rogerd - 12:21 pm on Sep 6, 2006 (gmt 0)

Success is all in how you define it. If you are expecting CTR and eCPM to match the numbers for static content pages viewed mostly by first-time visitors, you are likely to be disappointed. If you view forum Adsense as one of a variety of ways to monetize the forum, you may be more satisfied with the results.

Community sites generate much higher pageviews per visit than most static content sites, and typically have a much higher percent of returning traffic. These will depress your CTR numbers, but that doesn't mean the site can't be profitable.

The other challenge you face is how much advertising you want to throw at your members. Sure, you can put big, ugly ad blocks in the middle of the thread, but do you really want to? Members will accept the fact that the community operator needs to cover costs and won't object to seeing ads on the page, but if the ads impact the user experience they may be too much.

If your community Adsense revenue isn't meeting your expectations, I'd worry less about boosting the CTR and more about building the community. More members, more posting activity, more referrals, more guests... these are the indicators of a successful community, and your ad revenue will rise along with them.