Youve probably heard a lot about Google AdSense (which is actually more accurately known as Google AdSense V1), but you may not know just what it is. Well, for one thing, its a one of the hottest new ways to make money online without having to do a whole lot. If youve read Robert Kiyosakis book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, you know that passive income is the best kind of income to have.

Passive income is income that you get without having to work for it. I know this may sound like some kind of pie in the sky get-rich-quick scheme, but passive income is for real. In fact, every single billionaire on earth uses the power of passive income to keep money coming in while he or she jets off to parties and resorts and such.

The best example of passive income in the physical world is real estate. When you own an apartment building and hire a property manager and a maintenance crew to take care of it for you and collect the rents, all you have to do is cash the checks that roll in.

Of course, passive income doesnt just happen overnight, or everyone would be getting it. In the case of the apartment building owner, it took money, time, and knowledge to set up an S corporation, find a building to buy, put up the cash to buy it with and get a loan for the rest, renovate it, then screen and hire the property manager and maintenance crew. But once that was all done, checks began rolling in with little or no effort.

Well, Google Adsense is the online equivalent of that. Youll have to invest just a little bit of time in learning about it, but once you get it set up you can look forward to seeing those nice checks roll in. Or, if youre totally online, seeing money flow into your PayPal account.

1.1 So Just What is Google AdSense?

Google AdSense is a fast and absolutely ridiculously easy way for people with websites of all types and sizes to put up and display relevant Google ads on the content pages of their site and earn money.

Because the Google AdSense ads relate to what your visitors came to your site to read about, or because the ads match up to the interests and characteristics of the kind of people your content attracts, you now have a way to improve your content pages AND make some serious bucks off of them.

Google AdSense is also a way for site owners to provide Google search capability to visitors and to earn even more money by putting Google ads on the search results pages. Google AdSense gives you the ability to earn advertising revenue from every single page on your websitewith a minimal investment of your time

So what kind of ads do you have to put up? Thats the good partyou dont have to decide. Google does it for you. AdSense always delivers relevant ads that are precisely targetedon a page-by-page basisto the content that people find on your site. For example, if you have a page that tells the story of your pet fish, Google will send you ads for that site that are for pet stores, fish food, fish bowls, aquariumsyou get the picture.

If you decide you want to add a Google search box to your site, then AdSense will deliver relevant ads targeted to the Google search results pages that your visitors search request generated.

If youre into upgrades, Google is now offering AdSense Premium, which is CPC based and, for the time being, offers less flexibility in terms of ad sizes -- only banners and skyscrapers are currently available. You can apply using existing AdWords accounts, or you can request a new account. Applicants are usually notified within a day as to whether theyve been accepted for the program.

Heres the thing you need to know: Google has no strict criteria for acceptance into the AdSense program, and Ad Sense doesnt hit you with a minimum traffic requirement. The only criteria theyre really sticky about is the standard acceptable content requirements, and thats pretty standard almost anywhere.

Google AdSense says theyre serious about attracting quality content sites, and because of that they only allow AdSense members to serve one ad per page. This means you cant use AdSense for both banners and skyscrapers.(Note: banners are those horizontal ads that run up top and down bottom. Skyscrapers are the tall ads that run vertically, on the left and right of your page text.)

Once youve been accepted into Google AdSense, youll be able to get the AdSense advertisements on any site you own using the same ad code, provided you obey the Google guidelines. (And thats very, very importantmore on that later.)

Your reporting doesnt occur in real time, but is updated regularly throughout the day. Right now, you cant view reports based on a domain or site basis if you run the AdSense on more than one site.

Before you sign up, you really ought to read the lengthy and detailed FAQ on the AdSense site.

1.2 What Can it do for Me?

In three words, earn you money. More relevant ads on your pages translates into more clicksand more money that you receive. Because when users click on an ad, Google will pay you. If youve set up your own sales team, youll get an additional benefit: AdSense complements their efforts. It doesnt compete with them. With AdSense, you get a reporting page that gives you a breakdown on how your ads are doing and what theyre bringing in.

Google has a huge advertiser base, so they have ads for all kinds of businesses and for just about every type of content no matter how broad or specialized it is. And since Google provides the ads, you dont have to spend time talking to your advertisers.

AdSense represents advertisers that span the spectrum. These advertisers range from large global brands to small and local companies. And ads are targeted by geography so global businesses can display local advertising easily. One more thing: you can use AdSense in many languages.

