Google AdWords - Any one else ignore them?

[redheadskater]

As a web developer, it seems as though all I hear about these days is Google AdWords. They are on just about every site I visit. But what's the real return on these listings?

Personally, I do my very best to ignore them. Since being a WAHM leaves me little time to actually devote to research and learning the trends of the web, when I do go to a site to read about something, I don't want to be bothered by advertisements.

Even when I do a Google search I rarely click on the paid links on the right hand side of the screen.

So - anyone else here think that AdWords is just a bunch of hype that only a few people are REALLY making $ off of?

Or am I just weird and hyper-focused on getting the information I came for, to hell with the rest?

Lisa

[Untroddenroad]

I am the same as you. I ignore them. I always assumed when I see them they are some sort of cheap scam lol. Of course, now I am using them on my site and I do make a little money. Not a lot- a few dollars a day maybe. I know some people make more. I am hoping I can cover my hosting costs with them.
Since I saw that people DO click on them, I decided to place a google adwords ad myself. They have a very reasonable plan. You only pay if someone clicks on your ad. And you set your budget for the month. So you can deicde you want to pay no more than $20 per month and google will not exceed that amount. However, thus far (it's been a couple of weeks) I have only gotten one click from google adwords. I've changed the ad several times but nothing nada zero zip zilch.
I know some people that make money off google ads are those who buy a domain right after it expires. Say they buy ABC Wholesalers. Then they fill the page with nothing but google links that look like they are part of the page. Someone looking for their familair site- ABC wholesalers will get confused and lick on a link or two trying to find the page. Kind of a dirty way to make money, but I guess it works because a lot of people do it.
~Christen
www.untroddenroad.com

[Lori]

I only click on them if they really interest me because I know the advertiser pays when you click.

I do pretty well with them on my site though. People definitely still click the googs...

Text ads in general have a higher click through ratio then banner ads. There is also a science on placement of the ads to get more clicks.