First Google AdSense Check


Amazingly, I got a check the other day from Google. Way back in 2009, I decided to begin placing Google Adsense ads on the site. It’s still something that I feel a little weird about, even to this day. But ever since… I’ve gotten a few clicks here and there, a few pennies every day or so.

Google’s approach is to hold off payment until you reach a $100 threshold. And sometime last November, I passed that magical mark and an actual check came my way.

While this is a pretty big number, I feel like this ad revenue just sort of trickled along. I don’t think I get that much traffic, day to day, as it’s mostly friends and family who visit with any regularity (though I do get some interesting passers-by, who find my through keyword searches).

On average, based on Google Analytics, I get anywhere from 300 – 600 visitors daily. Taking November as an example, last month I had 12,687 visits and a total of 20,450 pageviews. Average pages per visit is 1.61, with users spending an average of 1:05 on the site. Additionally I have around 145 – 170 RSS subscribers, who may or may not actually visit the site.

It’s weird – but I don’t really have any other basis for comparison. These numbers seem ok, but they also seem pretty low to me. Every once in a while I think about trying to increase the readership here on the blog, but that usually is a fleeting thing. Most days, I’m pretty satisfied with the routine of posting things up daily, sharing photos or links that I think are interesting.

Even though it’s been a slow accrual, the fact that I got $100 from doing blog posts is kind of blowing my mind. As a test, I just saw that I can add Adsense to RSS feeds as well – so this is something I’m going to try out. Will be interesting to see if this causes a jump in impressions/clicks, or whether it’ll cause a drop in subscribers.

RSS or site, regardless of how you’re reading this – consider me grateful and thankful you’re willing to spend a little of your time and attention on this site. Hopefully, the ads aren’t too annoying (and if they are, please let me know).

Related:
Placing Ads On The Blog For The First Time (In Six Years)
Site Visitors, Keyword Searches, And Some Surprising Google Image Rankings

This Post Has 4 Comments

  1. adsense for feeds = feedburner

    rachelle Reply


    • Ah yes, good clarification. I’ve been using FeedBurner for a while now, and just went back in to the “Monetize” tab tonight, looking around. Weirdly enough – I think the first time I learned of FeedBurner was through all your (pre-Google) posts from your blog!

      avoision Reply


  2. You probably heard about this because you come across all things internet, but last year, the guy who runs the Online Etymology Dictionary was told by the IRS that he owed scads of money in back taxes because of money he made through Google ads. The amount they said he owed was so much he couldn’t pay it without taking donations.

    The details about what happened or how he dealt with it are gone now. The best link I could find is this one: https://profiles.google.com/114771302128021571825/buzz/Si9xFvHGyfM. But you might want to look around and see if anyone else has had similar experiences.

    juliet Reply


    • Yikes – that’s a crazy story! It’s weird to think that individual bloggers could suddenly be taxed as a “private contracter” of Google, simply by using this service.

      This is the first I’ve heard of such thing. It strikes me as crazy that individual bloggers would be potentially classified this way, but I’ll keep an eye out for other stories like this. Thanks for the heads-up – definitely something I’ll be exploring a bit more, to make sure I don’t end up in the same situation…

      avoision Reply


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