When you browse the web and view a website, how many ads are too many ads? As a website developer, and an avid user of the web, I use to struggle with how many ads to place on any particular website. I don’t anymore. My experience has shown that a user is willing to put up with only enough ads as to make the content for the website worthless to them. If you place too many ads on a web page the user simply closes their browser, or advances to another site. See ya!

Obviously that’s not acceptable to the developer or user side of me. So to find balance I strive to do several things to minimize the ad clutter, yet maximize the profit.

1. Popups.
   I rarely use popups/popunders. There is a growing segment of the online world that detest popups and popunders. Advertisers still love them however. Simply put, people are more likely to see the message using a popup then they will from a regular ad. My rule of thumb is, only use a popup or popunder when I offer a paid membership version of the site to my visitors. That way, those truly upset about the popups can pay their own way.
2. Content.
   Place all ads within the content of the page, especially if you wish to encourage c/t’s for advertisers such as Google and Yahoo. But spread them out. If you’re going to have an ad at the top, then have an ad on the side or place an ad box into the content towards the top. Don’t be afraid to use additional ads on the page, especially if you have a very long page. But users should generally, never see more then 2 ads at once, and preferably, only 1.
3. Blend or Contrast.
   Either blend the ad into the web page, or make sure the ad contrasts with the web page (so that it stands out and can be seen). I’ve used both, and both work. What doesn’t seem to work is a mix of the two.
4. Leaderboards.
   Use leaderboard ads to increase your income. A leaderboard ad is a 728×90 pixel image that is meant to run across the top of your website page, or near the top. A good ad company can mix these ads in with a 468×60 ad (if ones in the larger size are not available.)
5. Compare.
   Get yourself a Yahoo and a Google account. Not just one or the other. Try similar ads for each company for 7 days. Then compare the results. I have found that Yahoo works really well on some websites, while not doing well at all on others. When it does work though, it almost always out performs Google. Note to non-US readers, the Yahoo account is presently only open to US citizens while in Beta, but you can still join AdSense.
6. Banners.
   Expand beyond text links. They’re not always the best producers of income, especially for a large site. If you have a high value community website, try joining some of the ad companies that provide image advertising, such as ValueClick, FastClick, Burst, Casale Media, etc. If using Google ads, allow image ads to show.
7. Self Advertising.
   Use a portion of your advertisement webspace to advertise yourself. One of the most effective ways I know to increase traffic on one of my websites is to refer traffic from a much larger website I already own.
8. Rich Media.
   Allow rich media ads if available. Rich media ads are the type of ad that often gets a users attention, or annoys the heck out of them. I actually enjoy these ads the most, as I never know what to expect…. like an automobile ad that drives the car off the page… uhmm…. one of these on a page is enough. Don’t overkill.
9. Track.
   Keep accurate track of c/t percentages and cpm results, and check them daily. Knowing what is working, and what doesn’t is of utmost importance.
10. Experiment.
    Finally, make sure you are constantly testing and experimenting add placement, types of ads, ad companies. Never sit back on your laurels, unless you think you’re making enough already.

While this is a simple list of 10 items I find particularly useful when developing a website, it’s by no means complete or extensive. I have many tools that I use, many subtle tricks, and some bona-fide bone head ideas I can warn you about. But that’ll have to wait until a later post.