Users that implement AdSense Link Units can now add image ads to their marketing mix.

Link Units are alternative text links to text ads that showcase topics relevant to the content on your site. When visitors click on them, they are brought to a standard, ad-infused AdSense page.

Now those pages contain relevant image ads in addition to text. Presently, the image ads are appearing as banners at the bottom of each page. The Inside AdSense blog claims these placements resulted in "revenue improvements for many publishers."

The ads are contextually targeted, based on whatever link unit topic users clicked on to reach the ad page. Only text ads will appear if a relevant image ad cannot be found — "we won't show a PSA or insert a blank space in place of the image ad in this case," Google asserted, lending the impression that this new feature has been availed because it is especially useful, and not because Google itself could use the extra revenue.

Clients seeking more information about Image Ads for AdSense Link Units can read about implementation; those ready to dive in can simply visit their AdSense Setup tabs and activate "AdSense for content."

Late last year Google began experimenting with image ads within search results, a program that has not yet left beta.