True Story: How I earned $550,000+ from Google AdSense and decided to join Medium

This narrative recounts how Google AdSense transformed my life.

This is the second part of my personal journey towards making money online. You can find the first part here:

A Brief Introduction

Approximately ten years ago, in 2013, I founded a web development company in Lithuania, a small European country where I was born.

The business model was straightforward: create websites and CRMs for local enterprises to earn a living.

The initial phase was challenging, but I managed to establish a stable income. While it wasn't a massive sum (around 1500 Euros monthly), it was quite a decent amount for me at that time.

Simultaneously, I wanted to enhance my skills in web development, so I took on a few side projects. Nothing extravagant—just various calculators, forums, dictionaries, blogs, etc., all in my native Lithuanian language.

Some of those sites began attracting traffic from search engines, though it was modest—approximately 2000 unique visitors daily.

Monetizing the Traffic

Initially, I attempted to incorporate affiliate links on my websites. However, the returns were minimal and converting visitors proved quite difficult—around 150 euros per month.

Then I discovered Google AdSense.

For those unfamiliar, the concept of earning with Google AdSense is quite simple: place ads on your website, and every time a visitor clicks on an ad, you earn money.

Ads appear like this:

However, don't even think about gaming the system by asking friends or family to click on the ads; Google will catch onto this behavior and ban you for life.

I replaced my affiliate ads with Google AdSense, and the results were immediate. In my first month, I earned around 700 euros—four and a half times more than with affiliate links.

My Effective Google AdSense Strategy

After my initial success with Google AdSense, I began brainstorming ways to optimize and maximize my earnings.

During this journey, I developed a series of steps that shaped my approach. These steps, based purely on my experiences, are worth sharing.

It's important to note that while this was not the only method I explored, it was the most rewarding.

Ready? Let’s dive in! ?

Method Overview:

1. Step 1: Target affluent (Tier 1) countries.
2. Step 2: Emphasize SEO, identify a niche, and create an expansive website (at least 100k+ pages).
3. Step 3: Choose an effective domain name.
4. Step 4: Optimize your site thoroughly.
5. Step 5: Translate your site into various languages.
6. Step 6: Test different ad formats and placements.

#### Step 1: Target Affluent (Tier 1) Countries

Initially, my websites targeted the Lithuanian market, a Tier-3 country that was relatively underdeveloped a decade ago.

While conditions have improved, it still pales in comparison to the USA, Canada, Australia, or the UK.

For a list of countries and their Tier classifications, visit: https://worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/tier-1-countries

The first lesson I learned was to prioritize attracting traffic from wealthy (Tier 1) nations.

#### Step 2: Focus on SEO, Identify a Niche, and Build a Large Website

Next, I needed to figure out how to draw traffic from these affluent countries.

I dedicated numerous hours to researching strategies for achieving this.

Essentially, there are two primary sources of organic traffic for new websites: social media and SEO.

I opted for SEO because I aimed to produce evergreen content that wouldn’t become outdated. Search engines can drive substantial traffic for this type of content.

Then came the inevitable question: What should the website focus on? What niche would it serve?

To answer that, I decided to create a substantial website (with at least 100k pages) centered around specific countries or regions. This could encompass anything from baby names to business directories, phone numbers, or titles of notable locations.

Each entry required its own page, allowing us to target highly specific, low-competition keywords.

For instance, the niche I found most successful was business directories. Companies exist globally, from Rwanda to the USA, providing ample opportunity.

The idea was to compile extensive databases of companies for each country or region.

This method was particularly effective, allowing me to create databases even for specific states within the USA.

In short:

More countries/regions = more databases = more websites = more traffic = more ad clicks = more revenue.

From an SEO perspective, I concentrated on low-competition keywords, primarily targeting company names and codes.

I initially tried to rank for general keywords like “free business directory in [COUNTRY],” but they often had high competition. Even if I managed to rank well, they didn’t yield as much traffic as specific company keywords.

Instead of focusing on ten popular high-competition keywords, I targeted over 100,000 low-competition ones. ?

After selecting a niche, I conducted research to identify data sources—websites, platforms, or APIs that could provide the information I needed.

I always reviewed terms of use to ensure data reuse was permitted. Many official company registrars offered public data for free.

I set a goal for my database to contain at least 100,000 records, although more was preferable. One of my largest databases contained over 15 million records!

Once I identified a data source, I extracted each company’s information into a database using MySQL.

You could hire someone on Fiverr or Upwork for this task, or even utilize ChatGPT nowadays. ?

But at that time, I handled it myself.

#### Step 3: Choose an Effective Domain Name

The next step was to secure a suitable domain name.

I focused on .com and .net domains, as they tended to rank better in my experience.

Before registering a domain, I always checked its history and avoided those with negative backgrounds.

For historical checks, I utilized archive.org. If a domain had been previously registered, I examined its backlink profile using tools like ahrefs.com and linkody.com.

To summarize, it should be either a new domain or one with no negative history.

#### Step 4: Optimize Your Site Thoroughly

Due to the extensive records in my database, I needed to ensure that Google and Bing could crawl my websites swiftly.

I created a custom PHP script to achieve exceptional speed.

