"support our site by buying from our sponsors"

does that work?

[rfung]

"buy this item from amazon.com"

vs

"support our site by buying this item from amazon.com"

which one would work better? anyone has any experience with "support us" advertising?

[TrustNo1]

I like the first one better. Asking for support seems needy. Sometimes i see sites that ask for support and the impression i get is they're on their last leg or something. Also lacking in confidence.

[Automan Empire]

If the site was some kind of tight-knit community like a forum, or an advocacy site, or something to give the user a strong connection to the site, it might help.
If it's just another run-of-the-web one page aff site that is not particularly compelling, it will probably hurt.

[brickwall]

I run a school alumni community website (tightly-knit community). I have CPC ads that are doing so-and-so. When I added a nice little graphic along side my cpc banners saying "why we have ads" that link to a page explaining "why we have ads", my CTR grew by about 300%. So far my advertisers doesn't seem to consider what I did as "offering an incentive to click" because they are not sounding off. Maybe sometimes, being honest about it will work.

I wouldn't dare do this on a non-community site though.

[teenwolf]

Have you ever bought anything from a "support our site" link? I haven't and I don't think people trust those type of links, generally speaking.

[Teshka]

I wouldn't bother with either. Write content that instills readers with the desire to buy a thing, then just put a link to the thing at the bottom. In general, people buy things because they want to buy things, not because they care about you or your site.

(Today's post was brought to you by the word "thing." Thank you.)

[eyeinthesky]

Actually, nobody cares about anything but themself. Why should they support your site? What's in it for them?

I think people would rather support themselves :)

[Michael Anthony]

"Actually, nobody cares about anything but themself"

Actually, unless you've personally interviewed everyone in the world, this statement is just utter rubbish. How would charities exist? Parents? Teachers? Friends?

With this attitude, there's not much point being at a forum, where the idea is to help others in return for help from them.

And for what it's worth, I think that "help me I'm desperate" is what the "support our site" link says to me. There's also the implication that these links may not offer the best value as their purpose is just to support the site rather than offer anything of value to the user.

Maybe a better option would be "We recommend xyz.com as their rates are great and many of our members have been delighted with their service" or similar positive comment.

[hunderdown]

And adding on to what Michael Anthony said, I run an informational site, with affiliate links in appropriate places--if I've reviewed a book that people might want, I just have the link.

But there is also a section of the site for the "community" -- the frequent visitors who want to see the site continue. In there, I explain my affiliate relationships and have a page with easy-to-use links to all the companies I affiliate with, and search boxes if available. The regulars know they can go there if they want to buy something online, and the one-time visitors most likely never see it.

[webmastertexas]

I tried that "support the site" link for a few hours, but after seeing it a few times on the site, I got rid of it. I couldn't stand it. It sounded so...desperate.

[futuresky]

The "support this site" type of thing has always seemed a bit like begging to me. As such, I'd be fearful that it may breach some networks or advertiser's terms and conditions. Just go for the straight "buy this item from comanyname.com" - you'll probably end up getting more respect from your visitors (and therefore sales) than if they think your begging them.

[eyeinthesky]

Actually, unless you've personally interviewed everyone in the world, this statement is just utter rubbish. How would charities exist? Parents? Teachers? Friends?

You've just taken this statement out of context :) This website is obviously not a charity website.

What I'm saying is people are basically selfish and they look for what's in it for them, whether consciously or sub-conscously - at least when shopping for stuffs.

Would anyone buy your widget because they feel like they want to help you grow your online biz?

[Teshka]

Even people who donate to charities do it to feel good about themselves. Helping other people doesn't really have anything to do with other people. Convince your readership that there's something in it for them (even if it's just the continuation of a site where they've developed relationships with other members), and that's how you'll make money.