BANNER ADVERTISING – THE IMPORTANCE OF AD PLACEMENT IN INCREASING WEB SITE TRAFFIC

Filed Under (Banner Advertising) by admin on 30-03-2009

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Increasing web site traffic can be done effectively and somewhat inexpensively through online marketing methods like banner advertising.  The key to successful banner advertising is to learn and understand the most effective methods and track what produces the best results and directs the most useful web site traffic to your web site.  In this article we will discuss banner ad placement.

There are probably websites out there in cyberspace with a demographic that appeals greatly to you.  You may ask yourself exactly how you can tap into the demo market of a particular web site and bring some of their web site traffic to your site.  Banner advertising is the way to do this.  Concentrate your search on sites that focus on a similar niche to your site without being a direct competitor.  Review their pricing for banner advertising to see if buying their ad space is within your budget.  You may even want to contact the site administrator or Webmaster to ask about the possibility of a banner exchange program between your two sites with the idea that both sites could generate increased web site traffic.  A free banner swap with a similar niche site may save you some dollars by avoiding the need to buy high priced ad spots.  It’s important to remember that banner placement is crucial to the success of your banner advertising actually increasing web site traffic.  This is especially important if you are spending a lot of money for your banner advertising.  Many popular high traffic websites are not one bit shy about charging a good penny for ad space on their site - so know where your banner is getting placed to ensure that the money you are throwing out will actually increase your web site traffic!

It was once believed that the most effective placement for banner advertising on any website was the very top of the page.  This made sense since the banner ad is immediately visible at the very beginning of the page load and requires no scrolling.  Most web visitors are likely to ignore a banner that is near the bottom of the page that requires scrolling down.  Banner advertising is still a hundred times more effective with a banner advert placed at the top of the page rather than the bottom of the page, however, there is also evidence that suggests that banner advertising is most effective in increasing web site traffic when ads are placed next to the right scroll bar, usually in the lower right-hand corner of the homepage or at least 1/3 down the page.  This placement may generate a higher click-through rate and increased web site traffic than ads at the top of the page.  This news should be particularly good for Webmasters on a tight budget when it comes to advertising because the ads on the right-side of the page are typically smaller dimensions than ads running at the top, which typically means cheaper banner advertising rates.    So don’t feel like you have to purchase the highest priced ad, with the largest size dimensions, placed at the very top of the page, to benefit from increased web site traffic.

Boost Website Traffic With Good Old Fashioned Link Trading!

Filed Under (Link Trading Traffic) by admin on 24-03-2009

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Link trading doesn’t have to be complicated.  Search online these days for articles on the subject of increasing website traffic through link trading and you will likely come across articles with talk of algorithms, technical scripts and link trading brokerage sites.

Not to sound like the stereotypical disgruntled older person but back in the day link trading was not this complex!  All it took was some friendly communication with webmasters of sites with content that was similar to your own without being considered a “competitor site”.   The concept was pretty simplistic.  You knew that their audience would find your site interesting, possibly becoming regular visitors to your site, contributing significantly to your website traffic.  You just needed the other site to acknowledge your presence and open the door for their website traffic to find your site!  By the same token, if you like the other website, there is a very strong likelihood that your website traffic would also enjoy it.  So, in this case, link trading is beneficial to both sites.  There is an obvious give and take.

All it takes at this point is convincing the other web master to trade links.  Just send them a very personalized email.  A key word here is “personalized”.  Understand that in today’s Internet marketing world there are a lot of link trading and banner advertising farms.  If you are a web master, you can probably relate to that email we get every so often, the one where someone is telling us that they’ve visited our site and posted a link to us, asking of course, for that much appreciated return link.

These sites probably have little to no website traffic.  Nine times out of ten you’ve likely never known of their existence.  They are probably trying to sponge from your page rankings, with the hope of being listed higher in search engine searches by including a text link to your site and link trading with you.

If you’ve ever visited these sights, and it’s highly suggested that you do just for kicks, it’s always humorous to see how your link is actually listed.  It’s generally always there but the descriptive text will be jumbled.  It may be an excerpt from a piece of text on your website or something just automatically harvested from your content.  It’s doubtful that these sites have any kind of considerable website traffic but, if they do, these people still have no idea what your site is about – unless they actually click the link.

When you are emailing and trying to convince another webmaster that link trading is a great idea it’s best to not have your email read like one of the above mentioned generic form messages.  Address the web master and website by name.  Maybe explain how you found their website, how often you frequent the site, what you enjoy about their site, it’s design or content.  Let them know that you’ve posted a text link to their site that will direct your website traffic to their page.  You’d appreciate the same to complete the link trading.

