difficult task to get Ads as wanted at very first time.
Go through these steps:

1.Click on Adsense Setup tab.

2.Choose what kind of Ads you want to show.
I suggest you to publish the Ads under "Adsense for content"( Display Ads relevant to the topic of your website ).Choose the colour patterns and get the Ad code.
If you want to put "Google Search" box, get the Ad code from "Adsesnse for search".

3.When you get the code, just go in "Add Page Elements", choose "HTML/JAVA script" and paste the code there.

4.The ads will appear within 10 minutes.

Why are the advertisers so keen to pay us?

This question might have came in your mind when you first heard about affiliate marketing.Some advertisers pay $0.1 per click,some pay $1.0 per click and some advertisers pay $10 per click.
Now you must be wondering why they are ready to pay this amount? Is it worth?
Let us take one example: Advertiser wants to sell his cameras.He approaches to Google and finds some sites which he thinks are useful for selling the product.He makes a deal with Google and tells the amount which he is ready to spend (and how much he wants to pay per click).When someone clicks on his Ad, the probability of the product to get sold is not much,but he is sure that out of the 200 visitors ,5 visitors will buy his product.If he pays $0.2 per click,he sells his product worth $500 x 5 = $2500 by sacrificing just 200 x 0.2 = $4
Now a days,the internet marketing is becoming popular.The advertisers find it really useful rather than advertising by using posters, sponsoring the events etc.

Banned from Adsense: Relax and read this:

It is really heartbreaking when someone loses his/her Adsense account.I know how much he/she works to get the earnings moving.But unfortunately, all efforts go in vain if you get banned from Adsense.Many webmasters have gone through this.

What you can do if your account was disabled?
You have 2 options:
1.If you really feel that there was no error from your side, contact Google Adsense team.They will reply you for sure.But keep in mind that the probability of getting your account back is very less.
Contact Google

2.Create new account:
Though you can not create new account for yourself, create an account using the different name,address,phone no.
-->Use PC with different IP address to apply for account
-->Use different Payee name, address, phone number
-->Once your account is accepted/created, you can change your address to original one.

If you are thinking of joining other programs, it's not a bad idea at all.
These are guidelines for you if want to do so
1.Guidelines for Bidvertiser
2.Guidelines for Widgetbucks

Google Adsense:Do's and Don'ts:

Many of the Adsense publishers always search for some quick money.But it must be kept in mind that this is not a "one-day business".There is nothing wrong in aiming at more and more, but you must not do some common mistakes which others do.

Here are some common mistakes done by publishers:
1.Clicking Ads on own website/blog.
2.Telling others to click on your Ads.
3.Using softwares(bots) to generate clicks.
4.Changing the Ad code.

If you think that Google will not track you while doing these mistakes, you are wrong.Always keep in mind that Google is king!
And one more thing, if you are trying to cheat Google, Google is not going to suffer,but the advertisers will do.And earning $1 per month is far better than earning $100 by cheating,isn't it?

Google Adsense:The king

Google Adsense is the best affiliate program considering the quality of Ads, returns we get and the customer satisfaction.It works quite easily.You have to create an adsense account and within 1-2 minutes you will get Ads on your website/blog.

When a visitor to your website clicks on the Ad you are displaying, the advertiser pays you.These earnings vary from 0.03$ to 10$ per click.

The payments are made by Cheques when your earnings reach $100.

Advantages:
*Excellent returns per click
*Best Ad matching
*Variety of Ads-Text,Search,Referrals.

Disadvantages:
*Account approval may take time
*High payout limit of $100
*PIN system takes a lot of time
*Once banned, you can not create another account

If you want to go for it, follow these steps:

1.Click here to create Google adsense account.

2.Wait till your account request is approved by Google Adsense Team.You will receive an email from them within 10 days of your request.

3.Get the Ad code.

Go into the Adsense setup tab in your adsense account and select what kind of Ads you want.
You have 4 choices:
1->Adsense for content
2->Adsense for Search
3->Referrals
4->Adsense for Mobile content.

Choose the Ad format you want to display.You will find different sized Ad formats.Choose the format which will suite your website.I would suggest you to choose "Adsense for content".

4.Paste the code into your website.(In case of blogs, go into "Add Page Elements", choose "HTML/JAVA script" and paste the code)

5.Within 10 minutes, you will find the Ads related with the topic of you website/blog being displayed.

If you think that the Ads are not looking good, or they would look better with other colours, just create a new Ad from Adsense account and get the code.Paste in your blog.