Comments on: Making Money with Adsense and Ugly Web Design

By: TigerTom@Web Site Design

TigerTom@Web Site Design — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:31:47 +0000

What ever you want the viewer to do on a page should be signposted by a button or link about 4 times bigger than you think it should be.

In the case of Adsense, put the ad right in the middle, ‘above the fold’.

By: Mikael

Mikael — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:54:02 +0000

Hi Rod, I agree that it doesn’t have to have anything to do with “being ugly”. It is all about directing the visitors to do exactly what you want them to do and in this case it is clicking ads.

And as you say, most blogs today are almost as filled with dynamic banners as websites in the 80s were filled with animated gifs… All of which will only confuse visitors coming from the search engines and thereby lower the CTR.

By: Rod@Tri Nations Rugby

Rod@Tri Nations Rugby — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:49:08 +0000

I’ve come across the “ugly is beautiful” argument before; I’m still not convinced it’s so much about ugliness, but more to do with simplicity. Many blogs you come across these days are quite overwhelming with all the stuff competing for your attention, and we bloggers tend to assume people understand blog layout. But the majority of web users (especially those coming from search) are not as educated in the ways of the web as we think.

By: Mark Sierra at MeAndMyDrum.com

Mark Sierra at MeAndMyDrum.com — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:17:53 +0000

Yes, that was my thought — a prettier site is a converting site. But testing is definitely the key to figuring out the balance between pretty and ugly among other factors.

By: Mikael

Mikael — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 13:06:07 +0000

Mark, you mean that a well organized site should be more successful right?

I can definitely follow that path of thought but I have come to learn that I can’t (ever) guess what the market wants and how it will behave so the only way (according to me) is to test what works the best and then follow that route.

Be it pretty or ugly… the route will be determined by what will have the site accomplish the goals that I have set for it.

By: Mark Sierra at MeAndMyDrum.com

Mark Sierra at MeAndMyDrum.com — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 12:52:52 +0000

Well, I have a theory, and that’s really all it is. We creatures are attracted to shiny objects. Our eye gravitates toward things that standout and it makes it easier when there’s a strong contrast between the ugly and the pretty.

So when we look at an ugly site, the shiny things — the ads that look at least a little more organized than the rest of the site — stand out amongst the ugly.

Having said that, it goes against my belief that a well-organized site should be more successful because it shows forethought in its construction, which should create credibility and trust in the visitor. But Nicolas may be onto something here in that if the visitor is satisfied, there’s no need to go anywhere else.

By: Mikael

Mikael — Tue, 12 May 2009 06:11:11 +0000

Right on Tom

By: Tom - Internet Marketing Tips

Tom - Internet Marketing Tips — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 11:43:33 +0000

When it comes to monetizing with Adsense you will earn a lot more by getting rid of all other links on the page except Adsense.When there is nothing else for your visitors to click on they can either click on the browsers back button or an Adsense ad.

Pretty sites tend to confuse visitors because of the many banners and other distractions on the site and this affects the adsense earnings.

By: Mikael

Mikael — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:20:16 +0000

Chris, that might be true depending on how you go about doing it. If you build up a base of friends in the same niche then links can come easily because you link back and then “design doesn’t matter”.

By: Chris

Chris — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 17:02:43 +0000

This is very true. All my sites that I make for Adsense are all “ugly” any that I made in the past that are good looking perform badly!

I must say though, if a site looks good it is easier to get backlinks.