$1 Million Dollar Google AdSense Check - Page 2

lisa · #11 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 09:11 AM

Hi GodAdsense

Welcome to the forums!

I was not talking about this site in terms of profiting with AdSense. I do have other content rich sites that do quite well with Adsense (4 figures per month) so I'm not sure what you're referring to about having accounts removed.

I don't believe my sites fall into the category on the joelcomm site. He's mainly talking about sites that are useless and provide no valuable information. Maybe I'm misunderstanding you.

max · #12 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 09:33 AM

Whoa so according to those articles GodAdSense posted, if i have a site on horse breeding and I have tons and tons of rich content on horses, then I could run the risk of having my site removed from the network even though I'm providing useful content?

Soooo confused!

ncaditya · #13 (**permalink**) 06-01-2007, 08:25 PM

From my past experiences, I know that many legitimate and honest webmasters have been banned from Adsense, because of invalid clicks. The only reason they were emailed by adsense- "Invalid clicks."

It can be very simple. The webmaster messes up with someone at a forum and the other person thinks of teaching a lesson. He find out his sites and starts click bombing until Google bans the site.

There are some precautions to take though. For example, it is a good idea to use scripts that prevent the same user from clicking on an ad more than once. The ads may also be rotated using ad servers like OpenAds.

However, IMO, thinks will change. Adsense is shifting from pay per click to pay per action model. Of course! Adsense Referrals is still in beta. When the switch is complete, we will get complete immunity like with clickbank and commission junction.

max · #14 (**permalink**) 06-01-2007, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ncaditya

However, IMO, thinks will change. Adsense is shifting from pay per click to pay per action model. Of course! Adsense Referrals is still in beta. When the switch is complete, we will get complete immunity like with clickbank and commission junction.

I heard about this although I was under the impression that the pay per click model would still be available. So it's going to all pay per action? Yuck! Good for advertisers but bad for publishers right?

Welcome, by the way.

ncaditya · #15 (**permalink**) 06-03-2007, 12:44 AM

I hope the pay per click option still stays along with the pay per action model. Not all websites have something to sell. Pay per action networks do particularly well for digital products that can be downloaded. Examples of these products will be ebooks and software. These can be tracked and so the pay per action model works.

If a website sells SEO services, how can the transaction be tracked? Maybe they could track if a form is filled, however if they use other methods of contact like a personal email, it cannot be tracked and accounted. o pay per action model may not work in all situations.

I think Google doesn't remove the pay per click model completely for this reason. Besides there are some websites which advertise on pay per click networks just to get visitors. I have seen some blog and forum owners advertise their sites, just to get exposure to their sites. Google might be getting substantial amounts from these ads and so they wouldn't want to lose this.

IMO, pay per action model is more beneficial to both the webmaster and the advertiser. First, the advertiser doesn't lose any money. Second, webmasters may actually get paid more. Some advertisers offer as much as 75% commission. Now, if one gets 1 or 2 conversions a day, that should be a lot of money. Thirdly, it would eliminate most of the MFA sites and spam blogs. This would make the web a better place for us, I hope.

lisa · #16 (**permalink**) 06-04-2007, 07:52 AM

I really hope it puts an end to the MFA sites and I hope you're right about the PPC model. I used Yahoo Search a while back and bid on some very cheap, targeted terms just to draw visitors to my fitness site and I didn't have anything to sell so as you said ncaditya how would Google measure something that? So it would seem to me they'd have to keep it around. I sure hope so.

webdesigner · #17 (**permalink**) 06-19-2007, 10:04 PM

He (the owner of plentyoffish, sorry forgot his name) was on the Today's Show this morning. They made a big deal about the fact he earns most of his money by displaying Google ads. Of course, that wasn't news to us affiliate marketers and webmasters, but it made me wonder when we are going to start seeing more affiliate marketers on mainstream talk shows and revealing how so many people are making money with affiliate programs. Most people still have no idea about this concept. I try explaining to my family and they can't believe it's that easy. Well it's not really easy to get traffic, but the concept itself is easy.

webdev · #18 (**permalink**) 06-20-2007, 08:42 AM

webdesigner, you're right. Most people who surf the internet don't know that you can make money on the internet. As more and more people find out about it and with more and more number of people getting online in the other parts of the world other than north America, it is only going to get difficult who are trying to establish business online now and for the exsisting affilaites as the competition rises.

