Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

Hi Everyone,

Here`s the site:  www.primetimepolitics.com

I`m submitting my site to see if I can get some honest feedback from fellow entrepreneurs.

I launched the site two months ago and now it`s time to start marketing it out so if anyone has any advice on getting traffic to the site please feel free to make suggestions.

Thank you!

Jordan

First off - I really love the basic design and layout, very professional.

My suggestion would revolve around the fact that there are a lot of political news aggregators out there, so you need to differentiate yourself.

How about a "Dueling Debators" section where you and an opposite minded partner argue opposite ends of a current news item.  Maybe you think Bill should get out of Hillary`s campaign and your partner thinks he should be utilized more. 

This format would be a fun way to learn all angles of a story and the reader could truly decide which side they are aligned with.  I`d like to see it as the cornerstone of the Web site.  Maybe even call it "We Blog, You Decide" in the hopes that FoxNews sues you for infringing on their tag line - would make for great publicity that you could never buy!!

Or you can have a poll to see who agrees with which side most and knock out the losing side.  Might be fun and should be a good way to get the comments to come rolling in.

Good luck!

Eric,

Thanks for the kind words on the site.  I really like the idea of holding some type of debate on the day`s big issue.  It could go a long way in bringing some energy to the site and having people participate in discussion around the debate.  There are some good services out there like bloggingheads.tv that could even allow me to do it by video.  Hmmmmm, great stuff, got me thinking!

Cheers,

Jordan

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If you`re tired of all the money-making
hype, lies and scams...read this!
Click here for more details!

Yup - and getting the interaction with your readers is key - I think this could be really cool.  When you get active readers, you could invite them to debate you from time to time.

Dale,

Thanks for the suggestions.  I`ve been planning on injecting some more personality into the site but have been so busy taking care of all the other business and technical aspects that I haven`t had enough time.  I need to set aside some time every day to blog, comment, etc. so there`s more of my voice involved.

I`m not too concerned with the McCain thing, it`s google adsense doing it`s thing so I can`t spend too much time worried about it, especially since it`s a good looking advertisement and brings some credibility to the site.

Lastly, as far as USP, I have one in that the community can post articles they find from around the web the same way I do (Spotlights, under the Community tab) but it`s a bit of a chicken before the egg situation since the community isn`t alive and vibrant yet.  Maybe I`ll hire some interns to get things moving.

Thank you!

Jordan

-------------------------

If you`re tired of all the money-making
hype, lies and scams...read this!
Click here for more details!

Under the circumstances, I do.  Since I just launched and don`t have traffic to attract an advertising network to represent me and since I`m not ready to sell ads myself, adsense is better than nothing.  I could have gone with no ads to start off but would have had to introduce them later on as a result which would have been more disruptive than I`d like.  Having great looking ads, even if they`re adsense (which no layperson can tell), gives it a professional, commercial feel.

Hopefully soon I`ll be hosting higher level advertisements but for the moment, I went with adsense and used their "Competitive Ad Filter" actively.

Cheers.

Uh, "ads by Google" wouldn`t be a clue?

I like the site overall, but the Google ad at the top of the page has to go.  Imagine the reaction while watching a YouTube response from a candidate and the Google ad is for paint ball guns?

I am not sure what your USP is, except maybe that your news aggregation is somehow unbiased?  Why do I care - I am biased and don`t care about the "other side".  How is your site any different from any of dozens of newspaper websites?



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Steve Mann
Internet Videographer
MannMade Digital Video
My Email

Steve,

I appreciate the input.  I believe you`re suffering from the Curse of Wisdom in this situation.  From the many people I`ve spoken to, they have no idea that "Ads by Google" means that the ads are automated and contextual, they have no idea how that sort of thing works.

Trust me, I don`t want ads for paintball guns on the site, but it`s what I have to deal with until I get enough traffic to be able to have an ad network sell on my behalf.  If I`m wrong in that assumption and you know of something else, please let me know!

As for unbiased, well the site definitely has a flavor, check it out from time to time and you`ll know quickly whether it`s your style or not.  As for USP, there is a lot of value in having a service hand pick great content from various sources.  Additionally, having a community to discuss the issues with is very valuable and will continue to grow as we add social features to the site.

Thanks again.