I Need More Ads
Martin (the guy who refers to me as an idiot, which I almost wrote about, but then I got sidetracked by running two idiot Networks with my idiot brains) links up this article by Connie Berg on websites adding more and more ads to their sites.
*Sidenote: Maybe it’s just in this community, but does anybody else get the feeling that when people harp on Adsense and Chitika they are talking about Darren and his sites? I think I just read too many sites that link to each other nowadays.
So the dilemma Connie brings up is why a lot of sites are “using” their audience to make more money by placing more ads on their sites. I have written about this a couple of times that most people simply believe to make more money you need more ads up on a site. I have found that in many cases less options has equalled more clicks for my sites. Of course a lot of this depends on the site and the topic, but in general nobody likes a cluttered website although people still go to them (ask Chris Pirillo).
If the site is popular readers will continue to go to the site until the content starts to drop off, not when more ads start appearing. Unless of course you are talking about interstitials or popups. Sure the ones who don’t like all the ads will voice their opinions, but usually those are such a small minority that they will not effect the bottomline anyways.
I am finding that my problem is trying to make more money while also keep sites enjoyable for both myself and my readers. Most people who make great money on the web talk about providing a quality experience for their readers, but really it is anything but that. Content starts to look like ads and ads start to take up more space. Content also starts to become excerpts from other entries without a single opinion from the site.
I know almost every shady trick in the book to making money online, yet I can never apply them. It bothers me that people say they respect one thing and show love for the people that go against everything they respect in the industry.
I don’t want more ads. I want more money like everyone else, but I don’t want that to get in the way of getting more readers, more traffic and more respect. Even if you do think I am an idiot. And as for Connie’s article, I find it interesting that she even published it considering it’s tough to read any content on a site with flashing ads littering the page…
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POSTED IN: Online Money
16 opinions for I Need More Ads
Jennifer Grucza
Nov 15, 2005 at 3:57 pm
Haha, yeah you’re right, her article is on a page littered with glaring, obnoxious ads. But I guess it’s not her site, from the looks of it, so she probably has no control over that. It’s still funny, though.
And I think your main point is right. Take a look at dooce. I hate all the ads she has added and think they make the site ugly (she always has such nice designs, too), but that’s not stopping me from reading it, and I’m sure it’s not stopping many other people, either.
Scrivs
Nov 15, 2005 at 4:00 pm
Funny you mention Dooce because I was going to bring her up as an example, considering the minor uproar her readers had when she changed the design to include more ads. However, how can you fault her for using the traffic to make more money. Only thing I fault her for though is still having donation links up there. No need for those.
Jennifer Grucza
Nov 15, 2005 at 4:16 pm
Hmm, I hadn’t even noticed those links because I’m doing my best not to let my eyes stray from the middle of the page!
I wonder how much of a click-through rate she gets. But if she manages to make decent money from it, I guess I can’t really fault her for it. I wonder if she’s done tests on the number and position of ads.
Scrivs
Nov 15, 2005 at 4:20 pm
Well it looks as though she has less BlogAds ads up there so I am guessing the CTR wasn’t that good on those ads and the companies withdrew them. With the amount of traffic she gets though there is no reason she can’t make a decent living from that site without ruining things for her readers. I just think people got caught offguard since she went from some Google Ads to 5 different type of ads overnight.
Rhys
Nov 15, 2005 at 6:32 pm
tell all the dirty tricks and expose the people that use them. That would be cool. ;)
Connie Berg
Nov 15, 2005 at 10:00 pm
Actually, I just write for Revenews, I have no control over the site. Although I have complained several times about the layout and how hard it is to read.
If you look at my real site, you won’t see tons of ads anywhere.
Mike
Nov 15, 2005 at 11:16 pm
Hey Scrivs,
I’m interested in why you think ‘Donation’ buttons are bad. They’re the least obtrusive of all the ads/links on the site.
That’s the first time I’ve ever seen the site and I wasn’t bothered by the ads.
