Are you looking to increase your Google AdSense revenue? Recently one of our users asked us to share some AdSense optimization tips for WordPress users. In this article, we will share tips on how you can increase your AdSense revenue, give you a list of some great AdSense optimized WordPress themes, and share with you a list of plugins that can help you boost your AdSense revenue.
Sounds good? Let’s get started.
What is AdSense and How does it Work?
Google AdSense is an advertising network run by Google that allows bloggers and website owners an opportunity to earn money by showing text, image, video, and other interactive advertisement on their websites. These ads are targeted by site content and audience.
AdSense ads are cost-per-click (CPC) meaning you get paid for every time an ad is clicked on your website. The amount you receive per click varies based on ad content and user’s demographic.
So you can receive 10 clicks on your ads where one click may be worth $6 while others are only work $0.20 each.
It all depends on your user demographic and site content. For example traffic from tier-1 countries (U.S, U.K, Australia, and Canada) usually get a much higher CPC vs traffic from tier-3 countries.
Here are three factors that impact your overall AdSense revenue:
- Ad Size
- Ad Placement
- Quality of Traffic
Let’s take a look at which AdSense size and placements perform the best.
Best Adsense Ad Size and Placement
Since we know that Adsense revenue depends on how your users interact with ads on your website, strategic placement of ads is crucial for increasing your Adsense revenue.
In our experience, the AdSense sizes that work best are:
- 336 x 280 (Large Rectangle)
- 300 x 250
- 728 x 90
- 160 x 600
Notice that these are fairly large ads thus are more prominent by default. The areas where you would generally place them also have to be prominent.
The ideal ad placements are your site header, above content, in-between content, and after post content.
Sidebar ads rarely have a good click through rate (CTR) thus we tend to avoid them altogether.
The general rule of thumb is that you should place at least one ad unit above the fold of your website. Above the fold is the area visible to users when they land on your website without scrolling.
There are few AdSense placement that you absolutely want to avoid at all cost because it can result in your account getting terminated.
Floating Scrolling Ads – Some publishers use floating sidebar widgets or floating footer bars to display ads that scroll with users. We’ve seen people getting their AdSense account banned for doing this, so we recommend against using this placement.
Popup Ads – We have also seen folks displaying their AdSense ads inside a lightbox popup. This is also against AdSense policies, and you should avoid this placement.
Ads above pagination – One of the best places to generate accidental clicks is abovepagination. We received a warning from Google about this and made a quick change to prevent getting our account suspended.
Also whatever you do, DO NOT click on your own ads. Because that’s a sure-fire way to get your Google account banned.
Having that said, let’s take a look at the best Google AdSense plugins for WordPress that can help you increase your AdSense revenue.
Managing and Inserting Adsense Ads in WordPress
The best way to manage ads in WordPress is by using an ad management plugin. These plugins allow you to insert and manage your ads from one spot without writing any code.
Here are some WordPress plugins to optimize your AdSense placements.
1. Insert Post Ads
As the name suggests, Insert Post Ads is a free plugin that allows you to easily insert ads inside your WordPress blog posts.
The plugin allows you to place your ads in between your paragraphs which can significantly boost your revenue.
It is very easy to use and does not require any complicated settings. Simply create a new ad unit and paste the Adsense ad code. Select where you want the ad to appear, e.g. after paragraph 1 and publish the ad unit. That’s all, the plugin will automatically start displaying the ad in your posts.
Check out our tutorial on how to insert ads within your post content in WordPress.
2. Adsanity
Adsanity is a premium WordPress plugin to properly manage ads on your WordPress site. It works with all advertising platforms including Google AdSense. You can easily create and insert ads on your WordPress site and manage all your ad units from your WordPress admin area.
You can create ad groups and display ads on rotating basis. You can also display ads using drag and drop WordPress widgets. For more information take a look at our tutorial on how to manage ads in WordPress with Adsanity plugin.
