[Linda Buquet]

Whoa Larry, great post with some very important advice. Really glad you brought that up! And it's so true... if you think about the customer or your visitor and generate the kind of content they would be interested in and content that adds value, you'll always be farther ahead.

I also like that fact you mentioned it does not have to be either or. Many use both. I recommend using both and testing initially to see which performs better. Then usually if you have a good affiliate program that converts put that in the prime ad spots and maybe have a bank of Adsense at the bottom of the page so if they don't click the affiliate link, at least maybe they'll click and Adsense ad before they leave your site.

Also as far as how much you can make per click with Adsense. It depends a lot on your niche and the type of advertisers that would be a match and how much those advertisers pay to be listed. So if your site is about green widgets which only sell for $5 and there aren't many advertisers therefor they only have to pay 5c a click - you'll only make a couple pennies. If your site is about real estate or Insurance or travel where there are lot of advertisers paying high cost per click you can make more. BUT those markets are competitive so much harder to succeed in.