Tired of the G-domination? Duck around the mighty Google machine by selling ads directly (let's fact it: a TON of work) or allowing another company do the heavy lifting.
A display advert is, well, a big, pretty graphic one, as opposed to the "listing" style familiar from classified. Adsense lets you select either style (or both).
A few middle-man options:
*AdBrite serves nearly one billion pages daily, placing top brands like GM, Verizon and AT&T. Multimedia formats can take advantage of photos and video clips.
*BlogAds, a pioneer in the field, matches advertisers and bloggers. Small companies or individuals can choose your site, then you can agree or pass, depending on your convictions. Here, you can see how that works with wonderful transparency. Of course, we're talking about a range from a $18,000 top-right space in Perezhilton.com, a sport high on the bell curve's end, to a $20 spot in CrochetDude.
*Commission Junction can pipe in ads from HP, Expedia, Yahoo, Dell , Staples, Home Deport and other heavyweights. Each publisher – blogger in this case – receives an EPC rating (earnings per 100 clicks). This shows how effectively they translate leads into sales.
Linkshare and Clickbank are two other options worth exploring.
You'll also see the term "conversion rate" bandied about: again, this measures the percentage of visitors who take a desire action, like a purchase, filling in a form or dancing like a funky hamster.
OK, I made the last one up. But you try writing about "freeconomics" all day without your brain leaking out your nose...
Can I use AdSense and another service?
Yes. You're the boss, remember? Next question.
What if someone approaches me about a bespoke ad?
You can insert code via Settings>Page Elements>Add a Gadget>hml/javascript. But remember to consider the whole process, when setting your fee. You need to act as a designer, fitting the advert to your layout; as an accountant, issuing the invoice and chasing it, if necessary; as a content manager, taking down/refreshing the ad, according to the contract, and finally as a webmaster, monitoring statistics upon it, should the company request this intel. Products like AdReady can centralize much of that process.
For the self-sufficient, sometimes an offer can simply be too small. A company recently approached the Greece, A Love Story site about an inch-square $30/year advert. That pays for about a half-hour of my time. As it would take longer to publish and collect the cash, I demurred. Especially as the book is co-authored and shared income, like award cash, typically donated to charities...
But I'd rather have ads *I designed* on the site than generic ones. I want to build sponsor links directly!
Hard-core DIY! Check out these links on designing good online display ads and banners, which advocate:
- simplicity, a quick "read", a call to action, minimal video cycles and quick loading
- details on standard graphic and animation formats from a singularly ugly website
- the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) ad-unit guidelines for consistent sizing
- ImpactEngine's net-based software for creating Flash Ads easily
- Google's AdWord tutorial about choosing keywords and creating click-through ads
- More resources on WebsiteTips.com
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