Lately many of my customers have been asking me this question:

"Which program is better? Adsense or Yahoo Publisher?"

It sounds simple, but the answer is not. The reason being is that both programs work well, but both also have different places when considering whether or not to use them for a specific website.

Here's why.

Adsense has been around for a while now, and at the moment has the lion's share of the market in the PPC (Pay Per Click) game. But anyone who has been promoting them on their websites will tell you that the payouts have also gotten gradually smaller as time has gone on. Why? Well it's easy, they are still the best game in town, so they aren't worried about losing their publishers to another PPC.

But then came Yahoo Publisher. Which unless you've been living under a rock for the past ten years, you already know the name, and know how big that company is. And with the purchase of Overture, Yahoo is coming into the game well equipped and ready for a fight.

So, what's the difference between the two?

Here is what I've been able to learn from my own websites. Yahoo, overall, is paying more per click then Adsense. But before you jump from this article and start changing your code, read on a bit more.

Yahoo Publisher seems to be paying more then Adsense on similar content, BUT... Their ads are not nearly as contextually targeted as Adsense. So this can present a problem for website owners. For example, if you have a website that it's primary topic is 'HOME MORTGAGES', Adsense will display ads that only link to mortgage sites. But that's not true with Yahoo Publisher. Yahoo Publisher might display some mortgage ads, but also might display a Payday Loan ad (BTW if you need a payday loan, check out this page http://www.thegiftedone.com), Vonage ads (Vonage must pay them some big money, as they seem to be the default when the script doesn't know what to do), or some other ad that does not relate to the content of your website.

How do you choose which program is right for your site? This depends on the site itself and the type of surfers that frequent it. If you have a site that is highly targeted for a certain keyword, then I would suggest you stay with Adsense. This will keep the ads focused and targeted to your customers, presenting them with content that they will click. If they came to read about cooking recipes, they probably won’t click the Vonage ad. Here’s an example of a content targeted website: http://voip.magicanswers.com

However, if your site is more of a surfer hangout, where people go when they are bored, or if your site covers a multitude of topics, then you might be better off loading it up with Yahoo Publisher ads. This type of surfer is more likely to click an ad that’s off topic, which in turn would pay you better.

At this point what it comes down to is the click thru ratio. If monitored closely, you can determine what your surfers like and what they don’t like. What they click and what they don’t click. If one program is not performing well for you, then try the other.

I’m sure that as time goes on, Yahoo Publisher will become more targeted, and surely will be more competitive. With Google’s Adsense as an adversary they have quite a fight on their hands.

My advice to you is this. If you have one website, then optimize your PPC links for YOUR website surfers. If you have many, optimize each site accordingly, but do take the time to test each program. Find out which one will pay you more. Whether you own a giant corporation with hundreds of websites, or a home based business branching out to the internet, the bottom line is always the bottom line. Which comes down to the paycheck. A simple test might lead you to more money, which is always the goal.

Till next time,

Chuck Crawford is an established expert in web design, traffic development, and website financial analysis. He has been helping people design and develop their internet business since 1996.

This article may be reprinted freely as long as all links remain active.

http://www.affiliatewebsitedesign.com
http://www.magicanswers.com
http://www.thegiftedone.com

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