Still testing....but

Right Leaderboard doesn't draw... Blended or Framed...

On the left, vertical format, starting even with the beginning of an article, text flowing around it. (i.e., not in a separate sidebar)

I've had a right (small) skyscraper with an image on top for a while, beside text and not one person DIDN'T click on it when on the page. It was quite amazing!

On my best-performing site I have the 160x600 skyscraper on the left side in its own column. The ads are well targeted. I haven't experimented much with different layouts, but the numbers I'm getting with this setup are above my expectations.

A leaderboard right above the content has worked well for me. More intrusive formats, such as a rectangle within the body text, might pull even better, but if you're in the publishing business for the long term, you need to balance short-term gains against reader annoyance. A leaderboard makes ads visible without damaging the user experience.

I am not so sure about some of the spots that the "heat map" recommends. According to it, the less favorable spots seem to be exactly where some of the busiest sites have blocks, ie. a square on the very topmost right corner or a skyscraper on the right side, edged right up to the scrollbar.

I have yet to try those -- that's my next expiriment. But I can say that a lg rectangle in the center (which the heat map does recommend) works the best. A skyscraper on the left never did it for me.

An example: when I first joined the program, I never thought about this, and stuck the code in the form of a skyscraper under the navigation on the left. Then, after reading this forum for a little while, I put a large blended rectangle in the center, and my earnings doubled.

AdLinks Bar - horizontal, near the top, just under my Headings (H1/H2) area so it looks like a built in menu to click on!

Best: 160x600 wide skyscraper, above the fold, left column
Second best: Adlinks, at the top, near the nav
Third best: Leaderboard at the bottom of the page

I've got quite a few in-between ads showing from time to time but these are the big winners.

Leaderboard at the top (just under your website header design blended with the color scheme of your site.

Next best is to show ads within the content of you page.

I've been everywhere man, I've been everywhere.
- Johnny Cash

Nothing like yellow, white and orange large rectangle black background on a black page, dead center of the window, with links to the content in purple and red right above and right below it.

Like a hot poker to the forehead! (software download site)

[edited by: Khensu at 7:34 am (utc) on Aug. 23, 2006]

Are we talking about adsense here? I just saw the title of the thread :-)

"What position works best for YOU?"

Sounds like kind of a personal question ...

But on my web pages, I use a 330x280 in the top center above the fold, but just below the main contents.

Missionary