
Are ad placement and size a factor in PPC revenue?Hi Dave. I've been talking with some friends about how to make money as a blogger and they're split. Some say that Google AdSense is the way to go, while others wax enthusiastic about the Chitika network. What they all say, however, is that it's critically important to pick the right size ad and put it in the right place to get the best results. I'm skeptical, though: how important can that be on a Web page? First things first: if you don't yet have a Chitika.com account, please click here to sign up. Done that? Good. Now, think about advertisements in any venue, whether it's TV spots, newspaper ads or even promo spots from sponsors on your favorite podcast. I would hope that it's obvious that some are better than others. A :30 spot during the Superbowl is going to cost quite a bit more than a :60 during the 3am-4am insomniac time period. Why? Because there are lots more people watching the Superbowl ad and the ad is more likely to be successful (depending on the product and audience, of course. I'm guessing a ShamWow won't do very well during half-time. :-) Perhaps a magazine is an even better example, because it's the same publication read by the same people, but the very first page people see when they open the magazine (the "inside cover") is going to be far more effective in attracting potential customers than a 1/4-page advert six pages from the end of the publication. In a very similar way, the size and placement of ads on a Web page are critical too. The first thing to consider is "the fold" (so named for newspapers where the top half of the page is "above the fold" because so many people fold their newspaper in half when reading). I have a great, great example from the Chitika network to illustrate this, an example that comes from this very weblog. My first attempt at adding Chitika ads looked like this: ![]() A fairly good position (though not as good a placement as the Google AdSense ads on this page) but the results were fairly lackluster at best: • average $0.11 eCPM (that is, revenue per 1000 ads displayed) With some input from Chitika's team, we made a few tweaks to the size and style of the advert and moved it up just a wee bit on the page so it looked like this: ![]() The results? Pretty amazing considering how little effort was involved: • an average eCPM of $2.24 eCPM (a huge jump) Nice, eh? Yes, I think we can conclude from this experiment that size and placement of the adverts are very important to your success with online pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. Oh, and if you're thinking that $2.24 eCPM is a nice multiplier for your own Web site traffic, then I encourage you to consider joining the Chitika ad network too. Oh, and it's not just me finding good results with Chitika. Darren Rowse ("problogger") says that it's a top revenue source for him from his own popular, must-read Web site too! Disclaimer: The Chitika sign up links are affiliate links: if you sign up for the program through these links, you'll not only help yourself, you'll help me keep the lights on in our offices. Thanks for helping out!
Help others find this article at Del.icio.us, Digg, Netscape, Reddit, and Stumble Upon
Categorized:
Pay Per Click (PPC)
(Article 8877)
Tagged: chitika, google adsense, online advertising, ppc, problogger Previous: How can I capture a screen in Windows XP? Next: How do I customize my archive filename format in Movable Type 4? Subscribe!
Never miss another useful Q&A article again! Subscribe to AskDaveTaylor with Google Reader. Hi Dave, What is the best way to get into CPA a network I know that when you say you are new to CPA, they Steve Posted by: Steve at May 6, 2009 2:46 AMI also tried their Mega Unit and it really increases my CTR! I think I should add all mega units in my websites. I only tried it to one site. :) Posted by: Jehzeel Laurente at May 15, 2009 10:22 AMThe modification of your original chitika ad involved removing the border around it which usually results in improved performance. This option does not seem to be available to the rest of us on the control panel so our results may be less stellar than yours. Hey, Before the Premium ads my ctr was so bad I stopped using them altogether. The trick, you need traffic to be successful generating substantial income. Cheers, hi dave! i was really amazed with the figures you've mentioned here. i just wish one of sites will be able to replicate your income from chitika. i've put the mega unit code in only one site i own so i think i'm gonna have to wait for a while before i can say how this ad unit will perform. Posted by: jessie at June 13, 2009 7:32 PMI had some success with Chitika in the past, and in respect of publisher support that are a million miles ahead of google. But less than half my traffic is from the USA so it is never going to be a serious rival to Adsense until they support traffic from more countries for their premium ads.. Posted by: Jordan McClements at June 16, 2009 6:19 AMsir, you site is very informative. i have visited many pages of it. but pls let me know average per click revenue from chitika ads? Posted by: aarti lamba at July 23, 2009 10:22 PMNice job, you snuck the referral code in there 4 times. Yet, you don't actually appear to be running their ads at this time. Posted by: DaveZatz at August 7, 2009 4:31 AMThat is a significant jump in revenue. I'm new to the ad thing and don't want to over do it for my clients, but I'll be looking into chitika. Thanks Posted by: DT at November 16, 2009 3:54 PMI have something to say, now that you mention it, but ...
I do have a comment, now that you mention it!
|
![]()
Search
Find just the answers you seek from among our 2300+ free tech support articles by using our Lijit search engine.
Help!
Subscribe to
Ask Dave Taylor!
Free Updates!
Sign up and get free weekly updates and special offers on books, seminars, workshops and more.
Articles and Reviews
Auctions and Online Shopping Blogs and RSS Feeds Building Web site traffic Business and Management Cell Phones and Mobile Phones CGI Scripts and Web Site Programming Computer and Internet Basics d) None of the Above HTML and CSS Industry News and Trade Shows Mac OS X Help MySpace, Facebook, Twitter and Social Network Help Pay Per Click (PPC) Search Engine Optimization Shell Script Programming Sony PSP, MP3 Players, Etc. The Writing Business Unix and Linux Help Video Game Tips and Help Windows Help
Recent Entries
Book Links
|