Protecting Your AdSense Account

Protecting Your AdSense Account

It’s a fear many Webmasters have — getting pulled from AdSense for fraudulent clicks or other activity deemed “against AdSense TOCs”.

The fear is pretty valid. I’ve heard of people getting pulled from the program for “no apparent reason” (according to them).

Of course there are two sides to every story, but it reinforces that Google’s #1 interest is protecting their advertisers, not you, the publisher.

And rightfully so.

Google watches AdSense accounts like a hawk, especially if you’re a new member.

They track IP addresses and monitor for fraudulent clicks on a regular basis. A friend of mine clicked her own ads and was removed from the program within 2 days of joining.

While I have no fool-proof way to ensure your account won’t get dinged, here are some tips to keep you in good graces with Google.

1. Report Accidental Clicks

If you accidentally click on your own ads (and people have done this), the best thing to do is report it to Google immediately. In fact, Google even advises you to do this.

If you’re honest and upfront about it, Google probably won’t remove you from the program. Your account may get flagged temporarily and/or you may lose some revenue, but it’s better you report it than having them find out about it.

Just make sure this doesn’t become a habit.

2. Stop Telling Your Friends & Family to Click on Your Ads

Some people join Adsense with the intent of getting rich by having their friends and family click on their ads. While you may think this is pretty fool-proof idea, it’s not very smart or ethical.

First of all, advertisers pay for those ads through the AdWords program. So when you tell people to randomly click the ads, you are throwing their hard-earned money down the toilet. In a way, it’s stealing.

Second, what if Google notices the multiple clicks from the same IP address. Yes, maybe it’s not your IP address, but is it really worth the risk? Plus, I would imagine Google would eventually ignore those clicks anyway.

3. When Google Calls…. Answer… And Keep Your Records

Some thieves are not too bright. Once I caught someone who literally ripped off my entire site. Not only did they forget to remove my AdSense code, but they violated the AdSense T&C’s by calling attention to the ads.

Google discovered this site, and because the person was using my AdSense code, they contacted me because they thought it was my site. I explained to them what happened.

After I replied, I didn’t hear back from Google and that made me a little nervous. So I contacted them again and included the previous correspondence.

This time I received an answer and Google told me they added a note to my file that said I was not the owner of the domain that violated the T&C’s. More importantly, I saved this reply for my own records just in case.

4. Obey The Rules

Even though Google doesn’t seem to be enforcing this much, they recently added a section to their T&C’s that require any site that uses AdSense to have a Privacy Policy. See the end of Section 1 of their terms and conditions.

Many Webmasters aren’t taking this too seriously, but if it’s in their T&C’s then why not take 10 minutes to set it up?

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A lot of people feel Google owes them something or they are doing Google a big favor by being an AdSense publisher.

I have no way of knowing how AdSense affects Google’s bottom line, but I can tell you this. Thousands of advertisers are paying to advertise with Google through AdWords, and we know that’s where Google is making its money.

AdWords advertisers funnel thousands of dollars into Google everyday and indirectly earning you money from AdSense. Google’s best interest is keeping them happy, not the publishers. Remember, AdSense publishers aren’t paying Google a cent.

So the next time you try to sneak a click or encourage your visitors to click an ad or two, ask yourself if the 12 cents you’ll gain is worth losing your account for good.

Ways to Increase Your AdSense Earnings

There are many ways to optimize your AdSense earnings. If you aren't experimenting with things like placement, color, layout, size and other variables, you could be leaving a lot of money on the table.

SBI! Websites Perform Very Well With AdSense

Site Build It! was created long before AdSense was born, but the core lessons of this all-in-one site building system make it the perfect fit for the Google AdSense program.

Why?

Because SBI! teaches you how to build income through contextual content websites (like this one) and the AdSense program is perfect for these kinds of sites.

The reason SBI! is so unique from other web hosts, is they actually teach you how to market your site, unlike the cheaper hosts that equip you with a gazillion amount of server space (that you'll never use) and a "good luck!"

Many people have commented on my YouTube channel saying "Adsense doesn't work." Most of these folks just haven't learned how to draw enough targeted traffic to their websites so they assume no one is making any money with the program.

AdSense definitely works, and I receive the checks every month to prove it, but you have to learn how to work the program and it all starts with how much traffic you have.

So if you're not happy with your site's traffic and would like to try a different kind of host with guidance (video guide, brainstorming tools, SEO help and more)

 

What’s Your Best-Performing AdSense Unit?

