The value of having more than one site for adsense

[crick]

I have a site with several categories (four). I am thinking about creating either another category or creating a sepearate site instead. Its travel related. I am torn between which option to take. My current and only site is 3 months old and I have already SEo quite extensively and getting pretty good SERPS, which seem to be improving as weeks go by.

If I create another category for the travel, it will be incorporated into a site that has already some search engine optimzation. However, if I start a completely new site, I will have to start from scratch as far as SEO is concerned.

On the other hand, I am aware of the notion of not having all eggs in one basket so to speak i.e. not becoming too dependent on one site due to volatility of SERPS, which will effect adsense earningsd. Anyway, I don't intend to be too reliant on SERPS for the travel site, if I do decide to have a sepearte site, as I intend to create a site that will be able to generate plenty of return traffic, word of mouth and so on.

On that basis, what would you recommend? Incorporate into current site or seperate site.

[Porkchop]

If you have the time, I would start a 2nd site. Don't forget to link your sites together.

You are right about all the eggs in one basket. I had sites on page 1 results and lost the ranking. That is a lot of hits that I am missing. Some of my other sites have picked up the slack so my adsense earnings are staying steady.

Good luck with your decision

[ronburk]

However, if I start a completely new site, I will have to start from scratch as far as SEO is concerned.

True. However, one aspect of SEO that is only growing in importance is getting one-way inbound links from trusted authority sites. In many cases, it's easier to get these links to a website devoted to Topic A than to a sub-directory devoted to Topic A within a website that is not so focused on Topic A.

If it's content I plan to invest in for the long haul, and if I believe that it will eventually be good enough to attract those one-way inbound links, then I would split it off into a separate website from the beginning.