If the adwords are relevant, why would users ignore them? Adwords are fundamentally different from banners in that they are customized to the query. If they were so ineffective, where would all of google's money be coming from?
I don't think a lone founder needs to be an artist at all. I am planning to hire someone to make my site shine once I have the functionality where I want it to be. That probably also applies for selling. If you have a good idea, and enough drive, why not just hire people instead of giving away equity?
I am 32 and recently married. For me the trick is to get this thing started before we have any kids, as I am doing my startup in addition to a 9-5 (for now) and I know having rugrats competing for my attention will be a major demotivator.
The founders of the company I work for during the day are late 30s and one of them about 50.