Current advertiser & rate change?

[Celicaphile]

I'm not sure about how to handle this... I have a current advertiser who signed on for a year back when the site started. Since then I've raised the rates and his year is almost up... Do you think I should charge him the current price or grandfather him in at the old rate & thank him for what he's done for the site?

[Drastic]

I'd probably be leaning towards the old rate for renewal. Is it a huge difference?

[shri]

A lot depends on your relationship with the advertiser.

We have a couple where they have been told upfront that rates will increase with the value and traffic that we drive to them. They're ok with it.

It is very critical for you to understand how much value is delivered and seriously position it with the advertiser. If this is someone you can take to lunch and talk to in person ... do it.

In one case, we know that the presence of this particular advertiser adds a LOT to our website -- an example would be say you have a banking website and have citibank advertising on it. In this case, where the advertiser delivers value and prestige to the site, we don't mess with the equation. ( In my case, I know the presense of this particular advertiser has given me the ability to set much higher rates for others...)

Bottom line, do not be afraid to change rates. Everyone does it. Think in terms of how the advertiser prices his services or products (if they're any good.. their rates have not stayed the same over the years / months / seasons).

[brashquido]

I think you've really hit the nail on the head there shri. Personally I am really having trouble getting a grasp on exactly what worth an advertiser is drawing from their ads on my site. I mean I can see all the details from my side such as CTR, time of day, country, etc on a per banner/advertiser basis, but (as far as I know) I cannot with the information I have determine what value (I'm talking $$ value) these reffered visitors have once they leave my site.

Sorry for hijacking thread :-)

[Celicaphile]

The more I thought about it, the easier it got... By paying for a year up front, they're already getting two months free. The yearly rate has gone up $100 over the past year. It would seem that I'm missing out on around a couple hundred bucks, but what made my decision easy is that he provides prizes for raffles through the forums. That right there makes my site sticky, while giving us both a great reputation. He's also active on the forums and is around to answer questions about products.. So, I let him know that the rates went up, but am still going to charge him the original rate, and of course thanked him for his support.
Thanks for the responses! :)

[shri]

Thats the type of advertiser you call up and say "how can I help you grow your business". Come up with a couple of new ideas and he'll be happy to pay you. You know its working for him when he spends time and money on your site.

Think beyond banners.

If you run a forum site, sell space on email notifications that go out when people register / reply to threads etc.

[Celicaphile]

The registration email suggestion a good idea, but I'd think they'd ask what about those who are already registered? Banners aren't the only thing available to advertisers, but I'm always looking for more to offer :)

[shri]

>> what about those who are already registered?

Are you using a forum software that sends out messages like "Someone has replied to your post on blah blah".

Stick a sponsor or an affiliate link in there.

[Celicaphile]

oh, right, good point... what would you charge for something like that? How would you set it up since you can't randomize those ads & I probably wouldn't want more than one or two per ad. So, if I did do it, and had 5 companies wanting their ads in the emails, I'd have to turn some down I guess...

[shri]

>> what would you charge for something like that?

You can either create a seperate "Email Sponsorship" package. Take into account how many emails go out a month, come up with some $ figures and then divide that by the number of sponsors you want.

OR

Increase the rates of your advertising packages and throw in an additional service.

Like I said.. if you run a close knit community, talk to your advertiser(s).