Squidblog

A few weeks ago, we repositioned the AdSense Google ads on Squidoo. It was an experiment, like a lot of things Squidoo, and I thought I’d share with you what we discovered.

Google’s right. Moving the ads from the right column to the top has a dramatic impact. In fact, it tripled the clickthrough rate on the Google ads.

“Great,” you might say, “but why demote the hand-built content just to earn a few bucks on the ads?”

That was my thought, and the reason the test was just a test. (Aside: We want to celebrate the content, and at the same time make it easier for the co-op as a whole to earn more money for you and for charity).

But the surprising result of the AdSense move is this: content-based clicks went UP, not down. I think I understand why, and it goes to my third point, which is a hunch, not based on data:

Having competitive products in your AdSense ads actually helps you, not hurts you.

When people get to a website, a whole bunch of things have to happen before they take out their wallets and buy something. A lot of those things have to do with trust and meaning and understanding and confidence. The vernacular of your site, the story it tells, the way it makes me feel (insecure? safe? confident? panicked? stupid? engaged?) is probably the single most important element in turning a stranger into a friend before they have a chance of becoming a customer.

So, Google AdSense ads across the top increase confidence. They’re recognizable and safe for the surfer. They make it clear that there are alternatives. They demonstrate confidence on the part of the site builder. Analogy: All car dealers do better when they’re on the same street.

Think about that. It’s a wicked expensive purchase. You only do it every once in a while. Shouldn’t dealers strive to be far from each other? Shouldn’t they try very hard to hide the fact that Nissans and BMWs even exist?

Of course not. You’re not stupid. You already know that the other cars exist. Having the dealership as one in a long row of dealers makes you more confident in your purchase, not less.

I got a note from someone who was surprised to see a competitive product at the top of his Squidoo lens. He was miffed, actually, not surprised. What surprised him is that his sales went UP after the ad appeared.

So, no promises about what happens next to our ads, other than that we’ll keep trying new things and letting you know about them and listening to your feedback. But for now I wanted to share the thinking with you.