So how does AdSense figure out how to do all this targeted advertising? Well, AdSense has the ability to deliver relevant ads because the gurus at Google understand how web pages really work and theyre continually refining their technology to make it smarter all the time.

For example, some words can have several different meanings depending on context. Youve seen th is happen with two and too and to. Google technology is smart enough to understand these distinctions from the context that the word appears in, so you get more targeted ads.

When you put a Google search box on your site you start making money off of web searches that people do on your site. This ability to search off of your page keeps them on your site longersince they can search from right there where they areand it will only take you a few minutes to get AdSense up and running. The best part, of course, is that AdSense is free for you to use.

1.3 What Kinds of Ads Will I Get on My Site?

Obviously, there are some kinds of ads you wouldnt want to have on your site, such as pornographic ones or ads for sleazy multi-level marketing schemes that scream Make $30,000 a month just for watching TV! in big red letters.

Well, you can put your mind at ease. Google has an ad review process that checks the ads they send to your site. This process ensures that the ads that you serve up are family-friendly and that they comply with Googles strict editorial guidelines.

Googles ad-screening team combines sensitive language filters, input from site owners like you, and a team of linguists with good old common sense to filter out ads that could be inappropriate for your content. And if thats not enough, you have to capability to block competitive ads and choose your own default ads. Thats another nice feature: Google kind of lets you run your own show.

Now, another thing you might be concerned about is whether the ads will clash with the look, feel, and colors scheme youve got going with your site. Dont worry. You can customize the appearance of ads and choose from a wide range of colors and templates. Same thing goes for your search results page. And reports are customizable, too. Google provides flexible reporting tools that allow you to group your pages any which way you want.

That means you can view your results by URL, domain, ad type, category and more so that you can figure out where your earnings are coming from.

1.4 How do I Get Started?

Its easy to get started with AdSense and it only takes a few minutes. You fill out one single online application and thats it. Once you're approved, it takes only minutes to set up AdSense; all you have to do is copy and paste a designated block of HTML into the source code for your site. Once you do that, targeted ads will start showing up on your website.

To fill out the online application, go to:

https://www.google.com/adsense/application-1?apply=Click+Here+to+Apply/

1.5 What are Users Saying about AdSense?

Its one thing to hear about all the great advantages Google AdSense offers, including how it can make money for you in your sleep. But its another thing to hear comments from real, live people. Here are a few of my favorites.

ˇ Were seeing this impressive new revenue stream without incurring any cost. Were maximizing our previously unsold inventory, and our revenue per page figure continues to grow.
- Scott Zucker, Executive VP and COO, Intelligent Content Corp, PetPlace.com

ˇ It took no time at all to copy and post the code on individual pages, and it fits well with our content management system and with the look and feel of all our pages.
- Steve Larson, Founder, Our-Hometown.com

ˇ Instead of spending money to hire an additional sales rep to sell ad banners, Google ads have become a virtual sales tool for us. Now were able to reap thousands of dollars in additional advertising revenue each month that we would very likely have missed without Google AdSense.
- Robert Hoskins, Editor and Group Publisher, Broadband Wireless Exchange

ˇ Google shows targeted ads reflecting the sorts of information and services SeatGuru visitors want. For a small business like mine, this is the best approach to advertising. You set it up easily, it automatically serves relevant ads, and it takes very little of my time.
- Matt Daimler, Founder, SeatGuru.com

ˇ At the beginning I was very concerned that I might lose traffic to competitors. I only used AdSense on a limited number of the sites pages, and I watched the stats very carefully. If the traffic, pages per visitor, or conversion rates dropped I knew I could easily pull the ads...Since implementing AdSense, our ad revenue has increased more than tenfold, and 100 percent of my available inventory is now sold through AdSense.
- Vik Kachoria, Entrepreneur, Real Adventure.

1.6 Am I Going to Make a Lot of Money Off of This?

While we cant guarantee results, of course, since a lot of your success lies in your own hands, we wouldnt have written this book if we didnt believe in the power of Google AdSense. A lot of webmasters are making a lot of money off of AdSense, and theres no reason you shouldnt be one of them.

The amount of money you can make with Google AdSense mainly depends on what user needs your Website fills. For instance, a site about womens issues can make some serious bucks on AdSense because of the high level of competition for related keywords.

