For the second month in a row, posting my freelance writing income stats has resulted in an increased number of emails in my inbox. This time around, after only a day, several readers have asked why I do not attempt to monetize this blog. As I have mentioned in the past, monetization is important to me, but not until I reach certain traffic levels.
Now that I have built a solid readership, surpassed my traffic goals, and have the okay of my readers, I think it may be time to add some Google AdSense blocks. For the most part, when I decide to do this it will be more or less an experiment. There are two things that I will be looking for.
1. How much money can I make with Google AdSense? Is it really worth adding, or will it do nothing more than make me a few pennies every day?
2. My readers are important to me, and although they are known as “traffic stats†they mean more to me than that. Will Google AdSense affect my reader base either negatively or positively? This is what I will really be keeping my eye on.
With no technical skills, adding Google AdSense to this blog is not going to be easy for me. In fact, it will be a trial and error process. While I do have other blogs that use this advertising program, I have always paid others to help me out with adding the code, etc. But on this blog, my goal is to learn this kind of stuff on my own. So bear with me if there are some changes along the way that are not as they should be!
Related Link:Sabahan.com offers plenty of information and tips on Google AdSense.
In several past posts I have talked a bit about Henry and Wilson; the two twins behind richtwinpoortwin.com. More specifically I have been obsessed with the fact that Google AdSense shut their account down, which in turn cost them more than $200,000. Not to mention all of the future money that they were sure to earn.
After first reading their story I vowed to attempt to get in touch with these guys. After all, they have to have a lot of good insight, right? Well, after a few weeks of contemplation, I finally sent them a quick email. And sure enough, Henry was nice enough to answer my questions. So without further delay, here is the email interview.
Did you ever get the feeling that you should diversify, and move away from Google AdSense a bit?
At some points we did feel we should diversify and we tried a few other networks. However, we were just too comfortable with AdSense and every time we tried something new we compared it to AdSense which was by far much easier to navigate, use, and make money.
Do you feel that there was something you could have done differently to save your account?
I think I would have taken a more active approach in keeping in contact and dealing with Google’s AdSense team.
Do you think that you guys will be able to reach your previous income level without using AdSense?
I know it is possible to reach my previous level of income without AdSense. It is just a matter of focusing, staying motivated, and acting.
As you can see, Henry is a go-getter, and is sure to get things back on track in the near future. From this interview alone it is easy to see why he (and his brother) has had so much success. Not only is he knowledgeable, but confident that life after AdSense does exist!  Â
Does the title of this blog post surprise you? Do you think it is a sin that I am possibly suggesting that Google AdSense is overrated? Although I do not want to cause a huge stir with this post, I feel that it is something to consider.
To start with, let me say that I have used AdSense on blogs and websites, and plan on continuing to do so. In fact, if I ever attempt to monetize this blog, AdSense is one program that I will more than likely start with.
But with all of that being said, in my opinion, AdSense is overrated. Here are three details that have led me to this conclusion.
1. From my experience speaking with hundreds of webmasters, AdSense is reserved for the best of the best. In other words, unless you have a highly profitable niche or loads of traffic, your chances of succeeding with AdSense are not that great. Sure, you can make a few bucks here and there, but a full-time income will be out of range.
2. For some reason, Google thinks that they can do whatever they want, whenever they want. And when it comes down to it, I guess they really can. Google is the one company that is synonymous with the internet, and this does not appear to be changing anytime in the near future. But what does this have to do with AdSense, you may ask? Simply put, Google may decide to ban you from their program without explanation. Time and time again accounts are suspended, and publishers are left with no answers as to why. If you don’t believe it, check out this link – http://www.richtwinpoortwin.com/banned-from-google-adsense-lost-200000.html. These guys lost $200,000 when their account was suspended!
3. AdSense is no longer the only game in town. They may still be the leader in the industry, but they are being gained on. Other ways to monetize your blog or website include: Kontera, Text Link Ads, Bidvertiser, AzoogleAds, AuctionAds, Yahoo! Publisher Network, and many more.
As you can see, I strongly believe that Google AdSense is overrated. This does not mean that you should stop using AdSense, but you should consider your other options.
