Performance Tips

1. EPC doesn’t matter! That is because you have absolutely no control over your EPC. Your EPC is influenced by many variables including your webpage content, advertiser’s budget, seasonal fluctuations and more. Thus, productive thing to do is concentrate on factors that you have control over such as CTR and page impressions.

2. How am I doing? Many of us probably wonder how we are doing compared to other AdSense users, including myself. However, we really can’t get a good sense of average if Google doesn't disclose their figures, which they don’t. Since people doing well with AdSense generally don’t like to reveal their earnings due to fear that they may be terminated by program, any discussion about an average EPC/CTR/CPM is a waste of time.

3. From various experiments by myself and other webmasters, we can conclude (at least for now) that using image/text ads instead of just text ads will dramatically decrease you CTR because of various reasons. (i.e. fewer advertisers, banner blindness etc.) However, EPC is usually slightly higher.

4. Blend in or stand out? This is completely site dependent. Sometimes, people will never click on your ads unless you “trick” them into doing so, although this is not so good for long term. Other sites will require your ad to scream in your visitor’s face to get good clicks. Do some extensive testing to find out what’s good for your site.

5. Make good use of URL filter feature. Blocking repetitive (eBay ads) or boring ads (free smilies) will definitely increase your CTR.

6. Large rectangles placed above fold will often generate most revenue. However, this may not be a good long term solution since such and ad is usually obstrusive and have little aesthetic value.

7. If you run a forum site, you may notice that your earnings are very low. Here is a solution: use a simple cookie-based php script that only displays AdSense ads once every 10 page views -- essentially a counter counts down from 10 to 0 and on 0 displays an AdSense block. Between AdSense ads, display regular banner ads. Although your AdSense page impressions may be down, you will notice your CTR skyrocketing, and a large increase in overall earnings.

In conclusion: Play around with your ad to maximize your performance, and look at big picture in your stats!

Your content should be structured around beginning, intermediate and advanced topics related to diet. Your newsletter content will cover these topics as well, but with an enhanced focused on recommended 'solutions', ie, your affiliate products. Of course, your affiliate links will be sprinkled throughout online content as well.

Now, here's where a clever tactic comes in. You set up a message board for customers who have purchased your recommended products through your link. Their ability to create usernames and participate on forum is dependent on them mailing you their receipt of purchase.

However, general sections of forum remain open to all guest visitors for viewing. These sections should be focused discussions on user's success with product(s).

Basically, what you've done is set up a 'user's group' for a product where one didn't exist previously.

This accomplishes several things. It allows your faithful visitors to do extended preselling for you, and create additional content on fly. It creates an atmosphere of trust, but also allows visitor to be subject to “peer influence” in selling process, thus, taking focus off of your site making sales behind scenes.

Finally, message board will give you access to reams of data: customer opinions and experience, their feelings about products, what they're really looking for and a lot more. You can quickly adjust your offerings based on this feedback, as well as compile a super list of ideas for creating your own product – a product which meets and even exceeds their expectations, because you now know what they did and did not like about competitor's products you just sold to them.

The type of site I just described to you is same kind employed by most successful super-affiliates.

Of course, you can still do quite well just using a simple landing page and newsletter to promote one product. However, if you're looking to target one niche and plumb it to its depths, this expanded model is one I recommend.

So, go ahead and set up some landing pages, start collecting leads and test response you get for various niches.

When you hit on one that's hungry and hot, go ahead and move up from one page-one product model and build an interactive, super-affliate hub. You'll soon find yourself dominating your niche, and able to reap profits from a variety of product offerings!