Seasonal Trends in AdSense Income

Every business has seasonal trends, and AdSense is no exception.

Some trends are subtle and hard to spot, others are pretty blatant. Two years in a row now, my earnings have plummeted at the end of August, and have not recovered until the end of September.

Of course, my sites that earn well from AdSense tend to center on business topics - with some health topics as well, so I cannot say that this particular trend will hold for all AdSense sites, but I do notice that people tend to browse less online right about the time school starts up again.

The basic yearly trends that affect most businesses are:

Back to School - A dip in things that do not pertain directly to getting that job done.

Christmas - More sales in some things, less in those things that are not considered suitable gifts.

Post-Christmas - People don't tend to BUY much during this time, but they will browse websites that deal with making money, because they have Christmas bills to pay, and winter tends to be hard on a lot of businesses - it filters down and results in lower income for a lot of people during those months. Combine that with high heating bills in the Northern regions, and you get a good slump for anything that takes money. This is when a lot of people look to make vacation plans though, and when they look at things relating to frugality, earning, or other similar topics..

Income Tax Return - March and April provide a time for people in the US to spend on once a year purchases if they get a good tax return. Often, the winter slump will begin to resolve around the end of March anyway.

Summer - Pretty good for most businesses, though some do have a slow period during the summer. Tends to be a good time for my particular topics though.

You'll find that the above seasonal influences will AFFECT most sites, but they may do so either positively, or negatively. I have outlined what they do for many businesses, but yours may be different.

Product sales trends do filter down to ad supported sites. If nobody can afford specific items, they won't be as likely to click on ads for them either.

Sometimes, a slump can get you more earnings, IF you have topics that appeal to people who are feeling the pinch. So when you choose your topics, you may wish to eventually choose a variety that will sort of level out.

Written by Laura Wheeler
Owner, Firelight Web Studio
http://www.firelightwebstudio.com