I'm just venting, but it seems like google doesn't want us to make $$$... I know it's in their best interest if we do... But lately I have changed nothing on my site, and my targeting went to shit... Likewise my daily revenue went there too... The end result is that for the month of March I will fall just a few $$$ short of the $100 payout... I'm getting the clicks... Just not good paying ones... Darn google and their ever changing site trageting algorithm...
ok, forum visitors usually get ad-blindness quickly, so it might be a good idea to experiment with adsense layout and colours every time you notice a drop. good luck.
Forums are notorious for low CTR. As another fellow said, ad blindness sets in quick with the regulars, and unless your forum is jumping, new members are hard to come by. If your numbers are high, think about CPM ads to maximize your profits.
It does not seem to be a problem with CTR guys. xoticpt is getting the clicks. xoticpt: I got a similar problem to solve but it ain't easy. I started blocking the MFA-s recently and I can tell you .. There is an increase in earnings. For example: Yesterday I did not have time to check for new MFA-s. The result: earnings dropped with %50. For earnings in the 100/month area every click counts
Google automatically displays the highest paying ads so I don't see how blocking will help. You just need to ensure the right kind of ads are displayed. To get more specific ads use section targetting. Don't display too many ads. The less ads you display, the more high-paying ads on display, therefore the greater chance of a high cost per click. As Jack suggested, try a CPM network if you're getting a lot of impressions. Fastclick, Casale, Tribalfusion, etc. If your site has been targetted and eCPM is low then disable on site sign-up for your site.
There is a small difference between what is best for Google and what is best for publishers. As the MFAs always look like perfectly targeted they have quite good CTR in their AdWords accounts and thus are preferred advertisers. This means they can easily show up at better position than the higher paying and not so relevant ads. ("higher paying" and "not so relevant" together and alone) I had a campaign some time a go where I was paying $0.03 or less after the first week while at the beginning it was in the $0.1 range. Once I have established good CTR, AdWords let me lower my bids and I was still at the top. I don't have a MFA site to provide more details on how is the math going there but I highly doubt they pay much more than that and any percentage of $0.03 is way too low to loose a visitor for. I've seen a post from another member here or at WMW about a test he made by removing completely the blocked ads filters and reading the MFAs again to it. Anyway, xoticpt: try it out for a day or two. P.S. WOW my first long post aroung here Added: and yes CPMs are good as long as the CPM providers accept your site... They declined to accept my bigger site.
block MFA? weare talking about made for adsnese right... and how exactly do i do that... am i supposed to make a competitive ad filter for all the mfa's
If you tried blocking all MFA, you'd be at it for many years. There are thousands of MFA sites out there. Then you'll need to keep checking that the sites are actually still MFA ones advertising through adwords. You could potentially be just blocking yourself from receiving good income. Find other ways to make income that will appeal to your forum members. EDIT: To the person who asked "have you tried"... I can't answer that question as it's incomplete. If you ask completely then I'll answer.