Ad space will soon be available.
Of course, most ad space is calculated by page views, not unique visitors. Our page views for last week according to StatCounter were 2,683 which would give us a monthly average well over 10,000 page views. I would love to keep up that number, but we haven't done it on a monthly basis yet. We had a little more than 6,000 page views last month, and we'll see where we land this month. The following prices are based upon us getting around 8,000 page views. I'm going to keep a strict eye on the numbers to make sure you get value for your donation/purchase.
Value for your money
Besides getting ad space, there are more reasons to donate. As I just stated, I will make sure you get value for your money. Should we get 8,000 page views, I think there's enough value right there, but to put your mind at ease, I will also do the following for those that purchase ad space, especially for the first responders. I'm not going to guarantee that these extra services will be offered for all ad types in the future.
- Regular tweets during your ad run, the number of tweets based upon the ad and money donated.
- Amazon Shout Out posts, shared with others who have donated and/or by yourself depending on the ad.
- Regular posts via our Tumblr blog.
Should we not get even 7,000 page views (which I think is doable in the next few months), I may also consider a credit to be used for additional services. In other words, I want you to feel that your money is well spent.
A bigger reason to donate
But I'm not done. (I sound like a cheesy infomerical guy, don't I?)
There's another reason to donate, and it has nothing to do with your ad or the value you receive from our extra services ... and even beyond the free services we offer. All of the current donations/payments will be used for Indie projects, and I don't mean projects that benefit just me or the crew.
So far I have received $90 in donations. $60 of that is going to be used as cash prizes (via Amazon giftcards) along with money from me and another crew member (if plans hold out) for our short story writing contest. The other $30 is being held until other donations come in. What will we use it for? That hasn't been decided. It could be another prize for a contest or a giveaway in general. I've also got a few other ideas that would hopefully provide the needed traffic to make advertising with us beneficial as well as help Indie authors in general. Rest assured, though, that my goal is to help both you and me.
I would love to take a salary from the site's proceeds, but that won't happen anytime soon. When it does, I'll let you know, and you'll also know how much. I believe in open honesty, especially when it comes to money and finances.
3 types of ads and their prices
- Top Level Ad Space
- Scroller Book Promotion
- Side Bar Book Promotion
There are 4 spaces for top level ads. I'm using the two left slots right now for our short story writing contest and Amazon.com shout outs. All 4 slots will be available for purchase.
- $10 for 1 week
- $15 for 2 weeks
- $25 for 1 month
If there are more than 4 who want to purchase the space, we may move into auction mode. It depends on how much interest there is, of course.
If you want me to put together a simple ad like the kind you see up there right now, I'll do it for free. Should you want some extra work done for an ad, I may charge a little more depending on how long it takes me to put the ad together. I'm not a graphics person, though, so I won't charge much in those cases. I may have access to third party graphics people, but I can't promise that right now. It's in the pipeline though.
You are more than welcome to provide your own ad. The space is 250 pixels wide by 125 pixels high. PNG format is preferred.
The following paragraph is no longer up to date. The scroller ad space will work differently than described. For up to date details, see this page.
For those that spend less than $5, they will have to share the top slots with others. As long as I have $5 donations or higher, they will get the top slot. Should I run out of those, I'll run the lower ones, the highest of these getting the top slot and lower ones being bumped down the same day.
In other words, if I have 5 books at $1 each, they will all be posted on the same day, bringing in the $5 that I want to make. I will guarantee that 20 books will remain on the sidebar at a time, and I may even be able to do 30. It just depends on how far down the page 30 books go. I haven't tested it yet.
Obviously, for maximum exposure the $5 donation makes the best sense in my mind. Not only will you get the top slot for an entire day, you'll still be in good territory for the first week (should others donate $5 as well), and you could possibly stay on the left sidebar for most or all of one month. It just depends.
Should I receive only a few $5 bids, I'll make sure those authors get other services to make up for the fact that their books are knocked off faster. Bids lower than $5 will probably not receive anything beyond the sidebar ad.
After thinking about it, I don't want to mess with a Dollar Auction. The donation fee to get on the left sidebar will be $5. Your book will be featured on top for at least a full day (maybe more in some rare cases). When the next ad is placed, your book will be pushed down. I think I will be able to put around 30 books on the sidebar, which means your book will be displayed for a month, the first week in prime territory.
Though I appreciate comments and any early interest shown, there will be a form to officially sign up for all types of site advertising.