How well an AdSense unit performs on a site depends on several different factors…

1) The page the unit is on
2) Ad relevancy
3) Amount and quality of traffic to the site/page
4) Placement of unit

So I am by no means about to suggest that one size fits all in regards to the units. However, I would like to open up a discussion on what you’ve learned about placement.
I recently tweeted that I am having great success using the 300×250 Medium Rectangle unit alongside my YouTube videos. On certain pages, my click-thru rate has quadrupled.
I actually got this idea from Google. One of their optimization experts suggested this on my site over a year ago.  Not sure what took me so long, but I am now implementing this on more pages and the results have been fab.
Let’s talk about what you’ve learned about placement and/or color experimentation.  Done anything different to give your earnings a boost?  Please share!

 

Creating Your Website for AdSense

Creating Your Website for AdSense

Before you even begin your site, make sure you've come up with a topic that you feel you know plenty about.  That way it will be easiest to write a lot of content. 

The more content you have, the better chance you have getting accepted into the program.  Also, the more content, the greater the earning potential.  AdSense is nothing but a numbers game.  If you want to make a lot of money, prepare to write a lot of content and learn how to market your site.

Now let's talk about building your website.  There are two ways you can approach this:

1) Do it Yourself (DIY) from scratch

2) Use Site Build It! (SBI!)

How to Join AdSense

Once you have 10-15 pages on your site, go to http://adsense.google.com to apply.

When you are accepted, simply copy and paste the provided HTML code into any page that you'd like to show the ads. If you've done a good job of defining the content on your web pages, the ads that show should be relevant to the content of your page...increasing the chances of click-thrus by your visitors.

You can either display the ads vertically along side the page like Google does or in a banner-like formation horizontally across your pages.  The placement is up to you.  You can even customize the colors to match your site's theme.

Tips on Succeeding With AdSense

Here are some tips for achieving success with Google AdSense.

1. Build Traffic

AdSense is all about targeted traffic. The more people you have on your site that are actually interested in what you have to offer, the more you will potentially make.

2. Experiment

Test ad sizes, images vs. text, play around with colors, ad unit sizes, you name it. I personally like to have my ads match the background of my site so they blend more.

3. Avoid Free Hosts

I know times are tough economically and a lot of you don't want to pay for a website. But the facts don't lie. Successful website owners invest money. Period.

I have yet to open up a magazine and see a successful site featured hosted on Blogger.com or another free host. Never. And I've been out here since 1998.

If you want the search engines and people to take your site seriously, you have to own your site. And if you don't do this, I question your dedication.

Even if it means you have to wait and save your money for 6 months to buy a domain and hosting. I'd rather you do that then take shortcuts with free hosting.

I cannot tell you how many e-mails I receive monthly from people who regret the decision to start off free. Once they realize the limitations, they decide to move to a paid host and are left with the intimidating task of moving all their files over. Don't put yourself in that situation.

What is Google AdSense?

What is Google AdSense?

AdSense is a nice way to monetize your traffic, and it's very easy to implement. It's one of my top earners and has been since 2003.

Untold Facts About AdSense -- you need to know in order to succeed with the program!
Yes, the money can be great, but if you don't learn how to build a site that attracts targeted traffic then you won't make much from AdSense.
Don't pay a cent for these "Get Rich Quick" books on AdSense. Many of them are all hype. Learn all you need to know for free. 

 

click here to download the book 

What is AdSense? 

Google.com earns most of its revenue by allowing other website owners to advertise on their search result pages. All this is managed through a program they call AdWords.

Now you can earn a share of the revenue that Google earns from AdWords by displaying these same text ads on your site.  In other words, you're helping Google advertise and they pay you a percentage (roughly 60%) of what they earn.

This program is called AdSense.
Every website owner should at least consider the program.  Even if your site is just for information purposes, you can still participate and make decent money with AdSense -- or at least enough to fund your website.
So if you are one of those people that doesn't like the idea of paying for a site, this is an excellent way to earn your money back and then some.
  
How Much Can You Earn With AdSense?

The commission you receive per click depends on how much advertisers are paying Google for the particular ad. You will earn a share of that amount.  I've heard of earnings anywhere from 2 cents to $15 per click.

So it is logical to believe that keyword phrases like debt free, employment, make money, mp3, sex, etc. may earn you more per click since these are highly competitive keywords that are searched for quite a bit on the web. 

Advertisers generally pay more for popular terms because they are searched for more.

Even though Google will not reveal how much you are earning for each ad that is clicked from your site, you can still login to your account at any time and see the total amount of revenue you've generated that day, week, month, year, etc.

For example, if you see that you've made $12.60 today from 9 clicks then you can calculate that your average click-thru commission was $1.40 per click.  That's as detailed as their stats will get.  Also remember, that's only an average.  You won't know how much each specific ad brought in.

The amount you'll earn also depends largely on the amount of targeted traffic you receive to your own site, how well the ads match your audience's interests, the placement of the ads on your pages, and of course the amount you receive per click.

Ideally, you should create a site on a topic you know a lot about.  That way you'll have a much easier time creating a generous amount of content on that subject.