Google Adsense - does it work?

When I created my first blog using Blogger in 2007, I came across with this particular site called 'Adsense' through which one can earn money from Google. I personally don't believe in free money. So never felt the urge to use Adsense in anyway.

A check issued by Google Adsense

But I did get addicted to Blogger (also known as Blogspot) because personally I liked to work with HTML and CSS and Blogger made it real simple. I created about 8 blogs. Though some of them are deleted now, I do run few quite popular blogs like - North-East India, EF News International and Eastern Fare and today I have many friends who regularly post on these sites. As the blogs became popular, I thought of paying a small amount of money to the people who write for me and my organisation. And I did so from my pocket. Then the idea struck me - "Why not check out Adsense?" and if I can make some money out of it, I don't have to burden my purse.

Now, what is Adsense? Google AdSense is a program run by Google Inc. that allows publishers in the Google Network of content sites to serve automatic text, image, video, and rich media adverts that are targeted to site content and audience. That is, you can allow Google to post ads in your site or blog, and when anyone clicks on these ads, you get paid. So, I created an account on Adsense and started posting ads on the sites that I run.

Did it work for me? NO.

Did I get money? NO.

What was the problem? Not you, but your readers or people who visit your site need to click on the ads. And they were not doing so. Why was that? Because relevant ads were not showing in the posts. What I understood? You have to be sure what kind of blog you have and what kind of ads you want people to see. If you want to get paid by Google, one has to follow certain rules.

First, you can't ask people to click on the ads. That's a big NO. That's dirty trick. People will click on ads if they feel that is important or relevant. This is like, if you visit a restaurant, you don't eat everything on the menu. You will order what you like even if the waiter forces you to choose something else. There might be instances when your eyes fall on a particular area in the restaurant where they are offering one free sandwich with a burger. And only if you're interested, you will order the burger.

Second, never click your own ads. Forget about getting paid, you or your site will be suspended or even banned.

See more DON'Ts here.

Third, just by getting into Adsense program, one might not earn a single penny. The point is 'Content is King'! One has to have good number of posts or pages before people come and click on the ads. If you don't have a proper post, there won't be a relevant ad shown. If Google can't understand the page, publishers of the ads won't too. Hence, Google will use Public Service Announcements to fill ads. And you won't get a buck even if people click those. I had to change my write-ups before proper ads started appearing.

Fourth, You need to have a good number of posts in your blog. Written properly. If you can't keep a person in your blog for 5 mins, that means you don't have enough interesting stuff in your blog. Make sure you have links to your other posts, relevant posts, about us page, contact us page etc. Your site should look good too. A lighter background is always preferred to a darker background. Do some styling.

See more DO's here.

Last thing you should know that you can even link your Youtube channel to your Adsense account. And monetize your videos. Ads will appear only on the videos where you own copyrights.

Learn more about Youtube monetize here.

After I followed all the rules, I got my first check from Google in Jan 2013. It took me 5 years. But I am glad that after all these dedicated years, there was a reward waiting. 

So, Google Adsense, does it work? Yes!!