Forum Moderators: skibum
However despite our sites traffic doubling in the past 4 months(we have also more than doubled our unique vistors through the affiliates) as wev'e improved the presentaion etc our income has gone down or stayed the same at best.. Right now we are making practically nothing from it. Maybe its the time of year?
We have been approved to run google adsense but I am reluctant to use it as its giving away traffic and I just can't find any info on how much it makes.
Any advice -should we give up trying to make money from it?
CompWorld
I believe it definitely does depend on what you offer.
We have been approved to run google adsense but I am reluctant to use it as its giving away traffic
What have you got to lose? You are sending away visitors with the affiliate program and rarely getting anything in return. I would try AdSense and test more affiliate programs (and creatives/placements) because results can vary dramatically.
How to make a site pay?
Kidnap its daughter and hold her for ransom. ;)
You won't find hard numbers on Adsense income. Google does not want that discussed. However, you really have nothing to lose by trying Adsense. Play with it, give it a fair trial, and if it fails to perform give them the boot.
Most of the mainstream affiliate programs do not seem to convert as well anymore so it is worth experimenting.
It can work very well for certain market or product types, depending on whether site visitors are generally the type who are in a buying mode when they're out looking.
mainstream affiliate programs do not seem to convert as well anymore
It might be worth looking for merchants outside the big affiliate networks who sell relevant products, because sometimes their links haven't been targeted yet.
Ad blockers cause a different kind of damage, but they are at least as big a problem for affiliate marketing as the parasite programs that overwrite links.
Trying to go from Free to fee is Internet suicide.
What makes you say this? It flies directly in the face of everything I've learned from experience.
From the description of your site, it sounds as if you get a lot of repeat visitors. After a while, these visitors will not even notice your ads if they never change. This could be another factor in the declining income. A lot of people have become banner blind even without using ad blocker software.
Increase your affiliate income by doing reviews of the products or services offered.
Diversify. If possible, find multiple sources of income for your site.
Check theres no under hand rubbish being pulled.
Thing is we are a travel site and it is a perfect fit .We were doing OK but its dropped off in the last few weeks-may be a seasonal thing?. The stats show we are getting more people than ever (for us) in to their system though. It doesn't rely on pop ups or anything like that just an affiliate ID.
Thanks
Other wise than that I think all cj links are useless. I have a newish site and it was doing ok and now nothing at all. All my links come from cj and I am working feverishly to find replacements.
So what about all the SBI theme sites that are being developed by thousands of people using affiliate links?
Have you seen Rosllind Gardner's newsletter today? She is having the same problems - big time.
Thanks
A couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd add some diversity with some CJ advertisers. So far, I've made 2 sales totaling a whopping US$18.
Before I give up on CJ affiliates, I'd like some feedback. Is this consistent with your experience, or did I just select the wrong affiliate programs?
BTW, I hope this isn't too far off the topic.
A couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd add some diversity with some CJ advertisers. So far, I've made 2 sales totaling a whopping US$18.
That is not my experience at all. At 1 sale a week you are doing quite well! CJ.com sales for me were like pulling teeth. I finally found something that converted well, and the company stopped selling the product a month later. My CJ.com account had just been canceled (by CJ.)
That being said, I know not everyone here has had that experience...I may have picked poor programs too.
That way (a) your site stays fresh and novel, and (b) you will get better and better at optimizing your site.
I think the decline in revenue is simply due to visitor fatigue. You need to keep looking for new programs to evaluate, and keep changing the wording and format of your existing affiliate links.
The site's topic will have a lot to do with this.
Let's say you're running a community site where the same people come back day after day. Visitor fatigue may indeed be a problem.
On the other hand, if you're running a Timbuktu travel-planning site, most visitors are likely to be newcomers who are looking for ways to spend money on a trip to Timbuktu. So, for that audience, visitor fatigue is a non-issue.
Even where visitor fatigue may seem to be a problem, it may not be as big an issue as you might think. Let's say you run a site on amateur radio. You always run the same affiliate links for transceivers, antennas, etc. You regular readers may tune out those affiliate listings most of the time, but when they're in the market for a new transceiver or a new antenna, they may very well click those affiliate links and order a big-ticket item that can generate a substantial commission. Or maybe you've got a dog breeders' site with an affiliate link for a pet-supplies company. The average regular visitor may not use that affiliate link very often, but when a breeder needs another shipment of puppy kibble or a whelping pen, there's a good chance that she'll click that affiliate link if it's always there on your site. The only way to know whether visitor fatigue is a problem is to learn through trial and error.
