Need a few design tips

Specifically with page size.

[Zippy1970]

My apologies beforehand if this has been asked (a zillion times) before. I'm new - go easy on me. :)

I'm currently designing a new website. This website is purely aimed at content but I do want to put AdSense on these pages to cover the costs of hosting.

The articles on this site are pretty large and I have the following two options of displaying these articles:

• On one big page. The advantage is that a user doesn't have to leave the page to read the entire article. Also, it will make the article easily printable. The advantage for AdSense is that it can serve targeted ads because there's a lot of text on a single page. The disadvantage for AdSense ads is, that these would scroll of the page quite rapidly.
  From a search engine's pont of view, a large page would result in a higher SEP (I would think) because its overall relevance would be quite high.
  
• Spread out over several pages. Each "chapter" would have his own page. Some people actually prefer this over one large page so from a user's point of view I don't think it would matter one way or the other. The advantage for AdSense is that the ads would always be in view. The disadvantage is that it might not be able to serve ads that are as targeted as with one big page. Some chapters are actually just a few sentences and might not look related to the original article if taken out of context. As for the search engines, each of these chapter would score a much lower relevance than when the entire article would be on one page.
  

So what would you suggest? One big page or several chapter pages, keeping in mind the advantages/disadvantages for AdSense and SEP.

[bts111]

From what you have said, I would go for the single page.

[anand84]

From the little experience I have, I would suggest multi-pages. This is because, you can choose different channels if you do so, and can then study what kind of articles or pages get you the most hits..I am not sure if you can make such a detailed analysis on a single page.

[farmboy]

The disadvantage for AdSense ads is, that these would scroll of the page quite rapidly.

You can put the AdSense displays on the page wherever you like.

Top, middle & bottom

Top, side & middle

There are a number of possible combinations.

I have some pages similar to what you are describing and I put a half-banner with discreet colors near the beginning of the article and another just after the article ends.

I think you need to decide your primary goal.

If it's for easy reading online by visitors, you might consider a single page so they don't have to keep clicking to get to different pages. Same with printing concerns.

If your priority is to maximize AdSense earnings, the only way to know is to test the different options/layouts.

FarmBoy

[OptiRex]

Create and design your pages with the user in mind and I would venture to say that this would mean multiple pages.

Better for your Adsense targeting and easier to use.

You do know that if the ads are not on topic that you can specify what you require?

[Zippy1970]

Thank you all for your replies so far.

I'm not sure what to do yet since you've all brought valid points for both sides. I think I may go with offering the user the option to choose which format they prefer. So for instance, start out with the entire article on one page, but put a link on the top where they can choose to view the article one chapter at a time. Best of both worlds I guess. :)

[celgins]

I also have a site that is 90% articles, and many of those articles span more than one page. The reason I chose to spread longer articles over multiple pages is because it's a bit easier (in my opinion) for readers to follow.

Advantages:

1. Spreading over multiple pages keeps the reader, "busy". If it's an article that interests the reader, clicking to advance the page is not an issue. In fact, many readers like to feel as if they're interacting with your article by moving forward or backwards when they want.

2. Like Farmboy said, you can place Adsense ads in multiple locations. I usually place a 300x250 rectangle in the article, and also a smaller ad at the end of the article.

3. You only get three ads per page. Let's say you have a huge article that spans 4 pages. With one huge page, you can only place three Adsense ads. With 4 separate pages, you could conceivably have up to 12 Adsense ads...(three per page)

Disadvantages:

1. Difficult (if not impossible) to print multiple pages, unless you have your article content stored in a database somewhere.

[linear]

I agree with OptiRex wholeheartedly, and I'll amplify on why I think it improves targeting to paginate:

The appearance of a single word can skew the targeting of the whole article. So your 3500 word essay on widget grading can get skewed when you mention an expensive specialized tool that is used to do widget testing. Ads for that tool may look to G like a better fit for your page based on the bids being substantially higher than the widget ads.

But you were really writing about widgets. In the paginated version, you have 7 pages of 500 words each, and on only one of those does the mistargeting pop up.

Over time, I've seen mistargeting decrease dramatically (compared to 2 years ago). But it happens, and you spread your risk around somewhat by paginating.

But the real reason to do it is for the users. (makes it tougher on the scrapers too)

[farmboy]

I usually place a 300x250 rectangle in the article, and also a smaller ad at the end of the article.

I guess it depends on the type of article and who your audience is, but I avoid those larger displays in an article. To me, it appears too....well...commercial.

Plus, with AdSense often showing only 2 ads in a rectangle nowadays, it can mess up the appearance of the page.

And, I've found that sometimes just showing one targeted ad can generate more income than a display of 3-4 targeted ads. I suppose that's because AdSense is showing the best paying ad in the single slot.

FarmBoy