3. OIO Publisher
OIO Publisher is another ad management tool available for WordPress. It is simple to use and provides you an easier way to manage and insert AdSense ads into your WordPress site. You can create Ad zones for different ad units and use buttons and widgets to insert ads on your site. OIO Publisher also offers stats on how your ad units are doing. Check out our tutorial on how to manage ads in WordPress with OIO Publisher.
These plugins work with all WordPress themes, and we highly recommend that you use them for your ad placements.
If you’re about to start a new website, then consider using some of the AdSense optimized WordPress themes.
Adsense Optimized Themes for WordPress
While you can add Google AdSense to any WordPress theme, there are some WordPress themes that are more optimized for advertisement. These themes either have special designated areas where you can place an ad code or have a layout that allows you to insert ads in optimized locations.
Here are some Adsense optimized WordPress themes that you can use.
1. ModernMag
ModernMag is an Adsense-ready WordPress theme. It is fully mobile responsive and unlike other premium themes it is easy to setup and totally clutter free. ModernMag works well with all ad management plugins for WordPress. Theme’s layout allows you to easily place different size of ad units any where on your site.
2. Magazine Pro
Magazine Pro is a fully responsive Adsense friendly WordPress theme byStudioPress. Built on the powerful Genesis theme framework, Magazine Pro comes with a rock solid code foundation optimized for performance. Theme’s layout provides ample space for you to display your Adsense ads anywhere on the site. It is also fully compatible with ad management plugins we mentioned above.
3. CWP Youit
CWP Youit is Adsense optimized WordPress theme for gaming and magazine sites. It comes with easy to use spots for your Adsense ad placements right under the post blocks on the front page. It’s mobile responsive design allows you to use Adsense ads anywhere on your site without worrying about breaking the site’s layout. CWP Youit is also compatible with all popular ad management plugins. It features a flexible design that makes it suitable for all kind of websites.
4. RedWaves Lite
RedWaves Lite is a free Adsense optimized WordPress theme. It features a minimalist design with a fully mobile-friendly layout. The header area supports a large banner ad unit which adjusts itself for mobile devices. It comes with easy customization options and full support for post thumbnail. It can be used as a multi-purpose theme suitable for any kind of website.
5. MH Newsdesk
MH Newsdesk is a fully mobile-friendly WordPress theme for magazines and news websites. The main feature of this theme is that it is fully Adsense optimized theme for WordPress sites. Theme comes with 14 widget ready areas allowing you to place your ad widgets anywhere on your site.
6. Digital
Digital is a free Adsense friendly WordPress theme. It is a multi-purpose theme with a fully responsive layout. It comes with full support for WooCommerce and an inbuilt slider. Digital can be easily customized with custom header, background, and color options.
7. MH Squared
MH Squared is a premium WordPress theme optimized for Adsense. It comes with ready to use ad placement areas. Theme layout is fully mobile-responsive and looks equally great on all screen sizes. It comes loaded with custom theme options and it is highly optimized for performance.
8. ProMax
ProMax is a beautifully designed free Adsense ready theme for WordPress. It comes with ample spots to prominently display your Adsense ads in above the fold area without compromising user experience. The theme features custom background, header, and social menu.
9. TruePixel
TruePixel is a multi-purpose fully responsive WordPress theme optimized for Adsense and SEO. It comes loaded with custom options like prallax scrolling, multiple adsense widgets, multiple layout choices, color variations, fixed menu, and a very comprehensive theme options panel.
10. Nominal
Nominal is a fully responsive Adsense ready WordPress theme. It features a soothing colors and mobile respnsive layout. The theme comes with multiple Adsense areas where you can place your ad code to boost your earnings with a higher CTR.
We hope this article helped you optimize your Adsense revenue in WordPress and boost your earnings.
While Adsense is a great way to monetize your site, we recommend all users to diversify their site’s earning potential with affiliate marketing. Take a look at our list of the best affiliate marketing tools and plugins for WordPress and see how you can boost your affiliate earnings as well.
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