Back to using CrispAds
by Sapphire (February 6, 2006)
I’m using CrispAds again, and liking what I see. The keyword system is still confusing to me, and I’m not sure I’m using it to my best advantage. But the ads they’re giving me - mostly graphical, since I chose the option that gives text ads or graphical - are good. Are they relevant to my site? Not really - I deliberately chose keywords that capture a lot of varied interests my audience might have, rather than keywords that represent exactly what the site is about. So CrispAds is sending me ads that are relevant to my audience, not my site, and I’m happy with that.
This is all just my crackpot theory, of course. Having looked into my crystal ball, I predict that the TV model of advertising is starting to fail TV, now that even non-techies have a number of ways to watch shows without seeing a single commercial. TV’s going to have to find new ways to operate… but the net is ripe for the old TV advertising model: stick ads on sites, then collect tons of tracking data to figure out how to maximize sales from those ads. It’s even possible some TV advertisers will move their marketing to the web rather than try to sort out the changes in TV. After all, the web is one of the major reasons TV advertising isn’t as powerful as it used to be.
The current net model is AdSense - people search for iPods, give them ads for iPods. It seems so simple, and it works to an extent. But there’s a simple problem: the more people build sites just to rack up AdSense clicks, the less relevant AdSense is going to be. The model for longevity - particularly on sites that don’t have top, short-tail keywords - is the old TV model.
CrispAds is delivering ads for the keywords I chose, and already it’s performing better than relevant keyword ads have done on that particular site. Now, ideally, I’d spend thousands of dollars to find out exactly what my particular audience wants, and make sure that’s what they see ads for - just like in TV. But until that day comes, I’m happy with what CrispAds is sending me.
Posted in Ad Networks
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August 23rd, 2006 at 5:34 pm
Great post.
I think you are right about the continuous decline in the effectiveness of the TV ad model – and I see that eventual progression in the AdSense market as well.
People will click on AdSense ads for a while, but like TV, billboards, and banner ads, people will eventually block them out. When they start doing this, AdSense will have to dramatically change the way their ads look and work to remain effective.
This is why I see the most talented online marketers spending the majority of their time working with quality affiliate programs rather than building AdSense sites. Affiliate programs offer you a direct conversion goal, a reason to move a person into the sales funnel, and a greater chance of solving your visitor’s problems.
My 2 cents.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:35 pm
I’ve been rather hit or miss with CrispAds - but it could be the type of site I had been posting those ads on. I think if you have a business related site there might be more relevant ads available through them. I tried it on my MP3 site - and I was really disappointed. I got a lot of default ads that no one clicked - and so I went back to Google… which was paying very little per click. I’m currently looking into AdBrite for that site…maybe. LOL.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:35 pm
James, I definitely agree that affiliate marketing - despite its problems - beats AdSense hands down. Nothing wrong with using AdSense to bring in some additional revenue, but as a main income stream, I wouldn’t consider PPC.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:35 pm
Empress, AdBrite could be your solution - I’m pleased with it overall. It does relatively well on all my sites - except the one that CrispAds is performing better on. But that site has been VERY tough to monetize. It’s the one I started as a hobby, and it’s very niche - about an issue as opposed to a product - which is probably why it needs a totally different approach than any of my other sites.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:37 pm
TV ads are definitely diminishing. Internet ads will be much larger in the long run. I totally agree that Adsense will be growing very fast since it actually give the searcher a very specific ads he is looking for. But major company I believe will still focus on TV ads, and since small companies cannot afford TV ads, they will advertise heavily on internet Ads.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:37 pm
I almost thought your website had been hi-jacked by someone else. Until I actually read what was on the top of the page (duh!). You’ve gone interstitial! I was wondering if you’ve found a decline of viewers on your site - or an increase in clicks… I’m debating on whether or not to use them on a few of my sites as well.
August 23rd, 2006 at 5:38 pm
Am just about to write an article on it.