If you're online frequently, you've probably seen all kinds of sites - good ones, not so good ones, pure garbage. For most, a website is judged by the information it provides, the manner in which that info is provided, and the design and structure of the site (is it user-friendly and easy to navigate?). However, few stop to think about how monetization can affect the flow and interface of a site for visitors. Because of this, it seems that monetization has gotten out of hand and webmasters are abusing this practice for pure gain. Monetization is a practice commonly used by webmasters and bloggers to help them make money from their sites. This usually involves posting ads (either text or image) such as Google Adsense, banner ads and other widgets from various affiliate programs. The idea is that visitors to the site will find use for one of the supporting ads or products, click, and purchase; this is what brings money in for the site owner.
In general, monetization isn't a bad thing. In fact, it can be quite useful in making a site more useful for a visitor. Imagine visiting a site about creating a green lifestyle, and then being exposed to products to help with this process without even having to leave the site! It can be the ultimate in convenience for site visitors...until the webmaster gets out of hand.
In recent years, there are websites cropping up all over the Internet with one intention and one intention only - to promote ads and affiliate links. These sites generally have little or no real content, and are covered from header to footer in all sorts of ads. Some webmasters have even gone so far as to steal content from other sites to appear more legitimate, purposely start arguments in discussions (which they try to pass off as debates) to draw visitors in and increase keyword density, or even create paragraphs containing nothing but keywords (hidden from visitors but seen by search engines)and false titles and descriptions just to rank well. All of these provide false images for the site in question, and lead visitors to believe that the site they're visiting is relevant to their search. It is only when the visitor arrives at the site that they discover the site has no real content or relevance.
Webmasters who involve themselves in such practices are able to benefit in 2 main ways. There is a possibility that misled visitors may still click on the ads they see once they arrive at the site, bringing in revenue for the webmaster. There is also a possibility that with enough falsification, a site such as this can actually rank very well in search engines and therefore gain a significant amount of daily and unique traffic. This in turn allows them to sell ad space on the site to others looking to benefit from its high search engine and traffic rankings.
There is a point where webmasters can go far overboard with monetization efforts. Often the ads and widgets they choose to display do not fit well into the overall design, color scheme and structure of the site. These ads also tend to overpower whatever relevant content there may be, confusing and frustrating site visitors. Flashing or blinking banner ads, ads that enlarge or make sounds when the mouse moves over them, pop-ups, fly-ins and peel-down ads are all extremely distracting and in many cases can cause a visitors Internet connection to run more slowly, the site to load more slowly (or not at all), and even a visitor's computer to freeze up. In their efforts to monetize a site or blog to the fullest, webmasters rarely ever stop to think about these scenarios and the effects they can have on recurring traffic, sales and visitor/customer relationships.
For webmasters and bloggers looking to monetize a website or blog, remember these tips to ensure your site stays user-friendly.
*Design ads/widgets to match site's design and color scheme
*Create specific spaces on your site to host your ads (a sidebar, footer or aligned space)
*Choose ads, widgets and/or products that are relevant to your site's content
*Avoid moving, flashing, blinking, drop-down, pop-up, fly-in or noisy (talking smilies?) ads
*Don't overdo it. A few ads are standard, but keep it to a minimum (no more than 3 or 4 sections)
*Try not to let ads intermix with content. Do not interrupt content as it interrupts a reader's experience
*NEVER allow your ads to overpower your content. Content is KING!
Often webmasters design selfishly and forget that they are designing a site or blog for the viewer and not for themselves. So remember to always consider design and monetization from a visitor's point of view. A visitor should never be able to tell that you are attempting to make money from their visit. Your intention should always be to inform and assist site visitors with their searches and needs. Always put the relevant information and the needs of the visitor first, and you will find that building lists and readership, driving traffic and monetizing a website become easy and effortless tasks.
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Contributor's Note
Refer to the external link for one blogger's discussion of monetization. Neither of the sites in the images belong to me. These are simply sites I've come across in my daily activities online. I do not own or benefit from the rights to either of the sites or programs expressed therein.
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