I'm an AdSense newbie

What can I do to get ads that are more targetted to my niche?

[GaryK]

I've looked through the library, Googled (w/site:webmasterworld.com), and scanned several pages of threads. I could not find exactly what I was looking for; sort of a primer on tweaking AdSense to get results that are targeted to my niche.

I run a website that is largely a forum. I can't control the content of the forum threads beyond what my TOS will let me do. In other words, I can't ask members to write copy that will produce better AdSense results. :)

I've been adding URLs via the competitive ads filter but that seems like it could be an endless task and not really intended to produce better results. I've had a professionally written meta description for years now, and keywords that are relevant to the site.

Is there anything I can do to help get ads that are better targeted to my niche?

Also, slightly OT but still a valid question. Is it normal to see higher than what I expect to be normal earnings when AdSense is first installed on a site? My CTR is within what seems to be acceptable limits, but the earnings are much higher than I ever imagined. Will the earnings eventually settle into a more normal routine?

Thanks in advance for whatever advice and suggestions you all can offer me.

[GaryK]

Today things seem to have settled down a bit. I still can't figure out the best way to eliminate certain ads without adding them to the competitive ad filter.

With the above message in mind can anyone offer some suggestions on how to get ads that are better suited for my website?

Thanks.

[GaryK]

It was too late to edit my previous post so please pardon me for double posting.

I just stumbled across a brand new thread started by incrediBILL that explains stop words [webmasterworld.com]. That was certainly part of my problem.

I also finally found a thread suggesting that navigation elements and other things that aren't part of the content can have an effect on what sorts of ads are delivered. That's an area of the site that definitely needs some tweaking in terms of what words/phrases I use.

So, I think I can take it from here. But if anyone still has some advice to offer I'd be most appreciative.

[21_blue]

Do you have the facility in your forum to put on each page an overall description of your niche? Even if only in the page headers?

If so, could you use section targeting to exclude individual members contributions and focus adsense on the description text?

[spaceylacie]

Welcome to Adsense.

Having at least one outgoing link to a related authority site on each page has helped me. On a page about bicycles, link to bicycle.com... on a page about tractors, link to johndeere.com...

Also, for your forum pages, instead of just your logo and the threads, have a description of the forum at the top of each page. I re-word and repeat the page description from my meta tags.

Hope this helps a little.

[AdSenseAdvisor]

You might also want to try page section targeting, which is a new feature that allows publishers to have control over what parts of your site AdSense should target.

For more information, see:

[google.com...]

[GaryK]

If so, could you use section targeting to exclude individual members contributions and focus adsense on the description text?

Do you mean I should check for the Mediapartners bot and hide the actual content of the page leaving only a description of the forum itself? If so, would that be considered some sort of cloaking that could get me into trouble with the regular Googlebot?

Having at least one outgoing link to a related authority site on each page has helped me.

In my particular niche I am the authority site. Everyone links to my site when they want to be sure they're dispensing good information.

Also, for your forum pages, instead of just your logo and the threads, have a description of the forum at the top of each page.

Keeping in mind my first quote, should I include the threads or just show Mediapartners the description?

I re-word and repeat the page description from my meta tags.

The meta description for each page is the same as the forum description. The keywords however remain constant throughout the site. Should I consider somehow creating keywords that are relevant to a particular forum or thread?

Thanks to both of you for your advice so far. :)

EDIT:

You might also want to try page section targeting

I wish I'd known about this yesterday. ;) I already created my own system for determining which pages I want AdSense to show up on. For example, I don't want them in my sysadmin section, on editing pages, or on pages where moderators can move, merge, split or delete threads. Is this what you were referring to? Thanks ASA.

EDIT2:

ASA, I hadn't read the link you provided before posting my last comment. Shame on me! Now I understand what section targeting is. I think it will solve all my problems without creating any new problems. What a great addition to AdSense. Thanks again.

[imstillatwork]

Do you mean I should check for the Mediapartners bot and hide the actual content of the page leaving only a description of the forum itself? If so, would that be considered some sort of cloaking that could get me into trouble with the regular Googlebot?

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nope, google added a feature that allows you to mark sections as more important, and sections of your website as less important as far as adsense goes. check our the adsense pages on google for more info.