Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Hello folks

So  what does everyone here think about advertising on Popular message boards and forums (usually with more than a million views a month)? I have been to quite a few where they offer advertising to pretty much anyone, based on the amount of time it will stay visible (without any rotation). Sounds like a good idea, but wanted to get everyones input on it. Has anyone else ever done it? Did you notice any change in sales after advertising?



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Be extraordinarily careful to check out how their advertising model works and that you`re not falling in with some "guerilla" organization that`s going to spam the forums in the name of advertising.  Putting up actual advertisements in dedicated ad space is one thing, but flooding the forums themselves with advertisements will usually invoke the fury of that community very quickly.



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Personal: http://www.morinfamily.com/blog
Geeky: http://duanesbrain.blogspot.com
Shakespeare: http://suchshakespearestuff.blogspot.com

Well actually its not Spam advertising. They allow you to put up Banner Ads without any rotation on a visible position in the site. A forum owner I talked to said he charges for a duration of time (like a week or a month). They have some ads on their site, but he doesn`t have statistics on how many clicks they have gotten. Its a bit of a gamble I would have to say.

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Subscribe to my Small Business Blog: http://screwloosebusiness.com

Our mastermind organization started doing a lot of advertising online and we got a lot of clicks.  In about a three month period we spend around 10k on advertising.  We never got one phone call, I personally believe most of it was click fraud but I couldn`t prove it. 

Since then we have stop all online advertising, even with the online yellow pages, etc.  Our website traffic has continued to double every month. 

If you are going to spend the month I would do it with an SEO or buy hiring someone to add content to your website.  Just my personal experience.


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Erik
www.usspin.com
www.unitedbusinessalliance.com

Well actually theres not much chance for fraud on the site i want to advertise on as its not pay-per-click. Instead it will just stay on top of the site for a week or month.

BTW, I agree with you on the SEO`s, perhaps the best way to attract traffic. I was thinking about Googles pay-per-click but took into consideration that click fraud happens alot. Would just be a waste of money. 

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Subscribe to my Small Business Blog: http://screwloosebusiness.com

Cool forum! This is my first post here. I market to forums like Warrior forum using a WSO(Warrior Special Offer) This gives other forum emembers a chance to make some cash marketing my products for me. This is mainly how I advertise.

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http://www.iproductcreation.com

I think online advertising is like any advertising, it`s not how much or how big but where and repetitive.  I`ve had some good success on a limited budget with online ads, both PPC and placement, but it has been because I`ve been very focused.

My organization is not B2C, but what I would do is think about the forums and see if the people there are decision makers for your product or service.  Millions of hits (you want to actually look at unique visitors, not hits or page views to evaluate ad worth) are great, but I`d rather be in front of 10 people who actually may buy my service than 1000 who I have no information on.

If you can ascertain they are your target and the price is right, it`s worth a shot.  Nothing risked, nothing gained.

Just continually watch your conversion ratio- don`t spend $3 for a $3 sale, make sure your product offerings are wide enough so that you can make additional sales form ancillary products, and make sure your user experience is painless (if not excellent).  At least that`s my 2 cents, from my experience.  Hope it helps.


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"It`s not work, it`s network!"

Portage Media Solutions
http://www.portagemedia.com
My Blog: http://www.interactivemediatips.com

This thread made me realize that I completely block out ads and banners on forums - and on content oriented web sites. In eight years online visiting forums I don`t think I`ve ever clicked through on any such ads.  I guess it`s just not the way I shop for services or products...

As a designer, with an educational and professional background in advertising, well-designed advertising that successfully communicates a message does catch my attention.  To me, most advertising is just "visual noise" that is easily ignored.

- J.






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Jeff Fisher | Jeff Fisher LogoMotives | Tweet! Tweet!

http://www.supertips.com/forums

here`s a free forum advertising strategy ebook for you all.


enjoy!


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http://www.iproductcreation.com

I have never bought or even investigated products due to a
popup ad or banner ad placed on any site I have visited. I
typically use the web for price comparison, information
gathering (research), contact with friends and family. Although I
do buy online, I`m just not the type of customer… or
consumer… to be found by an online ad campaign. I do get
hooked with impulse buys and face to face soft sells. …imagine
that. smileys/smiley17.gif

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Vincent Wilcox (a.k.a. KRAKR)
Drummer
My band: Letters Make Words