Six Figures from Adsense -- What I've Learned

Hi all,

I see a lot of myths about Adsense (how you have to have huge traffic to make money from it, how it's only worth using in addition to something else, etc.), so I figured I'd make a list of some of the "secrets" I've learned about the program. I'm not a how-to-make-money-online guru by any means--in fact I've always worked at this part time--but I broke over 6 figures from Adsense alone in the last 12 months, so I figure I know a bit.

What I've Learned About Making Money with Adsense

1. Consumer-oriented sites work best

Think product/service reviews and consumer information. When you're writing about consumer products or services, you attract people who are in "buy mode." They find your article or blog post because they came online to look for information on that certain thing. They were already thinking about making a purchase before they even got to your site, and this makes them a lot more likely to click your ads and buy something from the merchant at the other end.

2. Search engine traffic converts best

I know social media marketing is all the rage, but people who Stumble onto your site or click someone's Twitter link probably aren't in "buy mode." They're doing idle surfing, and they're probably looking more for entertainment than to buy any products.

There's nothing wrong with working the social media outlets to get links, but don't forget basic search engine optimization tactics.

3. The best links are free

You don't need millions of page views a month to make good money from Adsense (when I checked back on the last 12 months, I had less than 4 million for the whole year), but you do need some. As you know, search engine traffic comes as a direct result of links to your site.

I suspect just about everyone here is familiar with article marketing as a means of getting free links, and that's a tried and true method. You can also often score free links (sometimes even from big name bloggers) by simply writing about cool stuff. Don't just buy packs of articles from people... go out and do research to find cool things (funky new products or innovative solutions to problems) to write about, and then send a "tip" to bloggers in your niche. They might want to cover that story too and chances are they'll give you a credit link.

4. This is a program for people who love to write

Sure you can make money with Adsense if you're not a writer, but those who will find the Adsense road easiest to travel are those who like to create content (as opposed to those who are paying for PLR articles and just throwing stuff up on the web in hopes that the search engines will splash a few random visitors on their sites).

Yes, you can buy content, but ask yourself if the people you're buying articles from really care about your niche. And ask yourself if you can really get quality content for $5 an article or less.

Trust me, getting links is a lot easier if you've got great content infused with the author's own personality, stories, and experiences. It's hard to buy great content on the cheap. If you can afford to hire a good writer to produce your content, then you can get away with not being the writer, but it's hard to start out that way for most people.

5. Turning a website or blog into a wealth-generating asset takes time

I made two dollars my first month with Adsense. It's taken me four years to build up enough content and get enough traffic to my sites to break six figures. Due to health issues, I did this all part-time (about an hour a day was my average), so you don't necessarily have to put in a lot of hours a day to get to the point where you're earning good money with Adsense, but you do need to be patient.

Domains take time to age and become trusted by search engines, content takes time to build up, links take time to acquire naturally, etc. etc. etc.

It's certainly possible to make money quickly online, but if you need money fast, Adsense probably isn't your route. If, on the other hand, you're willing to be patient and take the time needed to grow a site from nothing into an authority, it can become an asset that pays you again and again, bringing in that fabled while-you-sleep income.

Also, if you build up a great site, you'll find that there are lots of ways to monetize it. Adsense has worked well for me, but it's not the only way I make money. Build a well-trafficked site and you'll have advertisers coming to you, willing to pay you personally to put up their links on your site.

Good luck to you all!

P.S. I also talk about Adsense a bit on my blog (link in sig), so come on over if you're interested in more information.