Placing AdSense ads on a web page is easy enough. The question most often asked, though, is WHERE on the page must you place the Ads? This question does not have an easy answer as every web site has it’s own differences. But Google was kind enough to release a “heat map” showing which positions on a web page were optimal for placing AdSense ads. Take a look at the Google AdSense heatmap below. The darker the color, the better the Click Through Ratio (CTR):
There are a few things to note from this image:
- The closer the ad is to the content, the better
- Ads on the left do better than ads on the right
- Ads at the top do better than ads at the bottom
This picture is especially relevant for westerners, as they read from left to right and from top to bottom. You HAVE to remember where the readers eyes are or will be. If they are looking at the ads, there is more chance that they will see something relevant, and click on it.
This is just an introduction to Google AdSense ad placement. There are MANY, MANY more things to consider about the placement and optimization of ads. I will try to touch on as many of them as possible in the coming articles.