Welcome to the newest issue of Hit Exchange News!
Something that has never been addressed in the 15 weeks of H.E.N.'s existance that will be addressed today is the basics. I've received a few e-mails that have read 'Jon, I think your e-zine is great but I'm rather new to hit exchange advertising!"...No worries, here's a run down of what I personally think is important to know before starting any hit exchange campaign. It's a two part 'editorial'...One part history lesson, and one part Hit Exchanges 101...Enjoy! =)
Brief history, hit exchanges are about 4 years old, the first few (ClickThru, HitHarvester, NoMoreHits) appealed to a new breed of online business person, the "paid-to-surfer". In essence, new programs started to pop up that paid you to surf, read, click and do just about anything online. It was'nt much, maybe a penny per click but what was unqiue is that these programs offered referral bonuses. So off we go, this new breed of surfer, to find places to promote our new found programs and out of nowhere comes a...Hit exchange!
The concept was very simple at first, you visit my website and I'll visit yours! This was ground breaking because before this, the only way to get traffic was via search engines, or classified ad sites (aka the dreaded FFA page). So hit exchanges came in at a perfect time, there was a market drooling for traffic and the exchanges provided it!
Fast forward a few years and there's a new hit exchange coming online literally every 4-5 hours. Most are auto hit exchanges and a select few are manual clicks...Whoaaa, slow down Jon! O.k., let me backtrack.
When hit exchanges where released, it was great because you could get traffic, for free (which appeals to the majority of us). The problem for some people was that this took time. So the owners figured out a way to please their members, and offered credits for sale. Of course this did'nt satisfy the freebie seeking member using these programs because you see, we've been promoting free 'paid-to-surf' programs that promised us BIG cash and putting them in FREE programs (the hit exchanges). Pay for credits??? These exchange owners must have been mad! So what does some NASA scientist decide to do? Create the auto surf programs! These come in different shapes and sizes. Some actually 'click' for you and cause major havoc for owners, others simply take out the 'effort and actual work' of clicking and are in essence, auto surf hit exchanges....
Back to the present day and what we have here is a conflict...People have been brought into hit exchange advertising with the thought in mind that everything online is fast, free, takes no effort and makes them rich over night. For new users and seasoned exchange veterans alike, this is not the case. Yes, hit exchange advertising takes up a good chunk of your time, but so does faxing letters and checking e-mail...It's part of the business...Your business! O.k., Jon's History Rant is over *lol*...
Some key things to remember is this...Hit exchanges are built on a trust value. "I visit yours, you visit mine." How does one expect to make any kind of income online if your sites are not being seen by real eyes? If you are going to use hit exchanges, respect the program and respect your fellow surfers. Don't use cheat programs, and always have a glance at each page. You don't need to buy everything in sight, just use common courtesy and have a look. =)
Next, surfing ratios are what makes the exchange work. Something you may see mentioned from time to time is a 1:1 ratio or 2:1 ratio. This means for every site you visit, your site is viewed once (1:1 ratio). A 2:1 is the same except for every 2 sites you visit, your site is viewed once. Hit ratios are key when starting to surf, find out what your favorite hit exchange's ratio is so you know how many hits to expect. 2:1 ratio seems to be the industry average.
Make sure you have inserted a target URL in the members area of the exchange you are using. This is what you want to accomplish, get hits to your site. Sometimes an exchange will ask you when you sign up for a target URL, other times you will have to log in and insert it yourself. Another thing to watch for is if the exchange has an auto-assign feature for the URL's...Without this, hits go automatically to your URL. If an exchange does offer this you will have to assign hits to it manually.
Check to see if the exchange allows rotators and or pop ups. Some exchanges are very picky about this and others are not. The reason this could be an issue is because many downline building clubs and viral traffic generators that you may be a member of, ask that you use both site rotators and pop ups. Site rotators were once a MUST for all online marketers but since E-Biz Rotator's follies this past year, owners are becoming tired of rotators. HOWEVER, there's some amazing new site rotators now that are very 'exchange friendly' and are accepted at most programs.
Building your downline is only half the battle, but it's a big battle! The whole 'explosion' of hit exchanges are due in large part to their referral program. You see, unlike traditional MLM's that offer you cash for recruiting and selling from your downline, hit exchanges give you a percentage of your downline's credits. For example, if an exchange had a 4 level (10%, 10%, 10%, 10%) referral structure; for every 10 sies that each of your downline members viewed, down 4 levels, you would earn a hit! Now multiply that by a BIG, active downline and you will soon see why some exchange users are enjoying thousands of hits a day, simply from their referral bonuses!
And finally, one of the most important things to remember when starting out in hit exchange advertising is to never give up! If you are new today, think of all the support programs you have in place to make the most of your time online. When I started, there was no forums, no e-zines, no referral clubs, nothing...Now people are getting PAID from this industry and it's a very exciting time to be a part of it! Keep on clicking, enjoy yourself and don't be afraid to ask questions!
I thank you very much for being a subscriber and I hope you enjoyed my 'speech'...Happy clicking! =)
Jon =)