The CPC (cost per click) is the amount you get paid every time a user clicks on one of those ad banners. CPC rates for competitive keywords can be more than $1, which translates directly to your sites earning potential within the program.

However, if youre in a less competitive market, youll make less moneythats just a fact of life. Still, its unusual to see anyone using Google AdSense report earnings of less than an effective $1 CPM (cost per 1000 impressions), and the average runs in the range of $4-$5 CPM. Some people are making an effective CPM of $15 or more with AdSense. Oh, and best yet, this is all after Google takes its commission.

About that commissioncommission is definitely one thing is thats a little bit ambiguous with AdSense. Google doesnt publicize its cut, and only displays the publishers cut in proprietary member reports, so getting good, accurate information on this has been difficult.

To date, comparisons of AdWords rates with AdSense earnings add up to commissions of between 40% and 60%. People speculate all the time on user boards as to why Google refuses to publish its commission rates, but no one has the answer. It might have something to do with legal reasons or it could just be that Google wants to retain the ability to change rates without having to send out an announcement about it each time, which costs money.

Chapter 2: Building Content-Rich Sites

First off, why would you want to build content-rich websites? The short answer is Because it keeps people on your site for awhile, it makes them come back, and they tell their friends about that site.

But why? Well, for one thing, people will stay on a content-rich site because it takes awhile to read an article or two. Thus, while theyre reading the material, their peripheral vision (off to the sides) notices little ads that happen to surround that articles.

And if people start to realize that a certain site has good content that they like, and in particular, different content that constantly changes and is updated, then theyll check back to see whats new.

The worst thing in the world to have is a stagnant website that never changes. People will visit it exactly twicethe first time to check it out, and the second one to see whats changedand when they find out it hasnt changed, they most likely wont come back. Ever.

2.1 What are Content-Rich Sites and Why Have One?

A content-rich site is one that has lots of informative articles up at it, usually centered around a theme. Most sites cant quite pull off being WikiPedia, so they specialize. For instance, you could do a site for dog owners. Possible articles on that site would cover:

ˇ How to figure out what kind of dog you want

ˇ Where to get a dog

ˇ How to deal with a puppy

ˇ Life stages of a dog

ˇ House-training puppies

ˇ Dog training

ˇ What to feed dogs

ˇ Whether to get more than one dog

ˇ How to socialize dogs with other dogs and with cats

ˇ Exercise needs of dogs

ˇ Training dogs to do tricks

ˇ Treating fleas

ˇ Common dog ailments and when to go to the vet

ˇ Dog nutrition

ˇ Taking your dog on a trip

ˇ Getting a pet sitter or boarding your dog if you dont take him on a trip

The articles youll want to have on your site should be short enough so that someone can read them in about 5 minutes. This means you want to stick to articles of 250 to 750 words, with 300 to 600 words optimal. To give you an idea, a single page in a published novel has about 300 words.

Of course, your real purpose in putting up all these nice little short articles and changing them out frequently is not to just put information out into the world. It is to have a site that people will come back to so that they will see the Google AdSense ads, and click on them, and then you will get checks in the mail.

Thats a key point, so Im going to repeat it:

The purpose of having a content-rich website is to attract people to it, again and again, so that they will see the ads and click on them.

You might think its lots of cool graphics and colors that make a site attractive to a visitor, but its really the content. In order to make money from Google AdSense, you need to grasp that concept. Believe me, you could run a wonderful advertising campaign and develop all sorts of viral marketing tools and attractive affiliate programs.

But unless your Website is content-rich, the traffic spikes that you get for your efforts will only be temporary. The very best way to attract and retain an online audience is to provide content thats useful, valuable, informative, educational or just downright funny as hell or entertaining in some way.

What does a content-rich website look like? Here are a few examples.

2.2 How Do I Build One?

I know the notion of creating your very own content-rich website might be a little intimidating, but you can do it. Its not hard. You dont have to be a good write to have good content on your site. In fact, you dont have to be a writer at all. There are plenty of successful people who make a lot of money from Google AdSense and they dont write a word of that content. Well talk more about that later, but you can hire writers, or have guest writersits not hard.

Anyone can create a content-rich Website by following a few key points:

ˇ Have some disciplinemaintain your site.

ˇ Update that site often. Having a schedule is best.

