While this article is written in the context of Entrecard, it applies to all Ad Systems like Project Wonderful and Adtoll.
I’ve been asked to comment on this particular topic by someone writing an Ebook. One of my strategies is to advertise on every new site. Clicking on the “Most Recent” category, I bid on every single available ad. I don’t even look at the blogs. Why not look? A few reasons.
Some of these blogs suck, and that’s being kind. Today I needed to drop a few more cards to reach 300 for the day. (OK, 600, but who’s counting?) Naturally, I go to the “Most Recent” category and confirm all ads available. Then I open each site in a new window in order to bookmark the ones above the fold. Here’s what I found in a random group of 20. Six of them were from the same Filipino author. All used the same theme and the only post was “Hello World”. Two other blogs were written in French. I promptly reported all 8 for TOS violations. Hopefully my ads will run before they get closed down.
Another reason I don’t examine sites before advertising is time. In the space between first seeing the ad, and checking out the website, the ad queue will be completely filled up. Better to risk the 2 cr and grab it while available than miss out completely.
So why bother?
- It pays for itself. You’re only risking 2-6 credits. The chance of getting 2 return clicks from other Entrecarders is pretty likely. Your credits per click ratio can be as good as .04!
- There’s a chance the site owner will come to your site and check it out. New members are very curious and tend to do silly things like look who’s card is displayed on their site. They may visit, read, comment, subscribe, ask questions, and become part of the community. That’s %25 of the time. The other %75 of the time they reject your site as “Not Relevant”.
- You might hit the jackpot. A site outside your interests may decide just for the hell of it to try Entrecard. You grab the ad for 2 cr. Turns out that blog is #1 in the world for it’s niche. You see this huge traffic spike and finally figure out it came from some ad you completely forgot about.
- A site new to Entrecard usually means it’s readers are new to Entrecard. New readers are the ones you want to click on your ad, not Entrecard vets. Yimto and Saphrym are coming to my site regardless of anything I do to try and stop them.
The only downside is the high amount of spam blogs and new people rejecting you automatically. Since there is little or no cost involved, nothing risked. Nobody reads spam blogs anyway, thus your reputation won’t be tarnished.
Is this ethical? Very ethical . You’re doing exactly what the owners of Entrecard want you to do. Bring new members into the community and help their site grow. What should you not do? Spam new members with crappy offers and deals, nor should you beg for recommendations
It’s a win-win situation for all involved, though maybe a bit overwhelming to the new person. That’s OK, once they visit Turnipofpower.com they’ll have all the answers.
This particular article may be republished, reprinted, and included in an E-book as long as it remains unchanged from it’s original form and the proper source credit is given.
I’ve written a little program that I think could help you – here is a link to a little video demo. Let me know what you think.
http://www.johnisfit.com/entreranker-demo/
I must admit for Entrecard I examine the site first before asking to advertise. But, for Project Wonderful, I am taking whatever advertising is available in my price range. I find it exciting that when I looked at the stats chart this morning that for all the clicks on my site most were unique.
That is what I am looking for. New visitors to my website.
For Entrecard I will go to the Most Recent category, because I am assuming these guys are new. They are still learning the system and are more likely going to click my card out of curiosity. I want new visitors. Like you said, If you can get a small percentage to become regulars, you win.
This is a good advice on Entrecard. I joined a few weeks ago and over time have changed my approach to match yours. Initially, I treated as I would traditionally advertising – being more selective, investigating the sites where my blog would be displayed, etc. Now, I typically go for the most bank for the buck (or credit, in this case).
Fat to Fit: Interesting program John, I’ll write a review on it tonight here. It does make checking out all the new sites easier.
One stop for all the answers is saving me so much time… Thanks! I spend far too much of it commenting, reading and generally enjoying myself though
Have a grand weekend!
So you don’t want me around. I see how it is.
Great post by the way. I agree completely. Just like I drop on all of the “most recent” sites too. That one little card in their Inbox with 7 or 8 can make a huge difference. And the rate of “not relevant” goes down when they see your card in their inbox and their ad requests.
I have been doing this very thing, and it really does pay off. Also, with very few exceptions, I approve most ads because I want to give everyone a chance. I think it is ridiculous to reject an ad because it isn’t in your niche. The main niche is that we all have Entrecards and allowing most ads to run on your blog promotes the whole concept. Being an Entrecard snob defeats the purpose.