Should I Put Advertising on My Website?
One way of getting income from your website is to place advertising on it’s pages. But should a small business website have ads ? Internet marketing received wisdom says “no” but there are some good reasons not to dismiss the idea altogether, including an unpleasant fact about your website that you may not have thought of.
What kind of advertising should I put on my website?
There are many kinds of ads available to a web publisher. Affiliate programs, sponsored links, banner graphics and contextual advertising. You can use a strategic combination of these adverts on your business website but your choice of ads needs careful consideration. After all, you don’t want to see your competitors promoted on your website.
Shouldn’t I concentrate on selling my product rather that putting ads on my website?
Yes. The main focus of your website (and the one which should make the most money for you) should be promoting your business. Never let that thought go. Concentrate your greatest effort into getting new website visitors to find you, make contact or buy your product.
So, why bother with advertising on my business website at all?
It may not be a nice thought but - people leave your website. They might have bought something. Or not. You might not have exactly what they want. They might have arrived at your site via a search that didn’t quite produce the result they were looking for. Maybe you are a small, local business in the West of England - but the visitor is from Delaware, USA. So, what happens next?
The visitor hits the “back” button or returns to Google and continues looking. Why not get some ads revenue for their short stay on your site? If you had what they wanted or if that visitor was going to buy from you, they would do it. You can’t stop them leaving but you can save them the trouble of starting the next part of their web journey somewhere else. Website users are so transient.
What kind of advertising fits well on my business website?
Adverts with offers closely related to your business area - but not advertising in direct competition. These might include specially chosen books on your subject (Amazon Affiliates) endorsed by you. You can even get related Ebay auction ads on your website. Contextual (ads determined automatically) advertising such as Google Adsense are good to satisfy international traffic as the adverts served are automatically localised, depending on the location of the visitor. You can even block your competitors adverts from your website - or stop the ads completely in your local zone. Here are some easy ways to get adverts on your website.
Sponsored Links
- Direct Link Ads - Get paid to place advertising links on your website - UK Based.
Contextual Advertising
- Chitika Advertising - Relevant ads automatically displayed on your website. Easy to set up.
Affiliate Networks
- LinkShare UK.
UK arm of the popular affiliate network with good advertisers including Apple.
Still not sure if I like the idea of putting advertising on my business website?
It isn’t for everyone - or every business. Maybe you find that your business website has of visitors from abroad or looking for something specific that you don’t sell. Don’t forget your website primary goal, to get visitors to use your business. but advertising on a business website is not always bad.
People will always leave your website - why not make someone pay for their stay
