Skip to main content

How Will Spencer Made $18,010.13 in one month with Google Adsense

by Paula Neal Mooney

I keep thinking of the advice I read recently from Will Spencer, webmaster of The Tech FAQ, Be a Private Investigator, Fort Liberty and other sites.

In explaining how he made $18,010.13 in one month running Google Adsense on "around a dozen websites," Will's advice was practical and without all the over-hyped hyperbole others preach.

Instead, Will gave tried-and-true tips like these about how he makes thousands per month:
  1. It takes time. Took him two years to start making the big bucks.


  2. Provide value to your customers. I'm finding this to be true with my new site that takes the guesswork out of where to watch free TV shows online. Give people a reason to come back by giving them good service. Plus, having a niche site has improved my click-thru rates over on WatchFreeEpisodes.com because more people interested in watching free TV online are clicking on the ads of the same vein more so than this blog.


  3. Good design and certain ads improve click-thru rates. Will favors the 336x280 Google Adsense ad unit, with matching colors and no borders for the best clicks and performance -- and making that much in one month, I guess he should know! But I'm also finding that the plain ol' link units in the header of this blog and especially the WatchFreeEpisodes.com site are my most clicked upon.


  4. Build sites that you're passionate about. You can find high-paying keywords or trends and create websites around them, but if you're not really into the subject, your interest will wane. I'm finding that I love writing about TV and films because I love watching TV and films.


All in all, Will's advice is inspirational and pragmatic:

"Build 1-3 awesome web sites...Don't give up. Don't slack off. Slow and steady wins the race. Keep at it and you will succeed. Build new content every single day. Don't focus too much on CTR, CPC, CPM, or even your traffic stats. Focus on taking care of your site visitors and they will take care of you."

Watch full and partial episodes of your favorite TV shows and movies online -- all for free!

Comments

JamyTan said…
Your blog is my daily vitamin.
Cheers !
Jamy from sunshine flroida
Anonymous said…
Thats right! It takes time. I also learnt that if you work hard to develop good content, readers and money will follow eventually. Crisp interview.
The more I read reputable bloggers talk about making money, the more clearly the same message shines through: specific site theme, strong content, promote and relevant ads.

His advice is the same, or similar, I downloaded from an ebook. It goes in to more detail.

While I've not made much money from Adsense yet in my first few weeks, I have had click throughs for as high as $1.25 for one, 54 cents and 35 cents apiece. So if I can drive traffic and multiply those out by 50, then 100, then 200 . . . it adds up.
Anonymous said…
Adsense isn't most peoples big earners anymore. Even yahoo network isn't my big earner. I make a lot more money doing a lot of other things. so when I hear these stories half of it is because they have multiple sites not just one.
One more note. I've made a whopping $4 and change from Adsense in my first month.

But half of that has been in the last 7 days! The amount is miniscule but the trend is the right direction.

This is where driving traffic, strong content and relevant ads play an important role.
RebelHousewife said…
Paula, I always find it downright spooky (but in a good way), how sometimes, the exact message you need in the moment, leaps out at you from an unlikely source.

I really needed this today, esp. "don't give up" and how much you love your new niche -- I understand, 'cuz I love my books and reading, so I get it!

But I'm also tired and discouraged from recent life events, about which you have been so supportive, thank you. I'm running kind of low, and re-thinking EVERYTHING and this helped. It has nothing to do with the money or AdSense, which is why it was a most unlikely source.

I'm not sure I'm making sense here, but you know--thanks again. Sherri
Sunny Ellis said…
Just wanted to let you know that I think the new text in your header is much easier on the eyes. I'm not sure how long it has been there because I'm doing most of my reading via google reader. I need to get out and comment more though.

Sunny

and yes, that was my carefully placed dofollow link. :-)
Paris David said…
Jamy -
I kept thinking about your comment all day. What a wonderful thing to write. Thank you.

Hi Thiru
Yeah, Will gave some great tips on the web page that I stumbled across.

Don -
Congrats on the Adsense and The News Room money. It can take time and frustrate some days, but if there's a love for the topic, the funds will follow.

