Kevin J Timothy

I couldn't agree with you more, miss. To me, the primary focus for banner advertising is to brand; even if it's to just "jam" a logo or tagline in your face. In regards to your MCDs example, as a company they are already established. In fact, they can probably stop advertising for the next decade and still generate revenue. They hold a CHUNK of the global fast food market share. They still, however, deem it necessary to remind the public of their existence. Online banners have the same effect. You may not be relying on them for conversions, but the impression you leave on the public. They work! I know they do because I look at them.

Though I can appreciate the screening tactics you can use from paid sites, I prefer the free offers. Trials seem to work well, and corporations have been doing this for decades. A potential customer does not want to feel cornered into ANY deal. I speak from experience: Google Play, Spotify, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Quickbooks Self-Employed, etc... I almost ALWAYS wanted to test the aforementioned services before purchasing. The customer wants the peace of mind knowing that they can "test drive" the new car. I hate to say it but our culture is uncomfortable with commitment.

Have you considered offline marketing? Also, in terms of social media, do you go all in with Instagram marketing? I believe that in it self is a whole now world. Do you like to write? If so, aside from blogging consider Hubpages. SMS MarketingGuerilla Marketing

I'm not sure if you meant "residual traffic," but if so I believe he's referring to the type of traffic you get from your referrals. Some people focus on referring others to a traffic exchange so that they earn credits. Others don't focus on referring at all; they just surf the exchange.

Do they have the option for geo-targeting?

The first thing you want to consider is investing in an efficient autoresponder. Many may try to convince you that you can build your list without one, but it's the leverage you're after. Now that your autoresponder is situated you need the capture form embedded on a page (capture page). You can create this from scratch or you can use a marketing system that provides you with pre-built capture pages. In terms of follow up emails you have to be careful not to overthink them. They should be short informative emails with personality; like you're communicating with your friend. Early on in the follow up sequence your communication should be every 1-2 days. As weeks progress space your letters out more. I would focus on obtaining a marketing system that will have lead capture pages for you. As you become more experienced you can easily create your own capture pages using Weebly and an autoresponder form.

...and yes, these still work...contrary to popular belief.

The word "best" can be so ambiguous. To each is own. An offline marketing strategy I like to use are Vista Print stamps, Avery labels, and Post-It Notes. This method is very cost effective and has a very residual effect. You can always find good deals on rubber stamps from Vista Print. Of course, get the larger of the two sizes they offer. 1. Order a stamp after you have a dedicated domain pointing to your offer. 2. Obtain labels and Post-It Notes...neon colors, preferably. 3. Take the time to "brand" each note and label. 4. Paste them everywhere reasonable. I know this method works because I have various tracking links associated with each stamp design. I like this method because the stamp is yours forever and it's use is flexible. I especially like this method because the stationary does not cost much. When you're down to your last note/label, shoot over to Office Depot or Walmart and replenish...a few bucks! While you're there get a little bottle of ink if you need more for your stamp. Lastly, I like this method because I have returned to locations months after I have pasted the label or note, and they are still there advertising. To my surprise they seem to withstand the humidity, thunderstorms, and heat of Florida summers very well! Because I track this, I am discovering that this method is generating more traffic than some online strategies I use. THIS blows my mind.

My primary advice to a new affiliate marketer is to focus your advertising for the purposes of lead generation. Also, to develop a resilient (yet flexible) mentality. Mistakes can be discouraging and education evolves. Besides, most likely success will not occur overnight.

For those of you that actually implement Google Analytics with your marketing (tracking), can you share with us some things you like and/or dislike? As in-depth as most of Google's metrics are with this service, I am surprised that many webmasters and small business owners would rather pay a subscription for tracking alternatives. So, please let us know...what are your personal Pros & Cons? Thank you for sharing.

What DOES NOT work with free advertising (or advertising in general) is inconsistency. The free variety is stigmatized because many are not consistent with it. You have to think "slow drips" over time rather than a fully flowing faucet in spurts. Even the Fortune 500 companies realize this...and they have million dollar budgets to run the same ads over and over, and over! Sure, they can wait to reveal their best ads once a year during popular events; but that would be counter-productive. Instead they do that AND they advertise (consistently) the rest of the year. They do it because it works. You want to track your advertising, of course, but consistency is key.

Absolutely! Publish blogs about topics that you know inside and out. Or, at least about topics that you are very passionate about. Each of us have a gift. Each one of us has something that we're great at that another person is terrible at. Besides, just when you begin to think that your expertise (or topic) is obscure, there's at least 100 people on the planet that is searching for more information on it. I have written blogs in the past and didn't even focus on targeting a particular group. I then had those same blogs attract traffic...and I wasn't even trying! Blog away, sir!

Well said. SOTAM is for real, but Affiliate Funnel should be able to set you right up with the best traffic sources. I also like List Surfing and List Jumper for click through rates that are consistently above 4% (for me).

