Forum Moderators: martinibuster
I have a small navigation bar on the top of the page, a two-line text ad for a product on my site below that, and next comes the 600 pixel high skyscraper.
The 'main' content of the page comes below the skyscraper. On the majority of screen resolutions, it would not be visible without a scroll-down. A bit tacky, I know, but we are offering free downloads and would like to recoup as much bandwidth costs as is practical.
[edited by: flyerguy at 12:17 am (utc) on Feb. 24, 2005]
I just found a page by a typing mistake in a search
Logo without a link
2 Ads 300x250
some space, that the content is not visiible
on most screen resolutions
The content without any link and looking like
created by a software in order to betray
search engines that there is a content.
Maybe You can top this with 3 x 160x600
</sarcasm>
I have free downloads, I have to recoup my costs. I need to know what the limit is with placement. It is not a scraper site, it give's something valuable to users.
It seem's as if Webmasterworld is heading towards the silliness of some other boards, how hard is to ask a question and not get a sarcastic, non-constructive response?
I give away free information - something that it has taken me a long of time and money to get together. Maybe the cynics here would approve the concept of 2000 words articles - content and quality content at that - supported by ads.
The visitor would normally pay several hundred dollars for information like this in my specialist subject. They get it for free on my site. To get it they have to go through an above-the-fold area of pure ads. 100% ads. Flashing ads, static ads, Adsense ads. All ads relevent to people who are searching for this particular information. The advertisers who do give me feedback don't get better conversions anywhere on the web. One joined Adwords especially so he could get in here (as I had run out of other space above-the-fold).
Visitors then they scroll down, read my content and get more ads. Is it tacky? Maybe to some. It is justified? I don't see why not. If I'm saving $300 on fees to discuss my problem with a specialist I'll live with however many ads the web owner throws at me.
Many "respectable" news sites have less than 50 words of the article above the fold in 800x600. How is that different?
And how is free software/free downloads different to other free stuff - like free specialist legal or other advice?
AFAIK, what you are doing is not outside the Adsense TOS.
If youre looking for 1-time SERP clickers, then it's ok. And Im not saying what is wrong and what is right, it all depends on your sites nature and future plans for your audience.
Its not against the TOS afaik.
no matter how many hours the author spent
How many hours the author spent is irrelevent. It's how many hours the page saves you or how many $$$ you get to not spend. The majority will live with awful design/excessive ads if the value of the freebie is sufficiently high. Some of these building-for-users arguments here are getting ridiculous. Yes, users should be taken into consideration but treating them as gods is something else. :)
They, like the SEs, are getting something for free. You, as the webmaster, have every right to make money from your site. Know about useability issues, how the eye travels over the page, which positions get maximum clicks etc. and use that to your advantage. Dam'it, it's your site. :)
