Feedback needed please, for my article directories

[Portlandia]

Hello fellow Adsensers,

I have three fairly new (2 months old) article directories that I really could use some helpful feedback with. Here are the URL's:

www.Niche-Content-Articles.com
www.eBusiness-Articles.com
www.Healthy-Articles.com

The niche site is doing the best as far as article submissions, with nearly 1100 so far. The other two sites have been lagging but are starting to pickup steam. The sites are all using the same basic script but are obviously targeted at different markets.

My Adsense stats for September are 4,832 impressions, 20 clicks and a whopping $5.80 - and yes that is for all three sites combined. At this stage most of my traffic is probably from authors submitting articles, so I understand the low click success. But I would sure like to maximize the small adsense revenue if possible and increase SE traffic.

I welcome any and all constructive criticism, especially pointers for increasing traffic, ad layouts and formats, etc. Thanks in advance!

[Sam Freedom]

Hello fellow Adsensers,

I have three fairly new (2 months old) article directories that I really could use some helpful feedback with. Here are the URL's:

www.Niche-Content-Articles.com
www.eBusiness-Articles.com
www.Healthy-Articles.com

The niche site is doing the best as far as article submissions, with nearly 1100 so far. The other two sites have been lagging but are starting to pickup steam. The sites are all using the same basic script but are obviously targeted at different markets.

My Adsense stats for September are 4,832 impressions, 20 clicks and a whopping $5.80 - and yes that is for all three sites combined. At this stage most of my traffic is probably from authors submitting articles, so I understand the low click success. But I would sure like to maximize the small adsense revenue if possible and increase SE traffic.

I welcome any and all constructive criticism, especially pointers for increasing traffic, ad layouts and formats, etc. Thanks in advance!

Even though you were painfully mistaken about it, I'm guessing that you won't be interested in using Blogsubmitter PRO to help you even though it would do a marvelous job as it has for so many others. I just wish you had been kind enough to afford it the same constructive criticism that you respectfully request and that I shall offer to you.

I visited at 800x600 and your vertical banners were almost off the right side of my screen. As much as one might think that having more links is better, I'm beyond convinced that the link units on the left side just look too out of place and give a disheveled look to it.

People get very identified with their projects so I doubt you'll agree when I say the color of the background behind the links is not as appealing as a simple white background with some nice black/blue links. That's not just my opinion but my experience...people like colors, but not too many, only the ones they are accustomed to, and when they are used meaningfully such as to purposefully isolate useful information. Testing has shown this time and again. People will linger longer and return more often.

If you wish to keep the link units, I gave a nice example of their use in an earlier post:

Mowlog Blog (http://mowlog.blogspot.com)

If you can blend those with your links, it will be powerful. Also, when it comes to lists of categories, people inarguably prefer to see as many links in one view, that is why directory listings are so popular, they place categories and links all in one screen, or close to it. But yours just keep going down the left side of the screen and give no meaningful way to group them. So yes, authors will continue to come there for the backlinks, but readers won't. Or at least not return or hang around.

I recommend you use the 300x250 or the 336x280 either at the end of the article listings and/or in the middle of them if you can manage it. You do that, and you're going to be one happy campers. Because as it stands, if I'm right, and the customers don't want to stick around, they're not going to scroll for your adsense tower on the right, and they're not going to chase down the tiny little out of place links on the left. Even a nice little 120x240 would be preferable to those links in the link unit.

Another suggestion, a variation actually, would be to have 3 ad blocks:

Leave the right column total out of this. Put a 300x250 and a 336x280 side by side at the end of the articles listed (if it will fit horizontally), and either a lengthy link unit at the TOP of the articles, or a half banner of some kind. I'm not fond of banners, and they certainly don't belong at the WAY top in the header, but they JUST MIGHT BE PERFECT for what you have there...just on top of the articles.

If you're on of those who enjoys the reasoning behind things, my goal has never been to try to get people to click on my Adsense. It is so easy to think that is the goal when the real goal of a site is to get people to enjoy it enough to want to come back again and again. Chucking Adsense around in the hopes of getting people to click is what most people do and that has the opposite effect of making people NOT want to come back to 'ill-placed ad village'.

I try to put Adsense at what I call "weak points" - areas where people are most likely to have a dip in their attention energy. One of those places is at the beginning of a new set of articles/lists/posts where they make the quick, subconscious decision, "Do I really want to go through all these? Do I really want to go through this process another time?" If yes, onward the go. If no, Adsense.

The other place is at the end, for obvious reasons. The middle is alright, but I'm just not so sure. If an image ad can be stuck there, then THAt would be the place for it.

Anyways, I've gone on quite long enough. I hope you can get some insight from this and I wish you the best.

Sam

[golden14]

Change the adsense heading colours to the same light blue you are using for the article headings, I think you'll see immediate results. Give it a try for a week and see / post how well you get on.

[Sam Freedom]

Hi Portlandia,

I just revisited your sites. What changes have you made since the last time?
I like that you have plenty of Adsense on the right side, and that you've
some link units on the left. However...

The affiliate power ads on the 3rd site seem too dark and blocky.
It just really interrupts the feel of why I might be there in the first
place. Try blending that better.

Also, and this is a big one...I suggest you switch the link units on the
left side with the article announcer ads. And lighten up the article
announcer ad box...it doesn't need to really be in a colored table to
get it noticed. I'll bet if you just make it a button with that plain
white background and a couple of words that say, "Wow! Take a look!"
or wahtever, it will look so much cleaner and more inviting.

Good luck,
Sam

[marketingsyndrome]

Definitely try blue link colors on the right adsense units.