 The number of sites on the Web today
is almost infinite, with new ones popping up every day.
There are multiple types of sites: portals, "brochureware,"
content sites, directories, search engines, and ecommerce
sites, to name a few. Those that do not sell product or
services directly or indirectly on their site often rely
on advertising revenue to support operations.
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So how does one get started getting companies to advertise
on a site? Here's a quick primer to getting out of the
gate.
Google AdSense
Probably one of the most simplistic ways to place
advertising on your site is to sign up with Google as one
of its AdSense Publishers. The Adsense program displays
text ads rather than images on your site. Google then
serves ads based on the content on on the page containing
their ad code. For example, if we post a tip on our site
about email marketing, Google ads will likely deal with
email marketing services or products (see our archived
tip, How Email Formats May Affect Response Rates, as an
example).
Just in case any of your competitors show up in these text
ads, you have the option to pre-block them with an ad
filter. Google pays a percentage of the revenue it earns
(it does not disclose exactly what that percentage is) and
sends checks to publishers monthly, provided that the
publisher has generated at least $100 in ad revenue.
Affiliate Programs
The next easiest way to get advertising on your site is to
sign up with an affiliate program (or multiple ones) as a
publisher. You will then have access to listings of
hundreds of merchants (a.k.a. advertisers) who offer a
financial incentive for you to promote their products.
Though typically you only get paid when there is an actual
sale (versus getting paid just to display their ad), all
you have to do is place the ad on your site or in your
newsletter, etc., and the affiliate program will take care
of the rest.
Some of the most reputable and well-known affiliate
programs are:
* Commission Junction
* LinkShare
* Affiliate Shop
* Commission Soup
* DarkBlue
* Amazon Associates
* Primary Ads
* Affiliate Fuel
Ad Networks
An ad network is essentially one centralized re-seller of
advertising space which brokers sales for its network of
publishers at mass or liquidated pricing in exchange for a
percentage of the ad buy.
There are various ad networks out there and joining them
is rather easy, but before you do so you should ensure
that your site is up to date and meets the criteria of the
network. Typical criteria include:
* Minimum page views or visitors per month - Some networks
require little or none while others want anywhere from
3,000 to 250,000 page views a month or thousands of
visitors per month
* Content - Your site content should be relevant and
regularly updated
* Targeting
* Residing on own top-level domain - Your site should not
be hosted on free providers
* No excessive amount of advertising - A site cannot be
all advertisements because that won't appeal to anyone
As a publisher, you just don't want to "give away the
shop" and sell your soul for a bit of advertising
revenue. Here are some particulars to be aware of:
* Percentage of revenue - Legitimate networks should give
the publisher the lion's share of the advertising revenue;
somewhere in the neighborhood of 55 to 70 percent of
revenues generated by the site is common
* Exclusivity - Avoid ad networks that do not allow you to
serve ads from any other network
* Payment terms - Many times you will not be sent your
check until 30 to 90 days AFTER the month in which your
balance has reached a pre-determined amount.
* Dependability - As with anyone else you might be hiring,
contact some other sites
* Publisher veto power - Like Google AdSense, does your ad
network give you the power to reject specific campaigns or
ads shown on your site?
Feel you are ready to accept network advertising but don't
know where to start? Here's a list of some small to
mid-sized ad networks to contact:
* Search Feed
* Adtegrity
* BlogAds --specifically for blogs
* Burst Media
* Fastclick
* ValueClick
* x10 Networks
* Clicksor
For sites attracting visitors on a larger scale, some
networks for you to also consider include:
* Blue Lithium
* AzoogleAds
* Advertising.com
* MaxOnline
* 24/7 Real Media
* Ad-Up
After you have met the requirements needed for a
particular ad network and have decided to sign up, you may
also want to keep a few things in mind. Without a doubt
you should read the contract word for word and make sure
you comprehend all of the information. Then take into
consideration the ad rates, types and formats. Would you
like to offer targeted or non-targeted advertisements or
both? Just don't throw caution to the wind for a quick
buck. Be sure to retain the upper hand when dealing with
any kind of advertiser or advertising network. It is,
after all, YOUR site.
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