Tell me more ×
Answers OnStartups is a question and answer site for entrepreneurs looking to start or run a new business. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 6 down vote favorite
4

I am running a website and wish to get some revenues from ads. I tried google Adsense but I do not like the fact that the ads are completely off-topic compared to my site. I checked google adsense faq and it seems you can only block parts of off-topic ads (is that not strange? why can't they proposed ads per category?).

Is there an alternative to google Adsense you would recommend?

share|improve this question
Possible duplicate: answers.onstartups.com/questions/7356/… – xiaohouzi79 Nov 2 '10 at 2:06
It's a bit harsh voting them down. – SmartCompanySoftware Nov 2 '10 at 3:37
agreed, why vote this down? ... slatecaster look into affiliate programs. BuySellAds will probably earn you more than adsense but its become overly saturated. An affiliate program related to your site can really pay off. – Frank Nov 2 '10 at 3:45
Why vote this down? 1. It's a duplicate. 2. It's subjective (see the FAQ). 3. It doesn't provide anything helpful. 4. It can be answered by doing a simple Google search. – xiaohouzi79 Nov 2 '10 at 10:36
Because of all of the above these types of questions aren't helpful to the community. The reason down-voting exists. The reason why I chose to down vote. Down voting exists for a reason. It's not a personal attack, so don't take it personally. – xiaohouzi79 Nov 2 '10 at 10:38
show 1 more comment

closed as not constructive by Zuly Gonzalez♦ Aug 19 '12 at 3:33

As it currently stands, this question is not a good fit for our Q&A format. We expect answers to be supported by facts, references, or specific expertise, but this question will likely solicit debate, arguments, polling, or extended discussion. If you feel that this question can be improved and possibly reopened, see the FAQ for guidance.

5 Answers

up vote 4 down vote accepted

  1. Don't think that Adsense will show you the same ads that it shows others, the inventory is very location dependent, your visitors may well be seeing very different ads to you. Also, it does take Google a little while (read an hour or two) to index your site properly and deliver up appropriate content. There's some tools about to let you see what people from different go locations might see on your site, like : http://www.webtoolhub.com/tn561376-google-adsense-preview.aspx

  2. Adsense has the largest inventory of ads to display of any other advertiser bar none, if they don't have on-context ads to display then it's a fair bet that no other ad provider will either.

  3. If you do want to try someone else then Google is your friend, "adsense alternatives" brought up a good list of things for you to look at. The usual suspects from when I was in the Adsense game seem to be still about, Adbrite, Clicksor, Bidvertiser, YPN, and Chikita.

  4. If you find that the rest of these providers don't have suitable matching inventory for your site then the alternative approach is for you to approach potential advertisers directly and sell them ads.

share|improve this answer
Thank you very much for this detailed and complete feedback. I will give Adsense another look, and check those alternatives. – tucson Jan 31 '10 at 9:50
I am using Adsense bu it seems I can't avoid Flash ads. I would really like to have only "static" ads. Anyway it is possible with Adsense? – tucson Feb 3 '10 at 22:08
Yes it possible to have only static ads. – skillguru Apr 2 '10 at 19:22
up vote 3 down vote

For blogs at least, there are a number of different blog ad networks that cater to specific subjects, for example Liberal Blog Advertising Network, BlogAds in general, check out Project Wonderful, AdBrite. I'm sure there's more.

share|improve this answer
great input. Thanks a lot! Wish I could upvote. – tucson Feb 3 '10 at 22:07
up vote 1 down vote

I have used influads.com on several of my sites and have yielded great results! It is only one Ad, but they are visually appealing and have a great payout per click.

The reason that you are having trouble with buysellads.com is probably because they only like dealing with sites that get more then 100,000 page impressions a month. If that is your case, then I dont know why they didn't approve you.

If anyone knows of any other sites please let me know!

Cheers!

share|improve this answer
Yes, my site gets more then 100K of impressions a month, but I'm not sure I want to put ads on all pages. I checked influads.com and although I like the concept, the focus of the network is quite limited to web dev folks. Hopefully they'll grow in other directions too. – usabilitest Nov 2 '10 at 15:01
I will be looking to do the same thing very soon, let me know if and when you find a service that you like! – user5061 Nov 4 '10 at 5:36
up vote 1 down vote

I like using Project Wonderful. Easy to use, fully customizable and the customer support is great. If it will work for you or not, only you can find out.

share|improve this answer
up vote 0 down vote

What you're looking for is called better optimization and targeting. Most ad networks offer an example of the different "channels" or demographics they can target on their websites, and can sometimes be further customized regarding the ad content, geographical location, and even time of day!

Bad optimization causes irrelevant ads, therefore a worse CTR and eCPM.

share|improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.