Standard platforms like WordPress, Joomla, or Drupal were inadequate for this task, as they are generic, slow, and not optimized for large datasets. They work well for blogs or smaller sites, but not for my method.

I developed my own PHP script and implemented numerous optimizations to ensure it was blazing fast.

I’m grateful I chose this route, as I learned a great deal in the process.

I optimized on both the server side and within the code itself.

While I won’t delve into all the details, those micro-optimizations were extensive.

For example, instead of using the PHP function array_key_exists(‘key’, $array), I opted for isset($array[‘key’]) for speed.

I scrutinized every detail because each millisecond was crucial.

After optimizing, I could host my script on a VPS for $20 a month and maintain multiple websites with millions of pages.

#### Step 5: Translate Your Site

Another beneficial aspect I discovered was translating my websites into various languages.

Google AdSense supports 50 languages, so why not take advantage of that?

I observed that many individuals in one country often searched for companies in another.

For instance, individuals from France frequently sought companies in Germany. If my German site had a French-translated version, it created a win-win scenario: the French user enjoys a better experience, Google AdSense displays more relevant ads, and I earn more revenue.

Finding a quality translator was straightforward, as I utilized platforms like Freelancer.com, Fiverr, and Upwork.

#### Step 6: Experiment with Ad Formats and Placement

Once my websites began attracting traffic, I conducted A/B testing with ads.

The objective was to identify the optimal ad combinations for maximizing revenue while maintaining a positive user experience.

I ensured not to overload my sites with ads, and I believe I succeeded.

And It Worked! The Results of My Journey :)

It took about a month and a half to launch my first 20 websites.

Googlebot crawled them at an astonishing rate. At the time, there was a limit of 10 requests per site, meaning my server received approximately 200 requests per second, totaling around 17 million hits daily.

Thanks to the optimizations I implemented, my server remained stable despite the high traffic. ?

Within ten days, my sites were indexed and started receiving traffic, with some attracting as many as 5000 unique visitors daily!

At that moment, I couldn’t help but wonder—is this really possible? Can one earn a substantial passive income online?

This is one reason I am sharing this article—to demonstrate that earning money through Google AdSense is indeed achievable.

Then came the moment of truth: my first Google AdSense payment arrived.

It was a WOW moment, and I immediately recognized that I had struck gold.

I invested $20 in server costs, approximately $150 on domains (totaling around $170), and earned over $2,500. Incredible! ?

Over the years, I have scaled and modified these websites extensively, launching over 200 sites using this strategy.

I also explored various ad networks, such as Media.net, MGID, Infolinks, Solvemedia, and even Disqus. While the results weren’t as impressive as with Google AdSense, I still managed to earn decent income through other networks.

To date, I have earned $553,000 through AdSense alone, and I continue to earn using this method.

In my most lucrative month, I earned $14,000, allowing me to purchase a flat outright, save money, invest, and travel extensively.

Essentially, I was living my dream life.

However, last year, things took a turn...

Why the Method is No Longer Effective

By the end of 2022, my earnings took a significant hit.

I tried every strategy I could think of to improve my situation, but Google's algorithm had shifted dramatically.

From my perspective, the primary issue was that Googlebot no longer crawled websites at the same rate as before.

In the past, new websites could easily receive 10 requests per second, but now I have sites that only get 200 Googlebot requests PER DAY. Consequently, very few pages are indexed.

I have employed numerous techniques but have been unable to increase the crawl budget.

If you have any suggestions on how to address this issue—your comments would be greatly appreciated. ?

Through this experience, I reached several conclusions:

• SEO is highly risky and seems to be dying. Google’s algorithms are constantly evolving, and all your rankings and traffic can vanish in an instant. Additionally, website speed appears to be less significant now. Moreover, the trend of zero-click searches is growing, among other factors not in my favor. To summarize, I believe the golden age of SEO is over.
• Increasing competition. The competitive landscape is intensifying daily, with more websites emerging in every niche.
• The rise of AI. Recent advancements in AI indicate that the zero-click trend will continue to rise, potentially jeopardizing the entire SEO industry in the long term.
• Ad blockers. The increasing prevalence of ad blockers poses a challenge for anyone relying on Google AdSense for income. ?

Final Thoughts

So, why am I sharing this experience with you?

For many reasons.

First, I want to demonstrate through my personal journey that substantial earnings online are indeed possible. Achieving this isn’t overly complicated once you have an effective method. However, discovering that method can be quite challenging.

I’d like to share a quote from a book I recently read:

> When you’re learning to write, crafting a single letter “e” is more difficult than writing the entire word “elephant” after a year.

In essence, earning your first dollar online is often the hardest hurdle to overcome. Transitioning from $0 to $1 can be incredibly tough, but once you find a viable method, scaling from $1 to $10,000 can become much easier.

Additionally, it’s clear that my Google AdSense phase is drawing to a close, and I need to explore new avenues.

That’s why I’m embarking on my journey on Medium.

I’m eager to break free from the “bubble” I’ve inhabited and connect with new people and ideas. I believe Medium is an excellent platform for that.

Thus, my journey continues...

After a decade, I’m on the hunt for another gold mine.

I hope to discover one, and if I do, you can expect more authentic stories like this to emerge on my Medium blog.

That’s the essence of this blog: honest accounts of my journey in making money online...

See you soon! ?