ˇ Be able to beg, borrow, or commission content

Discipline is key

To create a content-rich Website, you need to hone your focus and your self-discipline. I dont have to tell you how incredibly easy it is to waste hours, even days, just surfing around the web from one site to another. You cant let yourself get distracted like that or you wont accomplish anything. Start with setting a limit to surfing for fun so that you limit your searches to sites and resources that are relate very directly to your site's subject.

Discipline also applies to creating creation. Successful writers cant afford to wait for inspiration to strike before starting work. Instead, they develop a writing schedule for themselves and they stick with it like it was their jobsince it is. As one famous writer said, I write when I feel like it. And every morning at 9am, I make sure I feel like it. Schedule a time for yourself to sit down at your desk and write.

And youll need to develop another schedule for when to add content to your Website, and follow that schedule religiously. Make a commitment to yourself and follow through with it.

And rememberif you just simply cant write, or you find yourself making too many excuses not to write content, just hire someone.

Go to Elance.com and post a project to write 20 articles of 300-600 words each for $5 to $10 each. Youll find someone.

Regular updates are critical to your site

Nothing is deader than a website that looks like somebodys forgotten about it. Regularly updating or modifying your site content gives you a big advantage over the competition. Web surfers will keep on coming back to your site if they notice that theres always something new to see, learn, or enjoy each time.

2.3 What Kind of Content Should I Put Up?

Any kind you want, of course, since were talking about the internet. But seriously, youll want to give this topic some consideration, since theres more interest in some topics than others.

You know the people who are your audience, since ideally youre talking about something you know about. For instance, if youre talking about Ultimate Frisbee, its because you play it. So you know what other Ultimate people are like, and what they want to know and what they find entertaining.

Once you know that, you can decide about which types of content will best serve their needs and how to go about finding or creating it. Here are some general categories to get you started with your brainstorming:

ˇ Editorials

ˇ Feature articles

ˇ Political opinion

ˇ News stories

ˇ Art galleries

ˇ A conglomeration of the best content

ˇ Reviews of movies, books, music

ˇ Interviews

ˇ Interactive features - polls, feedback, discussion groups, forums, chat

Editorials

Editorials are the opinion of someone whos seen as an expert in the field-- (either you or a guest contributor). This makes good content because people like to respond to it, either by agreeing with or opposing the writer. This can make for an exciting page, and youll probably have to moderate it.

Give your people a way to make their views known; put up a bulletin board or guest book on your site. People will come back to read other responses to their comments. And you can use this feedback from your audience by incorporating it into a follow up article in the future.

For instance, is everybody complaining about a new government travel policy? Do an article on it, since clearly thats something people are talking about so theyll want to read about it.

Full-length Feature Articles

This is the most common and in many peoples opinion one of the best forms of content. Depending on what your site is like, the articles could be long or brief, formal or chatty, technical or entertaining.

Here are some tips:

ˇ Keep it short. While there aren't any hard and fast rules, you should keep these articles below 1200 words. If they are longer, make them into multi-part features. People hate to have to scroll down a lot.

ˇ Articles should be relevant to your site.

ˇ Articles ought to educate, entertain or inform. Dont overwhelm people; stick to one or two ideas.

ˇ Refrain from rehashing an article you've read somewhere else. By publishing something thats new, you up the value and credibility of your site.

To Get Content

1. Offer to pay guest authors for their work. A guest author could be someone you found on your bulletin board who happens to write well.

2. Exchange articles with the guest authors site. Your site visitors benefit by providing them with another point of view. And you might just gain some new regular visitors from your guest author's site!

3. Make sure you get exclusivity. When someone writes for you, make sure they wont submit that same article to dozens of other Websites and newsletters. When your site publishes exclusive content, you have opportunities for syndication in other publications, online and off, and you gain a lot of reader loyalty. The key phrase in a contract with a writer is that youre buying all rights, including electronic.

Can you use reprints?

Reprint articles written by others, but you must always obtain permission. All work, from the moment it is written, is copyright and owned by the author, whether it is marked with a copyright symbol or not. Content is not free. You can, however, make reprints interesting and personalized by putting your own 'spin' on the content. Write an introduction to the subject, or comment on the author's opinions or conclusions.

Take care to avoid 'editing' the original article without the author's permission. Avoid articles that have been reprinted many times before on other Websites and electronic publications.

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