This post was guest posted by Nicholas Kwan from Tevine.com.

For any site to make money, it needs ads. However, just how many ads do you need to maximize your earnings? Have too little and you are under-utilizing your site’s potential, too much and people will get frustrated at them.

Okay, you got me. Just how many ads is considered just right?

Most sites are desperate for money, and the assumption that money is proportional to ads came about. This is of course, not true for most of the time. While putting 10 ads does give some cash, having 2 ads may earn much more — more ads means less visitors will want to stay, let alone click them. Conversely, some sites may not even put in any ads as they want to keep visitors. While yes, even one ad will lead to less staying in your site, having none will get your site no where at earning its keep. However, there is one thing that you can do to keep visitors in your site despite imposing ads — and that is to place them at the right places.

Don’t place them directly at the content - it will cause irritation. So yes, don’t put them in your blog posts. Have you been to Digg? Digg’s ads are at the perfect place: at the side, visible, but yet at a non-intrusive area. If Digg can earn hundreds of thousands using only 2 ads in the side, why not you? DigitalPoint even brings it to a higher level: 1 ad only. And guess where it places them? At the top corner: Corners are visible yet non-intrusive. People will see the ads and click if they want to. DigitalPoint appeared in New York times just for earning from AdSense.

If two cases are not enough, why not 3? Shoemoney.com has 4 ads. This is double that of Digg. However, he can even earn 0.1 million from ads alone. Again: 1 ad at the corner. The other 3 ads are at their own isolated sidebar: Viewable as one scrolls down to read his older posts. Pretty neat eh? So, the while the amount of ads count, it is the placement that matters.

So, placement matters. What about the number?

DigitalPoint has 1, Digg has 2, Shoemoney has 4. So, you may be thinking of going with the 4 right? However, have you planned where you are going to put them? Ads should be placed in places that fit the following criteria:

• Ads should not be in the main content: Applies to blogs. Forums are a
different issue.
• Ads should be there to promote products, not be an irritation.
• Sidebars are useful.
• Corners are great.

So, unless you can come up with a nice 3 column design like Shoemoney (where content is on the extreme left or right), you are better off with 1 ad, or at most 2. Yes, that one measly ad can earn you quite a lot — especially if placed at a place like the top corners.

When is it the right time to put ads?

Some sites don’t don ads at birth, while others do. Generally, it is best not to start off with ads unless you already have a successful site that is directed to a new domain. If Digg only had ads after reaching the level where it’s Digg effects can kill sites, why not put ads on your site after it has reached a certain maturity? If your site is that popular, it is hard to leave it. There are extreme cases as well: Wikipedia has never placed ads since day 1, and has “vowed” never to place ads, even if it costs them their savings (and it did).

If you are promoting your site, it is best to do away with the ads as ads turn away people. Remember, you can always put up ads back again. If you are thinking about the loss you are making by not having any ads, think again about the potential your site has if it has more traffic at the end. It probably outweighs the loss by a lot more.

What type of ads are useful?

Generally, banner ads give the most in return, even if their rate is low. Never use pop-ups: There is a reason why pop-up blockers are invented. Interstitial ads are below pop-ups: They eat visitors, and it causes a nuisance when visiting sites. There are other types of ads as well, such as the Kontera ads which utilizes in-text advertising which may at times be not intrusive. Though, there are times when it is annoying, especially when your mouse goes over an ad which covers stuff you are about to read. So, just stick to banner ads.

Other posts that you might find interesting:

• I’m Switching to AdToll for Good!
• Ad Serving: It’s More than Just Making Money
• Britney Spears Officially a Google AdSense User?