Experimenting with AdSense

Every now and then when I log into my Blogger Dashboard, I see this advertisement for AdSense. It's a way to add an ad or two to your blog and earn a few cents on the side.

I figured ... what the heck? I'll give it a try. It's consistent with this year's goal of making a dollar's profit.

Doing some quick research, I see several bloggers who advise against using AdSense, as it can distract from the blog, or somehow send people away from your blog. However, I'm not really selling anything at this time. (First I have to get published.) So, what do I have to lose? Hopefully I can place a non-obstrusive ad off to the side to the right, and people will keep reading my blog.

If it doesn't work out, I can remove it. I just want to experiment and go through the experience. I'll let you know how it turns out, and if it's really worth it.

Here's what it's like to sign up.

First, I have to read all the fine print. "Don't do bad stuff on your blog." Gotcha. Also, I'm not allowed to click on the ads on my own site, and I can't encourage anyone else to click. Makes sense. I figure most of my clicks will come from random people who happen to stumble on my blog.

I click the "Get Started" button and away we go. First, I choose the Google account to link with. Then I must identify the webpage that will get the ads. Paste that URL in there!

Uh oh ... I get an error message saying: "Please register for AdSense directly from blogger.com." Heh ... that's how I thought I approached AdSense. Okay, let's try this again ...

Go to the Dashboard. Click on "The Word of Mel." Click on "Earnings." Click the button that says "Sign up for AdSense." And it looks like where I was before.

#1) Yes ... use this Google Account.
#2) Oh, this is different. My blog URL is already selected. Continue.
#3) Now it asks for personal information. They ask for my full name as it appears on my bank account, but don't ask any other information about the account itself. I suppose I can worry about that later...

Then "Submit my application."

Okay, now I got a window that says, "The AdSense widget has been added to your blog template." Now to customize...

But wait ... the next page says, "Your AdSense account is awaiting approval." So it seems a human will have to go over the application. (More readers for my blog, right?) At least I'm able to choose where to display ads. I choose "Display ads in my sidebar." Save Settings ... and that's all I can do for now.

Well, that was fun! It was relatively painless except for that one hiccup near the beginning.

If you've had your own experiences with AdSense, feel free to leave comments. I'd like to hear from you.