New Link Sales Through Digital Point’s Forum

Dave — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 05:05:28 +0000

I had recently asked Kirsty of Nerdy Nomad a few questions about how I could better monetize my travel blog. She went above and beyond by writing up a full review (pro bono)! As I read her feedback, I realized how much perspective I had lost on a web site I work on every day.

One of her tips has already paid off to the tune of $55 in the past 24 hours. I joined the Digital Point Forum which is dedicated to internet marketing and search engine optimization. I jumped straight to the sub-forum dedicated to the buying and selling of text links, and performed a search for “travel.” I found quite a few results, and send out about 8 private messages to potential buyers. In less than 24 hours I had received $55 (via PayPal) for two different text link ads on my travel blog (1 month duration).

Despite my quick success with opening a new revenue stream via the text link marketplace in this forum, it is not my preference. Here’s a quick breakdown as I see it:

Pros’s

Publisher receives 95-100% of sale price
Greater flexibility with pricing (to suit individual buyers’ needs)
Relationship building can lead to bigger sales in the future

Con’s

If advertisers aren’t contacting you, then it’s work to go find them
Manually managing short term ad buys takes time and good organizational skills

I consider myself lucky to be receiving the occasional ad inquiries through my site. The line from Field of Dreams, “if you build it, they will come” can ring true online. Being proactive from time to time in soliciting ad sales will be a nice compliment to the dependable and automated marketplace of Text Link Ads.

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Stay Organized with Google Docs and Spreadsheets

Dave — Sat, 15 Sep 2007 23:44:23 +0000

A few months ago I began to use Google Spreadsheets when I realized it would allow me to easily access and edit my ‘Round the World Trip Plan while on the road. The editing functions and charts are a bit rudimentary, however it’s still a Beta service, and Google appears committed to making regular improvements.

More recently, I began to track my web earnings and expenses via this service. As much as I don’t like to think about it, I will have to report my earnings on my 2007 income taxes, and having the information at my fingertips will make it easier to file online from anywhere in the world (I hope).

Also, it is a great way to share Word and Excel files online, without the need for visitors to own Microsoft Word or Excel.

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New Link Sales Through Digital Point’s Forum

Stay Organized with Google Docs and Spreadsheets