I think the real threat/competition comes from countries like India. With so much population, with the IT boom and with so many number of people getting online there, they pose a direct threat to north american affiliates and marketers (that's just my theory) and i've seen a lot of people who are already doing affilaite marketing from India. Most of thes people come for Bangalore which is the silicon valley of India but as the word spreads there more the competition will become stiff form as it is.

I read it somewhere that most entrepreneurs come from North America. That might change in time.

But the good news is that not everyone is cut out for making money online. The concept is simple (you create a website and put ads on it). But making money is hard, be it through website or doing direct promotion. Some people do get a beginners luck but for most it takes time. Also, not everyone sticks around. A lot of people give up.

But i wonder what is going to happen when supply over takes demand (if it ever gonna happen), that is, when you have more advertisers and affiliates than consumers online?

lisa · #19 (**permalink**) 06-20-2007, 11:21 AM

I think creativity also plays a part in it. A lot of affiliate marketers do some very clever things behind the scenes that their visitors don't even see (viral marketing, etc.)

It's not just about putting up good content but you have to differentiate your site from the pack in your niche. People also underestimate copyrighting. How you talk to your visitors and present your content makes a HUGE difference in how engaged people become on your site. It really isn't a bad idea to hire a copywriter if writing is not your cup of tea.

I read somewhere that your writing should not be above a 7th grade level. Use short sentences, always use active voice, and never be afraid to add some personality to your site. (I have to work on that myself)

People like to know there's a human behind your site (show a picture) and they want to know that you are here to help them, no matter the topic of your site. So many sites come off as cold and distant and people don't get that "this person really wants to help me feeling". That's the strategy I've used on all my sites and I get emails from people all the time thanking me for that vibe. Some of them are shocked that I actually answer my email. That goes to show you how people value that one on one feel.

Affiliate marketing is a business. Your product is your site's content and your unique voice. You are building a brand of one... YOU. And just like anything else it takes time and a lot of hard work to build a business and market it. People treat affiliate marketing like it's a get rich quick scheme but it takes a while. I've been doing this since 1998 and it wasn't until 2004 where I made what I would consider a full-time salary online....and I got started when it was supposedly "easier". And it's getting even more challenging because the search engines are smarter than ever.

I'm not sure we have to worry much about oversaturation, mainly because of the infinite niches available (Chris Anderson's book "The Long Tail" is a great read!) and the fact that 98% of people that try to create a business fail. So for every successful entrepreneur there are thousands upon thousands who are trying and failing. Sounds harsh but true. So while the numbers of affiliates continue to increase in countries worldwide, I believe there are still a larger porportion of consumers going online to search for information. But it is definitely getting harder for newbies to get in the affiliate game, which is why I don't think saturation will become a problem.

Plus, it's not nearly as easy to get ranked in the search engines as it was years ago so if you want to succeed out here you REALLY have to put in a lot more work to get that traffic. People are lazy by nature. I've helped at least 8 of my friends start websites and they all say the same thing, "This really is a lot of work. I never realized it." (I guess they thought I've been playing around all these years. LOL) And when people realize this, they get discouraged because they either don't want to invest or don't have the time.

GreenThumb · #20 (**permalink**) 06-20-2007, 11:45 AM

Wow, Lisa so very well put. Another point I'd like to make is that people who are succeeding out here are laregely marketers and great copyrighters, not technical folks. My family is always asking me why I'm trying to do this because I have no technical experience. But as Lisa said, it's about building a business and knowing how to market. Anyone can put up content and ads but not everyone is good at communicating and being creative. That's a skill/talent you must have.

Building a business means drafting out a plan, deciding exactly who your target market is. Most people who create sites don't have a clear idea of who they want to target. You should define their age, income, level of experience in your niche, sex, etc. That helps you write for your audience. It helps you develop a voice that is just right for the people you want to reach. Unfortunately people build sites for themselves instead of the people who are reading the content.

I read an article where it said something like a successful internet business is 90% marketing and 10% technical. The point was you can hire someone to do the scripting but you need to understand how to market. They also said that if you want to learn to make money online, take a course in marketing and copywriting, not scripting and programming.

Don't get me wrong. There are a ton of programmers out here doing extremely well but they also have to know how to market and need some degree of creativity. And just for the record I am not coming down hard on programmers because I WISH I was more technical but I still think the myth among people who don't know much about online marketing is that computer geeks are making the money online when it's mostly marketers (or at least computer geeks who also understand marketing)

My point is marketing has to come in somewhere and I disagree that luck has anything to do with it. You have to understand marketing and have some degree of creativity. And I'm learning I'm lacking a bit on the creative side.

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