Google AdSense facts for kids
 |
|
| Developer(s) | |
|---|---|
| Initial release | June 18, 2003 |
| Operating system | Cross-platform (web-based application) |
| Type | Online advertising |
Google AdSense is a special program from Google. It helps people who own websites earn money. They do this by showing ads on their websites. These ads can be text, pictures, videos, or interactive ads. Google makes sure the ads are a good match for what's on the website and who is visiting it.
Google manages and organizes all these ads. Website owners can earn money in two main ways: when someone clicks on an ad (called "pay-per-click") or when an ad is simply seen many times (called "per-impression"). In 2014, Google made a lot of money from AdSense, about $13.6 billion that year. By 2021, over 38 million websites were using AdSense. You might see a small triangle-shaped icon on these ads, which is part of the AdChoices program.
Contents
How Google AdSense Works
Google uses its technology to show ads that fit the website's content. It also considers where the user is located and other things. If a business wants to show ads using Google's system, they sign up through Google Ads. AdSense is very popular for putting ads like banners on websites and blogs.
These ads are designed to be helpful and not annoying. They often show things that are related to what you're already looking at. Many websites use AdSense to earn money from their online content. This includes websites, online videos, and even audio. It's especially helpful for smaller websites that don't have other big ways to make money.
To show these ads, website owners put a small piece of computer code (called JavaScript) on their web pages. Websites that have lots of interesting content usually do very well with AdSense. Google used to have a rule that you could only have three AdSense ads per page. Now, you can have more ads, as long as there's enough content on the page. Google says that ads should not take up more space than the actual content.
Tips for Website Owners
Website owners try hard to earn as much as possible from AdSense. They follow some important rules:
- They create good quality content that people want to read and interact with.
- They follow Google's rules for websites.
- They don't fill their website with too many ads.
- They don't try to trick people into clicking ads. For example, they can't say "Click on my AdSense ads." Instead, they can use phrases like "Sponsored Links" or "Advertisements."
- They don't link to websites that are not trustworthy.
All the money earned through AdSense comes from the Google Ads program. Businesses bid on how much they will pay for ads. Google shares a big part of this money with the website owners. For ads shown on content pages, Google shares 68% of the money. For ads shown with search results, they share 51%. In 2015, Google updated the AdSense logo.
The Story of AdSense
Google first launched its AdSense program in March 2003. It was originally called "Content targeting advertising." The name "AdSense" actually came from another company called Applied Semantics, which Google bought in April 2003.
At first, some advertisers thought AdSense wasn't as good as Google Ads. This was because AdSense showed ads based on the page's content. They felt that someone reading about flowers might not want to buy flowers right then. But someone searching for "buy flowers" probably did. So, in 2004, Google let advertisers choose if their ads appeared on the AdSense network.
Paul Buchheit, who created Gmail, had the idea to put ads in Google's email service. But it was Susan Wojcicki, with help from Sergey Brin, who led the team that turned this idea into a very successful product. By early 2005, AdSense made up about 15% of Google's total earnings.
In 2009, Google AdSense added new features, like letting different ad networks show ads. In 2010, AdSense started using your search history to show even more relevant ads. In 2014, Google AdSense launched "Direct Campaigns," which let website owners sell ads directly. However, this feature was stopped in 2015.
Different Kinds of AdSense Ads
Content Ads
These ads are shown based on what users are interested in or what the website is about. Website owners can earn money either when someone clicks an ad (CPC, or cost per click) or when an ad is seen many times (CPM, or cost per thousand views). CPC ads are more common because earnings are based on clicks.
There are many different sizes for these ads. They can be simple text, images, animated images, videos, or rich media (interactive ads). Since November 2012, a small grey arrow appears under AdSense text ads to make them easier to spot. As mentioned, Google removed the old limit of three ads per page.
Vignette ads are a special type. They pop up when you are leaving a page, not when you first arrive. This means you don't have to wait for them to load.
Search Ads
AdSense for search lets website owners show ads related to what people search for on their site. They get 51% of the money from these ads. These ads can appear next to results from a special Google search engine on their site. Even though the share of money is a bit lower than for content ads, website owners can still earn a lot because people are more likely to click on ads when they are actively searching.
Video Ads
AdSense for video helps website owners with video content, like video hosting sites, earn money. They can choose what kinds of ads show up with their videos. These can be ads that play before or after a video, ads that appear over the video, or special "TrueView" ads. Website owners can also show "companion ads," which are display ads that appear next to the video player. This type of AdSense is for websites that host videos, not for videos on YouTube.
Link Units
Link units are ads that are very specific to what users are interested in. When users click on a topic in a link unit, they are taken to a new page with ads related to that topic.
Website owners get paid when people click on the ads on that linked page, not when they click on the first topic in the link unit. The ads on the linked page are regular Google ads, similar to other AdSense ads.
AdSense Types That Are No Longer Used
Mobile Content Ads
AdSense for mobile content used to help website owners earn money from their mobile websites. Just like regular AdSense, Google matched ads to the content of the mobile site. Instead of JavaScript, it used other technologies. By February 2012, AdSense for Mobile Content was combined with the main AdSense for Content. This happened because there was less difference between desktop and mobile content.
Domain Ads
AdSense for domains allowed ads to be placed on website names that weren't fully built yet. This was a way for people who owned domain names to make money from them even if they weren't actively using them. This program was available to all AdSense users for a while. However, Google stopped its Hosted AdSense for Domains program in February 2012.
Feed Ads
In May 2005, Google started testing "AdSense for Feeds." This version of AdSense worked with RSS and Atom feeds that had many active readers. It worked by putting images into a feed. When someone viewed the feed, Google would put ad content into the image. The ads were chosen based on the content around the image in the feed. When a user clicked the image, they went to the advertiser's website. AdSense for Feeds became available to all AdSense users in August 2008. But on December 3, 2012, Google stopped the AdSense For Feeds program.
How AdSense Works Step-by-Step
- A webmaster (the person who owns or manages a website) puts a special piece of computer code, called JavaScript, onto their webpage.
- Every time someone visits this page, the JavaScript code talks to Google's computers. It then shows content that Google sends back.
- For ads that match the content, Google's computers use a saved copy of the webpage. This copy helps them find important keywords. If keywords are already saved, Google shows ads related to those keywords. These ads are chosen based on how much advertisers are willing to pay.
- For ads that target specific websites, the advertiser chooses which pages their ads will appear on. They pay based on how many times their ad is shown (CPM, or cost per thousand views).
- Google used to have a "referral" program. This meant Google would add money to a website owner's account if visitors downloaded certain software or signed up for a service. This program ended in August 2008.
- Search ads appear in the list of results after a user searches on a website.
- Because the JavaScript code is sent to your web browser, it's possible for other website owners to copy it. To prevent cheating, AdSense website owners can tell Google exactly which pages their ads should appear on. AdSense then ignores clicks from any other pages. This helps prevent Click fraud.
See also
In Spanish: Google AdSense para niños
- Ad blocking
- Google Ads
- List of Google products
- Pay per play
- DoubleClick
- Native advertising
