One of the reasons that I enjoy being a member of ClickTrackProfit is that they set achievable targets that mean you get rewarded with badges if you do the tasks. The other benefit of course is I generate credits in numerous traffic exchanges which means that more people will get to see the splash pages which in turn brings readers to this blog.
So when I saw that the TimTech team were doing a contest I thought to myself that sounds like a good idea, I’m going to give this a go. The concept is simple, collect 18 badges in day, and complete the picture below, in return I get a token. On Sunday a prize wheel will appear and my token will give the chance to win cash or credits from participating exchanges.
This is the completed picture I managed to achieve yesterday, my biggest gripe with the whole process was the fact it took me 5 hours to finish the task, and when you actually work a real job this is a big ask of someone. Hence the headline, if I was retired, worked full time online, or didn’t have other responsibilities then I probably would repeat the process for the remainder of the contest.
After surfing each site I assigned all available credits, and here was the result – note I recently reset the tracker.
I use TEToolbox and looking at the stats all of the sites in the promotion were able to deliver the hits I assigned. This is brilliant as it shows that the promotion is working and that the community are taking part. The worst feeling in the world is to assign credits to a TE and find that the traffic takes a week to arrive.
Looking at the stats a couple of new sites I joined have given above average results 
Using the chat to +1
I decided to spend 15 minutes at each site, and use the chat function to see who else was participating and what others were thinking of the whole contest. I didn’t dare use the LFMTE chat, and tumbleweed was present at a few sites, but I was able to strike up a couple of conversations.
A few people told me I was daft for doing this, the amount of time was an issue for some, whilst others didn’t want to join more exchanges. Randy Ritter was in the chat at his sites and talking about how activity was through the roof thanks to this contest, and as the only reason I was in his exchange was to get the badge I’m proof this contest is working.
In face I’ve just checked out the red tick badge and 3 pages worth of people were also crazy enough to complete the card. All of these people are potentially my target market, and I hope that the splash page advertising this blog and the badge for all readers get’s me noticed.
10 seconds vs 6 seconds?
In the sites with 6 second timers all of the adkreator splash pages loaded perfectly and I was able to see a lot of people have taken action on the branding, it’s just a pity they’re still promoting crap. The golden nugget I want to share here is that in the extra 4 seconds I was constantly drawn to the banner advert next to the timer.
When I get ready to launch a full on advertising campaign I think that banner advertising will have to be a massive part of my campaign. Many exchanges will practically give this space away, the cost is normally 10% of the credits and if you’re trying to brand your own site this will be a very cost effective method vs buying start page adverts.
The new found star
Like I said above many people were doing a good branding, but were promoting all the wrong things, so if you want to know how and what to advertise you need to look at Rhonda and learn from her. The way that she designed all of her own splash pages and the branding was brilliant, and the best part is that she has actually has her own site where I can go and place an order and give her money directly.
Far too many people are caught in the downline mentality where they’re actively generating leads for other people and hoping to get some crumbs of commission should the downline upgrade. If the page you advertise isn’t directly benefiting you then it’s time to think about what you’re doing.
In summary I think this is an excellent example of how community marketing can work. All the owners are actively promoting each other and trying to increase the level of activity and engagement. This will bring long term benefits and help show other areas of internet marketing that surfing traffic exchanges is not a waste of time.
Here’s to a good prize for everyone who is able to complete a card.
Andrew Stark
