This next website is a Joomla! based template and is located here: Piracy Is A Crime. Because it is a Joomla! template and the user does not have absolute control on ad placements there were some restrictions in the way ads could be displayed. Currently the page shows 3 ads and most of them are not blended in very well. They use the standard Google AdSense colours and styling and some changes may be better for the CTR.

Here’s the current layout:

Current ad placement

Ad Position 1 is not blended at al, and this is pretty hard because the bg on these pannels is a gradient. Also, I feel this ad does not do much because there is a bigger 468×60 ad unit below it. Also, if these thinlink units are not placed strategically, like directly below a menu then they don’t do much. Users want to get some more info before they click. A simple text link without description does often not get clicked. Therefore I’d like to remove this ad.

Ad Position 2 is positioned pretty well but blending is a problem here too. Also, because the main info block is directly below it offering further navigation, users will probably quickly scan over this one and head straight for the content. At the end of the main news section might be a better idea. Blending could be done by using he same colours as the ‘Warez Bust Database’ box, with blue border and blue link colors. A small exclamaition icon right next to it will attract more attention.

Ad Position 3 is placed pretty well. It is below the fold but offers a exit position for people reading the first article. Blending could be done better by changing the border collor to the blue used in the box above it. Also the text colors are standard and adblindness may prevent users from clicking on it.

Because the page lacks visual stimuli I’d like to ad a visual add right in the content area. This add could be 300×250 and floated left with the text around it. It might be necessary to make clear to the user this is an advertisement but if Google doesn’t complain you could try and leave it as displayed below. I don’t think it should be a problem as I see this kind of ad placement a lot.

Another possibility for generating income could be by using a Google Search box. This box should be placed below the ‘Warez Bust Database’. This tool sometimes displays no results and a search using Google may be a good exit point when users get this message. Ad Position 3 will just be slightly lower due to this, but as it is an exit poitn for visitors reading the content this is no problem.

This is the final set-up; the ads are border with red to highlight them:

Ad placements outlined

Another good position for a 468×60 might be just below each article to provide another exit point for finished readers. This website has enough content to not get cluttered with ads so this should do no harm.

The final page could look like this:

Final AdSense Placements

Although the ads have no been moved down on the page and are not near the main point of focus, which is in the top left, I feel this could work. Give it a spin and if the 468×60 does not get a good CTR, you might move it back above the News section again. Keep us posted on the revenue changes!