NONE: ONLINE-ADS>> More comments on FlyCast
ONLINE-ADS>> More comments on FlyCast
Mark J. Welch, Esq. (markwelch_at_ca-probate.com)
Sun, 27 Jul 1997 23:00:58 -0700
I wanted to make a very interesting additional observation about
my experience with FlyCast. After running several test campaigns,
and learning that the cost per click-through was much lower for
"blind buys" at $1 CPM than when doing highly targetted ad buys
at the much higher minimum bids posted by sites, I decided to
change my strategy as a seller: I dropped my minimum bid to
$3 instead of the previous $7 to $15 I had tried.
Almost immediately, my ad revenues began to increase. I suspect
that there are some "broad purchase" campaigns that are set at
modest rates ($4 to $5), which immediately kicked in when I
dropped my rates. (Also, I have modified my site descriptions
to emphasize the new lower rates, since most sites still post
$10 to $15 as their minimum CPM rate.) By dropping my
minimum bid rate, I am able to accept targetted placement
of ads at $4 to $9 that previously would have been blocked
and replaced with "blind buy" ads at $1 to $3. In addition,
for visitors who see multiple adviews, I am probably getting
more paid adviews (after all paid ads have shown [with higher
paid ads shown first], FlyCast displays PSA banners with no pay).
I recommend that sites which have signed up with FlyCast drop
their "minimum bid" rate, especially if they are also participating
in the "blind buy" program (which seems to attract only buyers
paying $1 to $3 plus one at $4 CPM). Each site has to decide
on the appropriate rate (I would think that $5 to $7 would be
more reasonable than $10 to $15, but as noted I took the
plunge and dropped right down to $3 as my minimum bid).
It's important to recognize that if you set a high minimum bid,
targetted advertisers will never experiment with ad placements
on your site and thus won't discover how well your site will
perform for them (since advertisers can't get site-by-site
results from "blind buys"). Once you have proven the success
of your site, you can gradually raise your rates (or let the
buyers bid against each other and raise your rates dynamically,
though I am skeptical whether this will actually happen for
most sites).
It is important to note that I have a very small inventory of
pages dedicated to FlyCast, with very narrow subject focus,
totalling well under 10,000 adviews per month. I would be
MUCH more nervous about releasing larger quantities of
targetted adviews at such low rates, until FlyCast has proven
its ability to sell targetted ads at rates above $3 CPM.
Finally, I will upgrade my overall recommendation regarding
FlyCast. If you are an ad buyer, I STRONGLY recommend
experimenting with some campaigns on FlyCast (both "blind
buy" untargetted ads as well as some carefully targetted sites).
I managed to get what I think is a pretty good feel for how
FlyCast will perform for me, while spending less than $35
(which is the amount I've accrued in FlyCast royalties
from my page in 6 weeks).
If you are a web publisher who has been selling space through
Adbot or any other vendor with poor results, I STRONGLY
recommend that you move some pages to FlyCast and test the
results (but do NOT put all your eggs in this one basket yet).
-- Mark J. Welch (510) 462-8483 http://www.ca-probate.com/
-- Web Site Banner Ads (Networks, Brokers, Exchanges, Software, PSAs):
-- http://www.markwelch.com/bannerad.htm
-- Web Counters: http://www.markwelch.com/counter.htm
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