A while back, I have provided you with some insights on how to make money by selling ad spaces. If you are one of those that have implemented it or have been doing it already, you should know that one important action is to develop and/or follow up on your existing relationship with your advertisers (or clients).
So, you have been selling ad spaces directly to advertisers or via an ad network, such as AdvertiseSpace or BuySellAds. Usually, if you are only selling direct, your relationship or interaction with that advertiser (your client), would be stronger. However, what if you are selling ad spaces via ad networks? What do you do when you receive that email saying, congrats, an ad zone has been purchased? Do you jump up and down and say over and over, yay π Do you immediately create another ad zone (maybe, lol)? You do nothing? Or, do you take the time and visit the advertisers website, browse around, look for their contact information and finally send them at the very least an email saying thank you?
I am not going to speculate on what you do or what you do not do, but I believe that if you interact with your advertiser, it will greatly enhance your relationship with them and open other or ongoing opportunities in the future.
So whenever possible, here ares some few pointers, in case you are not yet doing so:
- Send them a thank you email. Tell them that you hope they achieve the results they are looking for.
- Leave a door open for them to let you know what exactly are they looking for. Is it conversion, brand awareness, etc.? Maybe if they tell you, you can do something to help them achieve their results.
- Usually when someone purchases an ad space, they do so for 30 days. Somewhere in between, send them stats (when possible) or ask them in a follow-up email, if they are satisfied with the results so far. If warranted and with great discretion, give your honest opinion about their creative, their landing pages, etc. Maybe there is something both of you can work out to improve results. As I said, interact.
- Provide additional services. This is a good moment to offer something else that you may find of value for them. If they are satisfied, they will at least hear what you have to offer.
- At the end of the campaign, ask for their feedback (prices, results, etc.), ask them if they would advertise again on your website and if not, what are their suggestions to make them do so. Depending on their response, offer them an extra XX days for free. Sometimes all it takes is just a little something, you never know.
And anything else that you feel could enhance your relationship with your advertisers. The above are just some examples of which I believe that at a minimum you should be doing. These pointers are also totally applicable for any services that you offer. Make it a habit to acknowledge your feedback to your advertisers and if you do not receive a reply, no problem, at least you have done your part :).
I would be very interested to know what you are doing in such cases. Do you have anything to add on the list above (hopefully you do)? Do you even think that this is important, relevant? Thanks!
Lye Kuek Hin
Hi DiTesco,
I haven’t actually start on monetizing my site but i think this is great tips on establishing a relationship with advertisers. Interaction definitely helps if we want any improvement on the ad space and results.
Thanks for sharing this insight.
Lye
Hi Lye. Was just wondering why you have not started to monetize your website yet. I mean, it certainly looks that you have the necessary ingredients to do so. Start low and work your way up, this is how I started. Why not give AdvertiseSpace a go. They are pretty good. Good luck.
Richard
These are really good relationship building tips. Building a relationship is good to do on the affiliate marketing side of blogging as well.
Hi Richard. It’s all about relationships isn’t it. Your advertiser is equally important and should not be ignored. They also like to be pampered once in a while π Thanks for stopping by.
Hesham
RT @ditesco Establish An Ongoing Relationship With Your Advertisers http://ow.ly/19Diam
It is important to establish a long-term relationship with the advertiser, especially if the advertiser is related to the website theme and also a valuable resource for your readers.
Hi Andreas. You got that right. Those advertisers that are related to you are definitely important because they can also add some useful resource for your readers. Who says ads should be only be about sales anyway, lol. Thanks
Goutham
It really a valid tips to have a good relationship with the advertisers. π
Thanks for sharing it with us. π
Hi Goutham. You are welcome. Hope to see more from you here in the future.
I have just started selling ad spaces on my blog, and I’m currently assigning a trusted friend to handle it for me. But your post made me think, I have certainly overlooked the ‘networking’ value, and how it will help us to meet like-minded people, or a chance for a further collaboration. Truth is, opportunities are everywhere, we need to know when/where to discover it (sometimes it’s so close, just IN our very own blog!).
Thanks so much for the great tips!
p/s: Did you have any success stories to share as a result of your follow up with advertisers? Would love to read about them!
@wchingya
Social/Blogging Tracker
Hi Ching. As always good to see you here. And YES, I do have success stories where interacting with my advertisers have provided added opportunities with them. This is certainly one thing that I should consider for a post and give examples of some of them, thanks for the idea. Will work on it and thanks for stopping by. Glad you found it useful.
Bilal Ahmad
I am 100% agree with you, Advertisers are blood for a blog and we need to build a very healthy relationship with them because it will help for long time.
Hi Bilal. Glad to see that we are on the same “radar” here. Advertisers are important to any blogger who is doing online business and having a healthy relationship with them can take you a step further.
Ching Ya
Reading: Establish An Ongoing Relationship With Your Advertisers — http://bit.ly/arr6De via @ditesco — insightful! Something to consider:)
ray zol
Such a good info. Most of the tips is important..
Honestly I’m not doing the tips you give after sell ads space.. I like the the last point ‘ask for their feedback’ because it will create a good relationship and opportunity. Thanks, DiTesco
Hi Ray. you are welcome and now that you know, do make it a habit and you might be surprised what a “small” investment of your time can do wonders. Thanks for stopping by
Hesham
RT @ditesco: Establish An Ongoing Relationship With Your Advertisers http://bit.ly/arr6De
Karl
Some simple, but very effective tips. Many don’t consider the need to communicate with their advertisers, but I’m sure if they read this article it will turn a light bulb on for them!
Hi Karl. Thanks for stopping and leaving your comment. I do hope that many people will read this article and at the very least use it once in a while to communicate with advertisers
Andrei
I do believe that we should maintain a steady relationship with our advertisers. We benefit a lot from them and it’ll just be right to give them appreciation. Like if there are important occasion, send them a greeting card or even just a small gift.
Karen
Thanks for the tips, even though most of the advertising on some sites is semi-automated it’s still nice to know that there are human beings behind those “advertise here” buttons on blogs, I always like to try and say thank you when someone decides to advertise on my blog, it’s the least I can do for someone who has taken the time to decide to place an ad π
HI Karen. Good to see you here. Despite some ads being semi-automated, most of the time there is always a way to get in touch with the advertiser. Saying at the very least “something nice” is definitely a wise move and you only have to benefit from it. Keep it up as I am sure that it will pay off eventually. Thanks for stopping by.