Start Your Own Pay-Per-Click Program
By Tim Mathes ©2000 All Rights Reserved
If you are selling ANYTHING on the web these days, or have joined a few affiliate/associate programs, you know how hard and expensive it can be to get traffic to your wonderful web site. That's why we started our own Pay-Per-Click Program at cfu2000.com. And the hits keep pouring in!
What is a Pay-Per-Click Program? These programs allow Webmasters to open a free account and receive payment for surfers that they send to your web site. The beauty of starting your own program is that you are paying only for targeted clickthrus, not impressions or number of subscribers. And YOU decide how much each click costs. This can generate hits for a long time. And everybody wins, you get targeted traffic for your advertising dollar, your affiliates get cash!
Don't be afraid to start a Pay-Per-Click program if all you have are affiliate links on your site. The more traffic you get, the greater the chances that someone will click on your affiliate links and purchase a product or service from the company you are affiliated with.
The following is an overview of starting your own Pay-Per-Click Program. You may see our program in action at any time by clicking on the link below:
http://www.cfu2000.com/superclix/index.html?ppcart1. Get tracking software
First you need software to run your program. We chose a sophisticated CGI program that would utilize the mysql database feature of our web hosting company.
I know, this sounds complicated, but it's really not. There are many resources where you can find inexpensive or even free tracking systems.
Try CGI-Resources for starters;
http://www.cgi-resources.com .Their directory has thousands of scripts. If you have ever set up a CGI script on your web site before, you can set up these tracking scripts. Most come with instructions/support to help you get things set up and working correctly.
We paid $99 for access to the SuperclixPro software that we use from Drew Star's Superscripts; http://www.superscripts.com . You could spend much more running a single email ad that could show hits for only a few days. Your program will continue until you decide to stop.
2. Create banners/buttons
Once you have your chosen software up and running, you need to create banners and/or buttons for your affiliates to use. You can get evaluation software of many top notch graphics programs if you don't have one that can create .gif or .jpg images. We use PaintShop Pro 6; a wonderful graphics program that has the ability to create animated graphics as well. They offer a 30-day evaluation period so you can see if it meets your needs. Check this one out at http://www.jasc.com .
Create banners and buttons in the standard sizes (468x60, 125x125, 120x90, 120x60, and 88x31) for your affiliates to use. If you make a banner that YOU like and would click on, your affiliates should like them too. One note, the use of the words "Click Here" somewhere on your banner seems to make clickthru ratios MUCH higher.
3. List your program
Now that you have your tracking software working and wonderful banners available, you need to get listed with associate/affiliate program directories. There are services that will do this for you for about $80 (US) or you can do it yourself. This will take you a few hours, but can save money at the same time.
A listing of the top 30 or so directories, with links to each, can be found at http://www.danex-exm.dk/guides.htm . Don't be afraid to make your program sound GREAT when listing in the directories. The better is sounds, the more sign-ups, just don't lie or over exaggerate or you may not get listed at all. And many of the directories list new programs on their home page, getting you instant affiliates! And don't over look a simple "Join Our Free Affiliate Program" link on every page of your website.
4. On going maintenance
Once you get affiliates/associates working for you, you need to keep them motivated. Every now and then email your affiliates and let them know that you have made new banners available, or write some newsletter ads or text links or classified ads that they can use and let them know how to access them. This will get them going again, plus give your website a few more hits that could result in direct sales to your affiliates.
Pay-Per-Click Programs are NOT just for the big boys. No matter if your website is one page or a hundred these programs can work! Give a Pay-Per-Click Program a try on your web site. It is a VERY popular feature for Webmasters who are looking for income generating programs and will keep the new hits coming and those valuable advertising dollars working! Be fair and honest with your affiliates and they will work for you for years to come!
TIM MATHES is the Webmaster of CreditForYou2000 - Your One Stop Credit Shop with Credit Cards, Loans, Debt Help, eCommerce Solutions and Online Bill Payment Options for EVERYONE. http://www.cfu2000.com . Join our FREE Pay-Per-Click Program at: http://www.cfu2000.com/superclix/index.html?ppcart Questions? Contact Tim at mailto:webmaster@cfu2000.com [an error occurred while processing this directive]