Your Google AdWords Driven Website

Currently, there is no more powerful way of earning money online than to monetize your website using Google AdWords. It's a simple fact: if you have great content, you'll turn up well in search results. And if you're doing that, you can earn a pretty sum from Google just for displaying their ads.

This is a concept that is growing steadily, but is rarely done well.

In this article, I'll share some ideas on creating websites that have only one thing in mind: getting money from Google AdWords. Before I go on, though, bear in mind that this is not a "get rich quick" scheme, and that it will take some work on your part. A lot of research goes into planning the website, and you will have to have some really great, unique content.

If you're not afraid of some hard work initially, though, this article can help you cushion your pocket with a little bit of extra income.

Step One: Discovering a Niche

Of all the steps, this is the one that is the most difficult. It will weed out a lot of people who can't invest the time it takes to create a website like we're going for. It can be frustrating, and you might end up hating this idea before you even get going.

Just being honest.

So, how do you discover a niche? There are a couple of ways to do this, each resulting in a topic that will generate more or less work for you in the long run:

More Work Now, Less Work Later Way - Start looking for a topic that hasn't been covered, or isn't covered well. If you do much online work, you can probably think of at least 3 things that you haven't seen in websites and that you know would be popular. If not, you'll want to discover those things. Do some keyword research at a website like NicheBot.com, on the Overture Keyword Tool, or at Hot Keywords. Heck, why not just use the AdWords Keyword Tool? What you're looking for are keywords that people are searching for - a LOT - but that don't turn up a lot of results.

Less Work Now, More Work Later Way - Pick a topic that you're passionate about. It can be anything at all, but it should be something that people are searching for lots and lots. You can use the keyword research websites listed in the previous "way" to help you out. The thing about this path is that you're not going to concern yourself with how many results actually come up for your keywords. Instead, you're going to offer more content and a better layout than they do, gradually drawing their visitors away from them.

Step Two: Plan Some Content

If you're still with me and still excited, you're doing much better than most people will be doing at this point. Trust me.

At this point, it's time to see if you can come up with enough content to even invest in a website. You'll need to spend some serious time deciding exactly what content would be relevant to your topic. If visitors hit your website thinking they'll find something that you've clearly aimed for, but can't find it, they'll leave your site frustrated and probably won't return again.

What makes relevant content? Well, let's pick a topic. Let's say that I'm going to create a website about building dollhouses. We'll pretend I've done the keyword research, and go from there. If my main topic is about building dollhouses, I actually have a few options. Relevant content would be, of course, related to dollhouse building. But the actual topics could range from free dollhouse plans for woodworkers to sewing directions for dollhouse furnishings to decorating and preservation tips. I could compile an article on how imaginative play benefits children. I could offer a buyer's guide and a recall guide.

Depending on the topic you've chosen, you should be able to come up with a bunch of content. Keep it tightly focused to your theme, though. I wouldn't want to stray from my dollhouse tangent and start tossing in content about model cars. Sure, they're both collectible toys. But they're not the same thing. Instead, I could plan on making yet another website dedicated to model cars after I've gotten this one off the ground.

You might be able to find some "free reprint" articles that tie into your theme as well. Check out a few websites like Articles Factory, NextArticle, and FrogPond. If you're willing to pay a writer for their theme-specific content, take a look at Constant Content.

Step Three: Grab a Home

In comparison to what you've done up to now, this step is easy as pie. You're simply going to look for a domain name that will tie into your whole theme.

There are hundreds of places online to purchase domain names from - personally, I only use NameCheap. They offer some good prices, and unparalleled service. But you'll have to decide that for yourself. The important thing right now is finding a great domain name that will stick in your visitor's minds ... and one that is available.

Hit the Yahoo! Domains page and type in the first URL that you like the sound of. Click the Search key and let Yahoo! go. If your domain name is available, you're very lucky - jump on it! If not, though, you'll come to a new page - and this is the reason I recommend Yahoo! for searching domain names out. What this page does is show you dozens of variations on the domain you originally searched, giving you a lot of ideas. Other websites will simply tell you "yes" or "no".

As soon as you've got your URL, get some web hosting and get ready to dive into some more hard work.

Step Four: Design a Site

Okay, so this is a tricky one. On the one hand, you don't want to spend a lot of money getting your website up and running - it's supposed to be making you money, right? On the other, if you don't have a really professional site, you're killing opportunities before they've even begun.

Unless you're pretty familiar with website design, I don't recommend even trying to do it yourself. Not on a website like this. Wait until you've got some experience under your belt, and then do a nifty little redesign of your site. Instead, look for a professionally designed website template. There are so many professional designers online with ready-to-use layouts for you to purchase (at really nice costs), it will save you a ton of frustration in the long run.

Specifically, what you're looking for in a design includes:

* Very clean, easy-to-find navigation. Preferrably in more than one spot.
* An attractive look with colors and/or images that promote your theme.
* Plenty of room for your content, and space for your Google AdWords ads.
* Little to no flash. You don't want to take the time learning how to edit it, and not all Internet users can view it.

Make sure that the design you choose puts your content at the focus of the page. You want the Google Ads to be viewable, but not the focus - you'll send visitors running the other direction.

Step Five: Put it Together & Get it Online

You've now got all the elements you need. All that's left is for you to start filling in your template with the content you've generated, and start placing Google Ads in appropriate places on the pages.

Remember that Google allows you to use 3 Ads per page, in addition to their search box and referrals. That's at least 5 potential sources of revenue, so make sure that you use them.

Really go over your website carefully once you've compiled all the pages. Make sure there's not spelling errors, or that the template doesn't break up in odd places. Check each page out in at least two different web browsers - Internet Explorer and Firefox. Each browser will display a page differently, and you want to make sure it looks good on both of them.

Finally, get it online! Upload your entire site at once, make plans to update it at least once a week with new content, and start submitting it to search engines. And with that, you're set - it's all up to you and your marketing genius now.