So you`ve got your website all
set up. You know what you`re promoting and it`s looking good. You
know you need to advertise and promote as much as possible to
actually get your website seen. You`ve tried the normal avenues such
as classified ads, safelists, ffa`s. etc, but now you`re ready to
try something else, right?
There IS another way of getting free
advertising. It`s called Bartering. It basically means to exchange
goods and/or services without using money. Bartering, also known as
Trading, Exchange or Ad Swapping comes in all shapes and sizes. Many
small sites use banner exchanges as a way to reach more people.
Ezines often swap sponsorships in an effort to gain more subscribers
etc.
The terms of a trade are usually only limited by the
creativity of those taking part. The main consideration is to make
sure it ties in with the goals of the site. Also, making sure that
everybody involved has a clear understanding of the agreement
details.
Here`s a list of 5 different ways to "ad-swap" for
free.
Reciprocal Links:
Basically, this is
where 2 sites agree to show a link to each other. This can work
wonders for search engine ranking, so long as the site you swap
links with is relevant to your site. To find potential linkswap
partners for free, do a search on say www.google.com for sites
similar to yours. Mail the webmaster a nice friendly mail, telling
them what you like about their site, and asking if they might be
interested in exchanging links with you. Don`t worry if some of them
say no, keep trying, and you`ll be surprised at how many will
actually say yes.
Banner Exchange:
In laymans
terms, the concept behind a banner exchange is "I`ll put your ads on
my site, if you`ll put my ads on yours". Banner exchanges are
differnt to simple link swaps in terms of how many potential site
visitors can be reached. Members of large banner exchanges have the
potential for their ads to be shown on thousands of other sites.
Also, unlike simple link swaps, banner exchanges result in your ads
rotating through many many different sites, sometimes with the
benefit of sophisticated targeting.
Here are some free
banner exchanges for you to check out:
Button
Exchanges: Button exchanges are similar to banner exchanges
in all ways apart from the size of the graphic displayed. Button
exchanges usually have smaller membership numbers than banner
exchanges. As a result, they tend to come and go, with very few of
them lasting and/or become much used. Some niche exchanges,
particularly webmaster related, have used the micro-button (88x31)
effectively. While small in size, the micro-buttons allow a site to
earn more views (and credits) per page.
Text Link Exchange This is pretty much the same as
reciprocal link swapping, apart from here there`s a whole Network of
sites, where all participants display text ads in exchange for
credits which are converted into ads to be displayed on other sites.
Web Rings are basically a group of like-minded sites all
linking to each other. Web rings are usually made up of
small/midsize sites. The number of web rings and member sites runs
into the millions. A web ring can be created on just about any
topic, by just about anybody. After creating a ring, the ring owner
is responsible for attracting and approving applicants. Approved
sites become part of the web ring.
Navigating through
webrings is normally done by using the "next", "previous" "random
site" and "complete list" links. The first original web ring system,
which is now part of Yahoo! is still the most popular and can be
found here: www.webring.org/
Web Site Award:
A Web Site Award is basically an award given from one Web
site to another, as a means of creating linkswaps. They range from
great big events like the Webby Awards: www.webbyawards.com/ to thousands of smaller sized
link exchanges from small sites.
A lot of the Web site
awards are really more about attracting site visitors than they are
about competition. Sites that GET awards hope to attract visitors
from the award sites, and sites that GIVE awards hope to attract
visitors from the recipient sites.
And
there you have it. Maybe not the easiest ways of getting free
advertising, but most definitely not the hardest. Try them out, see
what works, and stick with it. Remember, as with all advertising,
you need to do a lot of research, homework, and testing to find out
what`s right for you.
Good luck in your promotions!
===============Resource Box===========
What? You’re Not Making Money Yet? Find out
how REAL PEOPLE are making REAL MONEY Right
Now by grabbing your copy of Real Life Marketer
Interviews Vol. II http://annamarketing.com/int2x3.htm
======================================
This article is available for reprint in your opt-in ezine,
web site or ebook. You MUST agree not to make any changes
to the article and the RESOURCE BOX MUST be included.
(c) Anna-Marie Stewart All Rights Reserved
Do you have an article, a great hint or tip you would like to
share. Send us your ideas. All legitimate offers will be
accepted for review. This includes ezine ad swaps, article
submissions, link trades, and joint ventures. Send them