Amanda
That's why I love to hear how people really make money with Adsense -- it's good to know people can run a few great niche sites and get paid well for their efforts.

Hi Sherri
You're making COMPLETE sense to me. God knows what we need to hear and when we need to hear it, just to minister to our emotions and feelings.

Happy to have been the vessel for that today.

Hi Sunny! (You know my mom's maiden name was Ellis...Hm...)
Do follow, do follow!

Happy Weekend All,
Paula
Anonymous said…
I agree with Spencer...
Paula, I hope you can post more stuff like this...It really help and motivate bloggers like us...
Cheers.
Anonymous said…
Good post Paula. There is much truth in this advice.
Good job...I use you as an example to people who want to know if you can really make money online!
Anonymous said…
I'll be honest: I came here after reading a couple of negative comments about you. But, as you say, bad comments are better than NO comments.

You're giving some excellent advice, and I'm impressed with the passion you bring to the topic. Good on you, Paula, for helping the rest of us learn.

Thanks!
Anonymous said…
Thanx for a great blog. It really make my day much more fun. keep on going!

Popular posts from this blog

Paula's List of Blogger Salaries...Are you on the list?

Update: For those who continue to enjoy this post, check out my website about 50 real online people making more than $50k per year , and my page where I update my online salary . UPDATE: Before you read any further or especially link to this old list, please check out "Paula's New List of Blogger Salaries (and Webmasters, Affiliate Marketers, Content Scrapers, Domainers and any other title you can think of) June 2007" by clicking here! ~ Thanks, PAULA NEAL MOONEY by Paula Neal Mooney One of my favorite features in Parade magazine is the issue where they grab a random sampling of people and report their incomes -- from the millionaires to the working poor. Since I'm fascinated with how much money bloggers and webmasters are making nowadays, I've created a similar list -- a random sampling of people making money on the net. Who's on Paula's List of Blogger and Webmaster Salaries? I spent hours and hours scouring the internet for the last-reporte

Paula's New List of Blogger Salaries (and Webmasters, Affiliate Marketers, Content Scrapers, Domainers and any other title you can think of) June 2007

FIND OUT HOW MUCH BLOGGERS REALLY MAKE ONLINE -- CHECK OUT THIS NEW WEBSITE ABOUT MONEY-MAKING ONLINE CALLED 50 OVER $50K... by Paula Neal Mooney The time has come. The time is now. Paula N. Mooney will you please publish that list now?! (Yes, I fancy Dr. Seuss' iambic pentameter.) My WebMaster blest me with a viral post called "Paula's List of Blogger Salaries," and the response was so wonderful, here lies an update. It's bigger and better than ever before with more pics, and double the amount of bloggers, webmasters, domainers, affiliate marketers (or a smidgen of some or all of those titles) and their reported incomes. How Much Do You Make? Money is funny. The abundance of it, the lack of it, the subject of cash in general gets attention. While some invoke their choice not to post their online income nor discuss it at all, I've always been of the Suze Orman mindset ever since I read her first book. Suze encourages people to talk ab

Digg.com's Autobury Secret Blacklist...Are you still being banned by automatic burying?

UPDATE: PLEASE CLICK THIS LINK TO DIGG THIS STORY AND TELL DIGG TO PLAY FAIR... by Paula Neal Mooney Many of us know the power of Digg.com, dreamed up by Kevin Rose, who touted it as a "user driven" site that says it allows the general public to determine the stories they want to see make it to the front page by voting for interesting articles they find across the web. The more votes the public gives an article, the better chance it should have to make it to the front page. Theoretically... The power of Digg's front page Digg.com -- according to Alexa -- is now more popular than The New York Times. Getting one of your articles or blog posts to the front page of Digg.com will get your website seen by plenty of eyes. John Chow experienced a one-day traffic record of 55,856 page views when one of his posts hit the front page of Digg. Digg Bans Domains...then Supposedly Unbans Them One day, Digg banned me -- I'm still not clear why. I found out they banned a whole bun