Affiliate Program Banner Advertising - Earn Revenue From Your Website Traffic!

Filed Under (Banner Advertising) by admin on 16-03-2009

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Affiliate program banner advertising has become a popular method for websites and online blogs to build a small revenue stream to support their hosting fees.
The goal is to entice your website traffic to click on the banner advertising where they will then be redirected to the product on the affiliate program site. From here, if the person makes a purchase on that particular site, straight from the click through from your site, you will earn commission from the transaction. Some affiliate program banner advertising may reward you on clicks alone.

The key to effective affiliate program banner advertising is to make it friendly to your website traffic. The banner advertising should not distract your website traffic from your content. It should also stay relevant to the content on your site. For example, if you have a blog that focuses on indie music, the products advertised through your affiliate program should be centered on music that your website traffic will be interested in. Music that you either feature or review on your site. The same philosophy applies to a sports news/commentary website. The products that are promoted to your website traffic should be sports memorabilia or items of interest to a sports fan and that demographic.

One thing that you want to avoid with your affiliate program banner advertising is the possibility of annoying or offending your everyday website traffic. Make sure your affiliate banner advertising doesn’t include bothersome pop up ads or obnoxious banner ads with offensive or adult images, irritating sound effects or seizure inducing animation between frames.

It is also advisable that you track how much of your website traffic is clicking the banner advertising on your site. You should also monitor exactly how many of these banner ad clicks directly lead to sales. Affiliate program banner advertising will not cost you any money but you will still want to make the most of the resource. It may be time to reevaluate how you are presenting your affiliate program links if your website traffic are not clicking the ads or purchasing the product.

Some experts may suggest that text links are more effective than banner advertising in directing your website traffic to your affiliates. You may want to consider only including banner advertising for well known or featured products to enhance the image of your website or blog while including text links to affiliate site products within your content. For instance, if you review a particular movie, video game or CD, include a text link to purchase the product through one of your affiliates.

The bottom line is affiliate program banner advertising or text links, if used properly, can be helpful in offsetting the costs of running a site. There is potential to earn some revenue from the web surfing and online purchasing habits of your website traffic. It’s just a matter of following the performance of your affiliate links and making necessary adjustments when called upon.


Banner Advertising Post Y2K - Can It Still Build Web Site Traffic?

Filed Under (Banner Advertising) by admin on 03-03-2009

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Banner advertising was first used in the early 90’s as a means to increase web site traffic. Global Network Navigator (GNN), one of the first web sites in cyberspace, sold the very first clickable banner advertisement to a law firm in 1993. Within a very short time, Hotwired.com was selling banner advertising in large quantities. AT&T and Coors were the first big name corporate clients to buy into banner ads in 1994. For the record, Hotwired.com also coined the phrase “banner ad” and became the very first company to release click through reports to clients.

These types of sales became the primary tool behind any successful online advertising campaign. Sites fortunate enough to have considerable web site traffic were able to lure in advertising clients with the promise of high volume banner ad impressions on the most popular sites online. Sales reps were able to easily draw in new business despite the fact that banner advertising packages weren’t necessarily a bargain. There was a demand. It was pretty much a given that people would pay a pretty penny to advertise on sites with a reputation for consistent web site traffic.

This approach to banner advertising sales worked like a charm, providing sites with plenty of revenue and an economic base for their web site. Sites had more money for design enhancements and advertising funds, which increased their web site traffic, guaranteeing them higher banner advertising sales. This fairytale built mansions for young entrepreneurs until 2000 when the dot com industry’s bubble ruptured and banner advertising as we knew it literally crashed!

Banner advertising is still a practical modern day method of Internet marketing but the value of the ads are no longer what they were at the Internet’s dot com peak. While this news may sound unwelcoming, the great news is the ad rates are no longer ridiculously overpriced and more people can actually afford banner advertising, reaping the rewards of increased web site traffic!

This is also a lot more visually stimulating than it was in the past and can be used in other ways besides increasing your presence on the web and your web site traffic. Not only can you profit from turning your web site traffic into paid subscribers, someone that buys your product, pays for your services, etc. but you can also build revenue by selling banner ad space on your own site or earn commission from a banner advertising affiliate program. This type of banner advertising will have you selling products and earning commission whenever a click through on your site turns into a purchase on the other site. We see this method of banner advertising everyday whenever we visit a web site and notice banner ads for books, DVD’s or music available through Amazon.com or a similar site.

So, in closing, while the Internet bubble did indeed burst back in 2000, there are computers in more homes with more people online than ever before, meaning more web site traffic than ever before. Banner advertising is still a very effective way to boost your web site traffic and potentially make money as a result!