Everyone has at one point or another encountered ads while browsing through the internet or watching videos on YouTube. Have you ever clicked on ads while reading a blog or watching a video? Or do you normally skip past them and pay no attention? 

As irritating as ads can sometimes be to people on the receiving side, clicking them can add a dollar to a content creator’s bag and when done by many viewers becomes a source of income that rewards and enables your favorite content creators to create content while getting paid for their work. 

As a blog or website owner/manager, you’ve probably spent a great deal of energy, fortune, and time on the technical side of your website; things such as search engine optimization (SEO), its looks, content delivery, and more. Now you’re ready to monetize your work and get paid for all your blood and sweat and are probably looking at the different methods that are available for you. 

One of the most popular ways of monetization among content creators both bloggers and vloggers is through ad display; where as a content creator you display ads on your blog, channel or medium with which you are creating content, and you get paid when people either view or click the ads.

One of the industry leading facilitators of this type of monetization and also the most popular Ad network is Google’s creators program Google Adsense.

What is Google Adsense?

Adsense is an advertising network from the internet giant “Google” that serves sponsored ads on other websites, to respective visitors. A website owner who partners with Google to serve visitors with some ads in return for some cash is known as the Publisher. 

How does it work?

Google analyses a specific part of a website’s designated ad space and uses the available information about the website and its visitors to present targeted ads based on a number of factors including but not limited to the publisher’s niche and information of the visitors internet activity. 

Impressions and clicks are what Google uses to determine the audiences’ engagement towards a particular ad served; therefore you are paid as an Adsense publisher based on that.

Now that you have a glimpse of Google Adsense, how its ads are served, and per what publishers are paid for. You may be eager to learn how to set Google Adsense on your site. If so, then lets shift to the main business by showing you the steps on how to set up your site for Adsense.

Step1: Create an Adsense Account

To let Google serve its ads on your website and get rewarded for it, you need to first apply for the program.

 Click here to apply for AdSense

Google Adsense needs to approve your application but before that, it is important to know that the approval process is a bit strict and that there are some factors they look at to approve your application. For a general blog you need to have at least 1000 views; good quality content and good site design will also be a very great advantage to scale through this step.

For the sake of YouTube content creators, the process is slightly different but as a minimum, you need to have 1000 subscribers and 4000 watch hours to qualify for the partner program.

 Step 2: Set Up Your Ads

As soon as your account gets approved, the next step would be to copy an HTML code from your settings tab and paste on the webpage you want Google to serve ads on. 

You will also have the option to customize the appearance of your ads at this step. After customization, the HTML codes are all you’ll need to copy and then paste on the location you would like the ads to be shown.

If you are using WordPress for your blog (see the step by step guide to create a blog with WordPress here) then you can install and use the plugin Ad Inserter to simplify this process.

Step 3: Start Earning

Provided your ads are set up and running, you are good to start earning. Once your earnings reach a specific amount, a parcel will be delivered to your provided address from Google. You are required to open the concealment and copy the provided characters into your Adsense pin verification tab on your account. You need to only undergo this once and you’ll no longer be required to do that for the account for life. Afterward, you’ll be allowed to withdraw your earnings once they reach the minimum threshold which is currently US$100 and periodically after that.

However, there are some do’s and don’ts you’ll need to be familiar with, in order to be in good terms with Adsense but basically, being realistic especially about your potential earnings and by not devising any need to multiplying those earnings through unethical means such as self-clicking or encouraging your closed ones to click on your ads.

To stay clear about the dos and don’ts of Adsense it is most important that you study the terms and conditions when signing up.        

Do you use Adsense for your blog? Are you planning on using it? What are your thoughts on ad display? Leave a comment below!