Just a testimony... I began using traffic exchanges in 2009 to innocently promote a blog that I had at the time. I can now chuckle at my ignorance to internet marketing back then. SMH Anyhow, the first one I joined was Easy Hits 4 U as I was drawn in by all the boasting I saw online about them having the largest membership base. They still do, I believe. Do not get me confused as it was (and still is) a reputable traffic exchange. It's fun to use and the interface is simple. But... Several years later (2015) I was introduced to Traffic Ad Bar. I joined, of course, but my first impression of it was sheer confusion! At the time the interface just blew my mind. Regretfully I was turned off as a result and did not use my account for about 15 months. I was led back to TAB by a sponsor of mine, and I am SO grateful that I was far more patient the second time around. Folks, believe me when I say that taking the time to understand it is worth the committment. Though its member base may not be as large as Easy Hits 4 U, I have found that TAB provides me with not just good traffic - but conversions. In fact, I seem to get more conversions from TAB than EH4U. Compared to Easy Hits 4 U you won't find the "bells and whistles" and all the prizes, but if quality leads is what you're after at least consider Traffic Ad Bar. The day the admin at TAB adds the option for geo-targeting member's ads I believe it can surpass EH4U in popularity. The bar concept is brilliant and the ladder keeps members engaged. If you do decide to get in on TAB my advice would be to take time in creating your ad copy as opposed to simply throwing some words together. Also, take your grammar and punctuation seriously. Unlike many other traffic exchanges that simply shows a webpage to a viewer unsuspecting of your ad, TAB at least gives the viewer the option to choose the ad (webpage) they look at. ...a very efficient concept.

Lorrie, I don't blame you. I use it each day also!

Sir, my suggestion would be to become active in TAB as soon as you can. Ya...it works.

Candi, Is it safe to assume that you stay far away from the many contrived (and scripted) attempts at "getting to know" fellow entrepreneurs on Facebook? I find that after joining groups you suddenly will receive an avalanche of bland and obviously scripted verbiage from other small business owners. It defeats the purpose of social networking. I have joined groups only to be pounced on; and it quickly became obvious that few people had a genuine interest in actually getting to know you - the person. MANY social media marketers see you as a statistic..or a dollar sign, even. It's a major turn off as they make it clear that they are not after building the relationship. It's easy to tell by just examining the dialogue.

Can you please elaborate, Davidweb09? I think that many people that will see this can deduce that. Social media really can be a good source of traffic....including IG. Do you mind disclosing some logistics?

I've been tracking the potential (and futility) of a wide variety of mailers as shown in the following screenshot. Many used to be on this list then I stopped using them due to several factors; CTR, customer service, technical bugs, user friendliness. Achiever actually used to be on this list, and I liked them a lot, then CTR gradually began to dip over time. I consistently track this and will update (and share) periodically with others on my teams. Mailers work great, but I find that it's best to keep a good core of them in use rather than tens and tens of them. There are only 24 hours in a day and this is not my only form of marketing.

Of this list I have used Bweeble and List Auction. BOTH have given me unsatisfactory results. The latter of the two is not very user friendly and the click through rates are horrendous. I never use lengthy ad copy and never promote graphic-heavy pages; only those that "pop." Yes...I focus a lot on email subject lines. Bweeble will get you slightly better CTR but nothing worth my time. I have many other mailers that I routinely get impressive CTR from.

SimplyGenius makes a valid point. I have come to the conclusion that Zuckerburgh and his empire only passionately cares about their shareholders. I recently learned a valuable lesson when it comes to paid advertising with Facebook. I thank God that it only cost me $30 USD. In early September I launched a page and ran an ad simply for exposure (Likes). I set the ad to run for 30 days as I was experimenting on a campaign. I meticulously set up all the proper demographics and had a set amount of countries that I was targeting. The United States and Canada was not part of this group. I only chose a $1 daily budget since I was testing. During the 30 days I was obtaining a fairly good daily average of likes from all over the world. At the end of the 30 days I added the US and Canada and removed the original countries that I started with. I then re-submitted the ad....the VERY same ad and details. The only thing I changed were the targeted countries. Within a half hour I get a message stating that the ad was rejected. My first thought was, "These foul jokers!" It was okay to submit the ad (prior to taking the money) but the same ad was rejected 30 days later. I don't have time for the skull duggery going on over at Facebook Business. I'm just so grateful that there are other methods - many more. Unfortunately, many people like to give the impression that social media marketing (particularly Facebook) is the only way to go. A complete and utter fallacy. PS... What I find ironic is that to this day they have the gall to send me marketing messages encouraging me to "boost a post" from the SAME page I was trying to promote for likes in the first place.

That's okay...just focus on a different form of advertising. Don't let FB rob you of your joy.

How Important To You is Geo-Targeting? Is this really a feature you look for in a traffic exchange? If so, please share in what ways it affects your marketing strategies or businesses? Thank you.