Decreasing the number of AdSense ads

[shallow]

Has anyone decreased the number of AdSense ads on their pages and, if so, did it affect your earnings in a positive or negative way? I'm currently running about four ads on most pages in my site and wondering if that's too many. Thanks.

[surfer67]

I just have one per page at the top. I've tried 2 or 3 per page and earn less for whatever reason.

[netmeg]

Here's an interesting thing that happened in recent weeks. Google contacted me and asked if I wanted them to give me some ideas for ad placement improvements on one of my (normally) high performing sites. It's my slow season, and I was curious as to what they'd come up with, so I said sure, why not.

So they sent me a JPG of the new layout, and it had the ad blocks I usually use, PLUS two more. That's more ads than I normally run. I wasn't crazy about it, but I said what the heck. Couldn't deny it made more money though.

After a few weeks, I just got sick of seeing all the ads (and there were some dupes, which I always take to mean I have too many ad blocks) so I took my *original* placements off, but left the new Google placements.

Immediate earnings *death*. Couldn't have been a more dramatic drop.

I waited six days, and put all the ads back. Highest off season earnings I've ever gotten.

I am not a conspiracy theorist by any means. But this was *weird*.

[surfer67]

Immediate earnings *death*. Couldn't have been a more dramatic drop.

Did your earnings go back to normal after you reverted to the old ad layout? I ask because I have first hand experience that sometimes they don't.

[BillyS]

I think Google would tell you to spread out the ads on the pages. That's what I did and I think it works.

[shallow]

So how many ads do ya'll have on a page?

[netmeg]

My earnings only went back (and actually better than before) when I went back to my ads PLUS Google's ads. Before G made their offer, since it's off season, it wasn't doing all that well anyway.

[jetteroheller]

I increased always

Summer 2004 to Spring 2005: 1 ad

Spring 2005 to Autumn 2006:

300x250 in navigation left, 120x90 AdLink left in navigation

Autumn 2006 to Autumn 2007

Additional 1 336x280 below the content

Autumn 2007 to Winter 2009

Additional 1 200x90 AdLink below the content

Winter 2009

Aditional 1 468x15 AdLink in content

[levo]

Are you tracking them with channels? (Single vs. First, Second..)

[jetteroheller]

Are you tracking them with channels? (Single vs. First, Second..)

Per domain and ad placement a channel.

theme.example.com/.nav
theme.example.com/.adlnav ( Adlink navigation )
theme.example.com/.bottom
theme.example.com/.adlbot ( AdLink bottom )
theme.example.com/.adlcon ( AdLink content )
theme.example.com/.content

So I can watch different domains and different ad placements

[Swanny007]

I'll put in my $.02... I also had G suggest adding more ad units, search box, etc. It didn't work in all cases.

...and another site I took the initiative to remove AdSense and put up affiliate ads. It did not work out and within 2 days of putting AdSense ads back up, earnings were back up to normal.

[incrediBILL]

I've noticed some areas of my site have fewer ads than other areas.

Some are completely full, using the arrows paging thru them all.

Some are partially full, showing one ad less initially in the skyscraper and even fewer per ad unit when using the arrows to flip thru them.

Also noticing fewer ad units with arrows at times.

Never seen this before, sign of the economic times, constipation in AdSense, hard to say.

[ken_b]

I've noticed that sometimes only one ad will show in a 300x250 block, but the arrows will pull up a full block (3 ads) (or several full blocks in a row) when used to navigate through additional ads.