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Adwords vs Adsense – What is the difference?

Adwords vs Adsense –
What is the difference?

Adwords vs Adsense – What is the difference? Explained.

The terms Adwords and Adsense are often used interchangeably and incorrectly making the difference between Adwords vs Adsense confusing at the best of times.  In this article I am going to clarify the difference so that you can make better decision about your Internet advertising.

Google Adwords vs Adsense

Adwords vs Adsense
Adwords

Google Adwords is how Google makes most of its money.  The Adwords program is the program where advertisers run advertisements on Google search.  So when you type in a search such as “adwords vs adsense” you get a list of websites that Google has determined are a good source of information along with advertisements. Those advertisements show up on Google’s search results page on the right hand column or the top.

As an advertiser you would use Google Adwords to promote your product, service or website.  The advertisement are run based up the keywords selected and the placement of the ad is based upon how much you are willing to pay and the quality score of the ad.

It does not end there.  Here is where it can get confusing.  The ads can also be displayed on Google’s partner sites (like other search engines) or on publisher/webmaster’s websites.  If you are an advertiser this is called the Google Display Network.  You would have seen that when you were setting up you ads.

This is where Google Adsense comes in.

Google Adsense vs Adwords

Adwords vs Adsense
Adsense

Let’s say you have a website and you would like to make some money from the site.  Then you can sign up for Google Adsense and become part of Google Display Network.  So now Google can show ads on your website and if it is clicked you get paid a portion of what Google charges the advertiser.

So, in summary, the advertiser PAYS Google to run their ad with Google Adwords. Google PAYS the publisher for results generated from Adsense ads.

How are Adsense and Adwords Connected?

The connection between the two programs is this: The ads that advertisers pay to run on Google Adwords are the SAME ads that publishers run on their websites. This is where the confusion comes in for most people. So, Google Adsense would not function without Google Adwords.

The publishers/webmasters are often referred to as Google’s “content network”. When a publisher/webmaster signs up to run Google Adsense, they are matched up to your ad based on the content of their website.

Be aware that there are many places on the Web (like forums and blogs) that confuse readers by referring to Adwords vs Adsense interchangeably. Remember that they are two separate programs, although they do work together to generate income for Google, the advertiser, and the publisher/webmaster.

If you are still finding it difficult to understand the difference, you can find more information on the two programs by going to Google’s Adwords or Adsense website and reading their explanation. (However, many people find their explanation confusing, hence why I wrote this article.)

Enjoy making money with your Adwords and Adsense advertising programs!

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