You wake up, check your AdSense dashboard, and see the numbers:
- Page Views: 1,000
- Clicks: 2
- Earnings: $0.05
It’s frustrating. You have the traffic, so why isn't anyone clicking?
The problem usually isn't your content. It’s "Banner Blindness."
We have all been using the internet for decades now. Our brains have been trained to ignore anything that resembles an advertisement automatically. If you put a banner in the sidebar or at the very top of the page, our eyes skip right over it.
To increase AdSense CTR (Click-Through Rate), stop placing ads where people expect them and start putting them where people actually look.
Here are five placement secrets based on heat map data.
1. The "In-Content" Sweet Spot
Most beginners put a huge leaderboard banner at the very top of the site (the Header).
Don't do this. Users scroll past the header in under 0.5 seconds to reach the article title. That ad view is wasted.
The Fix: Place your first ad after the 2nd or 3rd paragraph. By this point, the reader is engaged. They are reading the text. If an ad appears here—especially a native-style text ad—it flows naturally with the reading experience. This spot often has the highest CTR on the entire page.
2. The Sidebar is (Mostly) Dead
Look at your analytics. I bet 80% of your traffic comes from mobile devices.
On a phone, the "Sidebar" gets pushed all the way to the bottom of the page, below the comments. Nobody sees it.
The Fix: Stop obsessing over your sidebar widgets. They are invisible to mobile users. Instead, focus on In-Article ads that appear every 300-400 words. This ensures mobile users see ads as they scroll down.
3. The "Near Image" Strategy
People love looking at images. When we scroll through a post, our eyes naturally pause on photos.
The Fix: Place a display ad immediately below your feature image or a chart. Since the user's eye is already resting on the image, they are much more likely to notice the ad sitting right next to it.
- Warning: Avoid making the ad appear as part of the image (e.g., placing a "Download" arrow next to it). That is a policy violation. Just put it nearby.
4. The Magic of "Anchor Ads."
You know those small ads that stick to the bottom of your phone screen as you scroll? Those are called Anchor Ads.
Some people find them annoying, but the data doesn't lie: They make money.
Because they are always on screen, they have a 100% viewability rate. Even if the user doesn't click, advertisers pay good money just for the "impression" (CPM).
The Fix: Go to your AdSense Auto Ads settings and ensure that "Anchor Ads" and "Vignette Ads" (the full-screen ads that appear between page loads) are turned on. They are the heavy lifters for mobile revenue.
5. The "Recirculation" Zone
When a user finishes reading your article, what do they do? They look for something else to click.
Usually, they see your "Related Posts" section.
The Fix: Place a "Multiplex Ad" (formerly called Matched Content) at the end of your article. These ads resemble a "Related Posts" grid exactly. It gives the user a choice: read another one of your articles, or click a sponsored link. Either way, you win.
Summary: Test, Don't Guess
Every website is different. A recipe blog has a different layout than a tech news site.
Don't just take my word for it. Try moving your ads around for one week.
- Week 1: Ad at the top.
- Week 2: Ad in the middle.
Check your "CTR" percentage in the dashboard. The numbers will tell you exactly where your users are looking.