PRO

Don't advertise your competitors on your own website

If you have paid good money for a quarter page advert in the local newspaper or a glossy magazine you wouldn't be too happy if a list of competing businesses was running alongside it would you? Well that is what you are doing if you are running Google Adsense advertising on your own website or blog. If you are offering a service or products then clearly the words on the web page relate to such - these are the exact same words that Google reads to match up its advertising. So there is a very good chance you will be displaying advertising from other, often larger, businesses who are your direct competition and which enables potential clients to be on their website in a click. You will have earned a few pennies while they may well secure a large contract!
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  • Hi Craig

    I run Adsense on my site but have modified the settings on Adsense to ensure that my local competitors do not appear there. this can by done both by geographical region and by inserting specific urls - so Susan and Niall and my other local competition don't get a click through from me! To date (and I check my site most days) I have yet to see any competitors there. Most are from London or the south east so not in direct competition at all.

    What do you reckon??

    Cheers

    Nicky Patterson
    GardenImprovements.com
  • Nicky,

    Silly question - So what benefit would you get from having adsense as I reckon the chances of someone clicking on them would be very slim. Unless the trade off is that someone local to you clicks on your ad from someone elses site - Does this make sense? Sorry long day I have been fitting the kitchen out at home!! :-(
  • It pays of a little but not huge amounts but the real benefit is having fresh google friendly text which refreshes constantly so seems to bolster our ranking a little bit.

    It certainly isn't making me wads of cash though!!
  • PRO
    Hi guys,

    For these adverts to pay you need a fair few visitors to your site, I'd say roughly 20,000 a month.

    You can tweak what is displayed on the ad strips, but then again you might be blocking some of the higher paying advertisers.

    I offer web tips through my own personal blog, and don't run any advertising, because in the space that ad blocks would take up I'd prefer to be highlighting my own work and the fact I follow my subject.

    I think you'd most probably have more joy out of writing a review of a gardening/landscaping book and having an affiliate link to Amazon so that people can buy it.

    (If you go down this route place the affiliate link at the end of the article, it's 3x more effective than higher up)

    I'd measure the effectiveness of the ad blocks and see if they really are bringing in something of value, or whether the space could be put to better use.

    All the best,
    Craig
  • PRO
    If I was selling a single service such as landscaping or garden maintenance I would not run adverts at all. I would wish to focus purely on the delivery of my product to my potential client.

    A potential sale, if I can hook up with a buyer, is potentially worth so much more than the few cents I could get if they click on an ad.
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