I have said before that you can make much more money with partnership and per signup sponsors that with click-thru programs, and for most people that is true. But some people just can't seem to get signups to their sponsors. Sometimes it's because they can't think of creative text links, sometimes they can't get the hang of designing ads that increase sales, and sometimes it's just bad luck, I think. But whatever the reason, some people just can't seem to make money off signups.
|
"If the sponsor has approved text links, make use of them! Text links get clicked much more often than banners." |
So they turn to click-thru. A lot of people then find out the harsh reality that making money with click-thru programs can be just as difficult as making money with signups!
You see, there are many problems you will encounter when you're trying to make the switch from signups to click-thrus. First of all, the freedom you once had in designing your own text links to attract clicks is gone, unless of course you are using a blind click-thru program in which case you will probably find that getting traffic to a site that uses blind links is practically impossible without tons of work, and I am not going to cover blind link program in this article, only regular click-thru programs.
Now, almost all HONEST programs still require a signup ratio. That means that you STILL have to get signups in order to be paid. This is why I use signup programs. They don't require specific ratios in order for you to be paid, but they allow you to use other methods of getting traffic to them, whereas most click-thru programs require you to use specific banners and text links that THEY specify.
When using click thru-programs, you are going to have to make the most of the ad material that THEY provide you with. How? Well, I'm going to give you some hints on how to chose the banners that will be most effective in generating lots of clicks. There are certain things that design industry professionals know that they can do in order to increase click-thrus. Why so many designers that work for sponsors don't know the obvious is beyond me, but you have to work with what their designers give you.
When choosing banners, look for size. I don't like 468x60 banners, those are the ones that are very thin, the size of most banner exchange banners. I have found over the years that this size is completely inadequate for adult banners, as it does not allow enough room for a nice looking graphic image AND enough text of a large enough font size to be read easily.
When catering to adult surfers, a banner must catch the eye and be read VERY easily. Sexually excited surfers are looking for a "quick fix" and if they have to strain to read your banner, they're going to skip right over it.
When choosing a banner, I would try to look for one that is at least 80 pixels high, and 100 pixels to 150 pixels is even better. The average size for large banners is 450x100. This size is adequate for what you need.
Some of my favorite banners are the ones at CEN. Their large sized banners are just lovely in terms of being attractive, eye-catching and click-grabbing. I'm just using them as an example, though. There are many programs out there that have nice banners. I just always remember CEN's banners because they follow all the rules I use for making banners myself.
Here are the things I always look for when choosing banners:
Untitled Page
1. Size must be at least 450x100 pixels in size for a standard banner. Odd shaped banners can vary.
2. All images on the banner must be of extremely high quality. When a surfer sees a banner with grainy, fuzzy, blurry or poorly colored pictures on it, they automatically think the images on the site will be of poor quality also. Only crisp, clear, high-resolution pictures are acceptable. This can sometimes be worked around when the site is supposed to be a "true" amateur site, but it is almost always better to have very high quality images as an indicator that the sponsor's images will be quality.
3. The banner cannot be overloaded with text. If it takes you more than 2-3 seconds to read the text on the banner, it's way too much. I like banners with a maximum of 10 words. The text should be clear, easy to read, in a font color that sharply contrasts with the colors in the background so it can easily be read with no difficulty. The text should be in a no-frills font of some sort that can be read without strain and should be large enough to catch the eye quickly.
4. I like to pick banners with a file size under 25k. A lot of people are still using slow modems, 56k is still fairly common. A banner is not effective if the surfer leaves the page before the banner loads!
5. Choose banners with colors like red (which signals sex) and green (which tells people to buy). Purple is another color that seems to do well for adult surfers, as is pink, especially the darker or hotter shades of these colors. Try to stay away from blue. This is a color that tends to make people sad and tired. Do not select banners with a lot of bright neon colors, as this hurts the eyes.
6. Choose banners with animation when possible. Animation has been proven to increase click-thru ratios enormously! It catches the eye and demands attention, and action! But be careful not to choose animation that is so obtrusive that it gets annoying if you look at it for more than a few seconds. Text that changes colors, flashing stars, or a winking girl is a good example.
Contact your click-thru sponsor to find out what is permitted in terms of text above and below banners. Find out if they allow you to put text above and below your banners and if you can be linked to your sponsor or not. Putting some sexy text above and below banners can also dramatically increase your click-thrus and help maintain your signup ratios on an acceptable level.
If the sponsor has approved text links, make use of them! Text links get clicked MUCH more often than banners. Most surfers know that banners are probably going to lead to a paysite, and unless you can give them good text around the banners to encourage them, they probably aren't going to want to visit a paysite.
If there are no pre-approved text links available, e-mail the sponsor and ask if you can make up your own. They will probably either tell you no, or tell you that you can, but that they have to approve them first. If they tell you the latter, try making up some that include something like "$4.95 Trial" or something to let people know in advance that it is a paysite. This will almost always get your links approved.
You're going to have to get A LOT of traffic to make money with click-thrus. These types of programs work well with TGP traffic, unless you have a program that requires a high signup ratio, then you might end up getting kicked out of the program.
To supplement your click-thru income, you can also try putting e-mail box sponsors on your site. These programs will pay you every time someone enters their e-mail address into a box on your site to get a free subscription to their adult newsletter. Look for some other ways like the Join4Free program which pays you every time someone signs up for their FREE site, and other sponsors like this. If you're running click-thru only, you will probably need at least 1 or 2 other sources of income.
If you make the decision to try click-thru, I hope this article will help you make the most of it.