We highly doubt that you came here to view our ad. But there it is, prominently displayed at the very top of the page. In fact it's likely the first thing you saw when you got here (If you missed it, never fear, more are certain to come). You saw it, then you ignored it. Such is the way with online advertising. Every day, all across the internet, millions of websites struggle to get you to click on an ad banner so they can make a few cents to cover bandwidth costs, drive revenue for their new-genius-wonder-site.com, fill in 96,000 square pixels of dead space on the far right of their website, or one of a gazillion other reasons. We are no different, and you probably landed here because you aren't either!
If you came here looking for a bunch of advice on how to make a million dollars with online pay-per-click advertising, then click here (javascript required) to join the club. Tell ten (10) people how you did it, and soon we'll all be rolling in piles of cash! We hold the secret to making tons of dough online, and we are more than willing to give it to you, a complete stanger for no other reason than to make you filthy-stinking-rich! Actually, it's because we really, really like you. And your sister.
Getting clicks is tough work, and it all boils down to traffic. The more people who come to your site, the more likely a random ad banner will catch someone's eye. Even so, there is a fraction of people who will see something worthwhile in an ad banner and take the time to click it. Only then do you cash in. Just think of all the times you have clicked on an advertising banner and apply that to your average user's experience.
Visitors = Impressions = Clicks = DollarsSo, given the basic equation of visitors = impressions = clicks = dollars, how does one go about getting such traffic? The answer to this question is more valuable than the purest water from the fountain of youth served to Sasquatch from the holy grail while standing in the center of El Dorado wearing a coat made from panda fur and reciting the translated last words of Einstein from where they were scrawled upon the back of a 8x10 glossy photograph of JFK's assassin polishing his rifle on the apex of the grassy knoll. Consider the following modifications to our equation above:
Barely any Visitors = hardly any Impressions = Not very many Clicks = No DollarsThe colors are the same, the qualifiers different. So then, what is the best way to acquire these mystical visitors bearing clicks and dollars waiting like suckers to be impressed? How do we best optimize (ick) our websites for their arrival? Does the secret lie with the search engines?
Search Engine Optimization is one of the hottest topics on the web. There's like 80 million websites online dedicated to the topic (seriously, click here). The term Search Engine Optimization (SEO) gets thrown around a lot, and usually by people who have no idea what it means or how to spell it. Generally, when most people drop the SEO acronym, what they really mean to say is that they want to be number one on Google in any category under the sun. Straight from the prize-winning horse's mouth, here's what Google has got to say about Search Engine Optimization:
SEO is an acronym for "search engine optimization" or "search engine optimizer." Deciding to hire an SEO is a big decision that can potentially improve your site and save time, but you can also risk damage to your site and reputation. Make sure to research the potential advantages as well as the damage that an irresponsible SEO can do to your site. (Click here to read full article)
Ever heard the phrase, "Content is King?" Well, in the web world, this is absolutely true. The internet is chock full of information, and some of it is even useful, easy to find, well organized, categorized appropriately, and presented well. For every website producing great content there is a multitude of websites producing lousy content. Think about the sites you visit every day that deliver the news, your favorite blog, vast tracts of encyclopedia content, pictures from your uncle's wedding, books for sale, directions to the mall, free movies and television shows, online poker, game reviews, movie show times, and so forth. It's no accident that the top sites on the internet are dishing out top content, and alexa.com has the charts and graphs to prove it. Just take a look at Alexa's top 25 sites on the internet.
If you have something worth reading, viewing, downloading, playing, or sharing on your website, then people will probably find it, and do just that with it. This is not to say that some degree of marketing, link sharing, blogging, etc. won't be necessary to spread the word about how great your website is to entire eager world. Some of that will be necessary, and it is up to you to spread your marketing budget how you see fit, based on your business model, ability, audience, and so forth. However, keep in mind, that it will be your heroine content (catch phrase stolen from...) that keeps users coming back.
If you are looking to improve your knowledge of online, pay-per-click advertising, then please consider visiting the following useful sites:
| Wikipedia Article on PPC | If you nothing about how Pay per Click (PPC) advertising works, then we recommend you start with this quick introduction. It covers all the basic terms you are going to need to know. |
| How Banner Ads Work | If you're not certain how much real estate you are going to need on that blog-o-your's, then check out this fantastimazing article on 'How Banner Ads Work.' As always, Howstuffworks.com for the win. |
| Google Ad Sense | You're ready to dive in. You've gotten your feet wet with this whole website thing and there's nothing stopping you...Now, where to get some ad banners? Google is a fantastic place to start, because they pretty much do all the work for you. |