Was actually a pretty clean site, IMO.
Jim Kukral
Nov 15, 2005 at 11:29 pm
Blame me, not Connie. I’m the publisher at ReveNews. Connie has no control over the site design or ads displayed.
I think you all completely missed the point of Connie’s piece. She was specially talking about blogs that are made “just for ads”. You know, for people who just throw up content just for the ads?
Problogger (my good friend) doesn’t do that or promote that. Neither does any other real blogger or network that I know of.
I really don’t understand why you’re bashing Connie, she agrees with you.
Scrivs
Nov 16, 2005 at 12:39 am
Um, I never bashed Connie. I agreed with Connie actually unless what I wrote is something completely different than what I checked last. And for certain people who don’t do that? I guess we would just have to look at the specific definition of creating blogs just for ads.
Mike: I don’t like donation buttons on a site that is obviously doing just fine with ads. It’s like saying visit my site, click my ads, and throw some money in the jar while you are at it.
Scrivs
Nov 16, 2005 at 12:42 am
Just to harp on Darren cuz I love him, Jim do you think he created the Pedometer log because he liked walking or because he figured it would be good for Adsense?
Darren
Nov 16, 2005 at 3:43 am
clarification - Darren didn’t create Pedometer log for any reason - it’s not his blog in fact but owned and run (not for some time now) but another blogger. I have no ownership or part in any income derived from it except that i co-own the domain.
Scrivs
Nov 16, 2005 at 5:36 am
clarification - I hope Darren never talks in 3rd person again because it is really, really weird and confuses and non-sober Scrivs at 4:30am.
Mike
Nov 16, 2005 at 9:22 am
Scrivs,
I’m not sure why you don’t like ‘em..I think it’s just a personal preference of yours. Not sure you can find any facts that’ll say they’re any worse than any other $$$ making device.
If you go by a bar, so you can get unsobered enough to stand reading third person comments ( sorry D…couldn’t resist ) and Billy Joel’s playing his third set of Pianoman and you look at his tip jar, it’s full so obviously he’s doing well, does that automatically make you unable to donate to his tip jar ?
IMO a freakin’ tip jar makes it easier for me to compensate someone for a great lesson they just taught me. Better than if I clicked an ad, which I’m not in the habit of doing, and split an unknown amount of revenue with the blogger and their ad supplier, who did diddly squat to make my experience a positive one.
We will agree, I’m sure that we disagree, but I’ll still let you buy the first Ginger Ale.
I think I’ll go get one of those ” Buy-Mike-A-Coffee’ scripts for my blogs…just so you can buy my next latte.
Maybe you can bash me and send me a lot of traffic. I wouldn’t mind ! I’ll take free traffic any day !
If you do, I’ll buy you a latte !
Darren
Nov 16, 2005 at 10:16 am
Darren is thinking of writing all his blogs in the third person from this point forward to confuse drunk bloggers everywhere.
Scrivs
Nov 16, 2005 at 12:57 pm
Mike,
If Billy Joel is playing and making money just through a tip jar that is one thing, if he is playing with sponsors plastered all over his outfit like a Nascar mobile and also using a tip jar then it is something else. That is my point. I am not against using donations when that is the only form of making money (Kottke for example), but using them and then plastering your site with ads seems like an insult to your readers to me.
Mike
Nov 16, 2005 at 9:51 pm
Rather than insulted, I feel liberated at being able to donate the exact amount I want, if I so choose, to a given blogger.
Even if they are nowhere to be found, but somewhere in a third person. Or a third world person.
Surely neither one of us is right. I see no Blog Police badges on either of us.
It’s the right/preference of the blogger…our only right is to boycott…not bash, deride or call out.
That’s for the little people, not the great one’s like you and I.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some showering to do before I go back to cleaning up after the tornado again at daylight. ( See my blog for explanation )
Gimme a day or three and I’ll discuss more earth shattering issues with you guys.
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