Google AdSense Case Study

GPSworld.com is a publication web site of Questex Media Group, a global business-to-business integrated media provider serving a variety of industries - technology, beauty, travel, hospitality, leisure, home entertainment, industrial and specialty services. A major initiative for the company is to deploy a range of enhanced web offerings to complement its well-established, market-leading publications, events, interactive media and integrated marketing services. Questex properties include 23 trade publications, 50 websites, 25 conferences and tradeshows. The company has more than 400 employees in offices throughout North America, South America, Asia and Europe.

To succeed in business-to-business marketing, Questex complements traditional print publications and in-person conferences with websites featuring rich content and interactivity. A major advantage for Questex is its ability to implement across delivery channels in an integrated way that reaches extremely targeted markets.

Challenge
Dana Fisher, Group Publisher for Questex Media's technology group, spotted an immediate opportunity to reach highly targeted audiences with spot-on messaging, content and ads on its property www.GPSworld.com, a website for GPS (global positioning satellite) users ranging from the military and construction industry workers to consumers who are outdoors enthusiasts. The site averages 430,000 page views and approximately 115,000 unique visitors per month.

To launch the site profitably, Fisher wanted to build revenue by running relevant advertising throughout the GPS World web pages. She knew that contextual advertising using Google AdSense^TM would provide content matching the site, promoting a community feeling and increasing the site's usefulness.

Generating an immediate revenue stream for GPSworld.com was a top priority. Before the Questex sales force could gear up to bring big-name advertisers on board, Fisher and Web Operations Manager Troy Peterson implemented Google AdSense to fill the gap and provide an ongoing source of revenue.

"It takes time and dollars to move websites into production and build a robust platform for our mainstay advertisers," says Peterson. "AdSense has become our standard means of generating immediate revenue as we develop site content and richness. And once other advertising takes off, AdSense continues to deliver a steady stream of income."

Results
Through customizable online reports, Peterson tracked the performance of specific ad formats, colors and pages. Initial results from AdSense were impressive, but then Peterson optimized. He added link units under the lower left hand navigation bar and above all article pages, and added 468x60 banner ads on the homepage and below each of the articles. He also matched the colors of the ads to the site and removed the borders. Overall, his placement and format changes along with the increased number of ad units, increased AdSense revenue 100%.

With such noteworthy results, Questex has made AdSense a staple in its marketing arsenal. When the company launches any new online property, the first step is to sign up with AdSense to help jumpstart ad revenue

Google AdSense not only carries Questex through transitional periods when online properties are being launched, but also has become a significant source of revenue on its own. The revenue from AdSense provide funding for other products such as email newsletters that in turn increase traffic to sites.

"Since we began using Google AdSense, we go to management and tell them with confidence that the estimated AdSense revenue will be a certain amount per month while we are getting our traditional advertising base up and running," says Peterson. "AdSense makes business decisions easier up and down the chain."

For Questex, the AdSense campaign for GPSworld.com is only the beginning. The company is also using AdSense to enhance revenues on other web properties. Fisher says, "The AdSense model makes perfect sense for reaching customers in a cost-effective, unobtrusive and relevant way. Whether we are talking about pest control or computer-aided design, it's a wonderful opportunity for web publishers."

About Google AdSense
Google AdSense is a program enabling online businesses to earn revenue from serving ads precisely targeted to their site. Through AdSense, website publishers can also provide their visitors with site search and Google web search, earning revenue through Google ads on the search results pages. AdSense publishers are a part of the Google Network, which includes many of the Top 100 Media Metrix sites such as AOL, About.com, Amazon, Ask.com, and Lycos. For more information, visit https://www.google.com/adsense/.