Post by abaworld on Sept 3, 2009 19:05:09 GMT -5
I started this post ready to agree with your thoughts on free hosting sites and add my own thoughts on the free hosting web addresses that you're stuck with, which are totally unprofessional.
Since sticking my foot in my mouth is not something that I strive for, and since I hadn't taken a look at the "free hosting" arena in a long while, I investigated...
There are now as many (possibly more) non-ad free hosting sites as there are forced ad sites. Also, there are very few that use the ridiculous domain addresses of the past.
Now the standard is: purchase your own domain, plug it in to your ad-free, free hosting site and build a site.
How does this work out for the hosting companies/affiliates?
They can monetize in many ways.
First off, they have you on a mailing list, which equals major potential dollars.
They can offer a domain at an outrageous annual fee.
The site is very basic with limited resources and plenty of "up-sell" potential.
Once you have your brand new site and realize that no one is visiting, "buy traffic" is the ongoing theme of the day, week, month, etc.
Anyway, you get the idea --- they don't have to force ads on you - the other monetizing methods are much more productive.
I hate it when my research destroys my own notions on a particular subject...
OK - now for my thoughts on your thoughts of google adsense.
I do not totally agree that adsense screams "Not Professional".
If your keywords are very focused, I don't think it takes too much from your site. Adsense is on sites belonging to Million $ and Billion $ companies. Can't be all bad.
Of course, Adsense on those company's sites actually earns some cash because they get TRAFFIC! Not so for the rest of us with limited traffic.
Your adsense example on the ArtFest site is probably a direct result of one item ----- "Frank McQuire & Associates" certainly sounds like a legal firm to me... and I'd be pretty certain that it is found in their keyword list.
The other ads you've seen ---- poor Adsense keyword administration or that little burp that occurs all too frequently on the net...
In regard to Adsense, you could check your sites hourly, and not see all the ads being served. Tough to fully monitor relevancy, without extensive digging.
And one more thing --- really, I'm not bashing you, Paula! I just find that almost everything has a different perspective than the one each of us bases our opinions on...
I don't find the May 9, 2009 show being featured, as a negative.
With only four shows on the rotation in the featured box and maybe the 2010 dates not being assigned beyond January, it is good to maintain the link to a main event that already occurred this year. If nothing more than for search engine reasons, but also for folks visiting for the first time. This allows us to see that a big event will probably take place in the springtime.
Now to retract that: The Henderson event is always on Mother's Day weekend, so not too tough to figure it out...
But, their website update/upkeep is terrible for another reason - the vendor information documents for download are for the 2008 shows. Not good at all.
They have a series of sites to maintain, so constant update may not be a priority. And they do have a write-up for the next big event in November as their main article.
But somebody dropped the ball on their bread and butter ---- the VENDORS!
As Ted Kennedy said, "Inexcusable!". (Used simply because it was a recent headline. My thoughts? The treatment of that case was INEXCUSABLE!!!)
Since sticking my foot in my mouth is not something that I strive for, and since I hadn't taken a look at the "free hosting" arena in a long while, I investigated...
There are now as many (possibly more) non-ad free hosting sites as there are forced ad sites. Also, there are very few that use the ridiculous domain addresses of the past.
Now the standard is: purchase your own domain, plug it in to your ad-free, free hosting site and build a site.
How does this work out for the hosting companies/affiliates?
They can monetize in many ways.
First off, they have you on a mailing list, which equals major potential dollars.
They can offer a domain at an outrageous annual fee.
The site is very basic with limited resources and plenty of "up-sell" potential.
Once you have your brand new site and realize that no one is visiting, "buy traffic" is the ongoing theme of the day, week, month, etc.
Anyway, you get the idea --- they don't have to force ads on you - the other monetizing methods are much more productive.
I hate it when my research destroys my own notions on a particular subject...
OK - now for my thoughts on your thoughts of google adsense.
I do not totally agree that adsense screams "Not Professional".
If your keywords are very focused, I don't think it takes too much from your site. Adsense is on sites belonging to Million $ and Billion $ companies. Can't be all bad.
Of course, Adsense on those company's sites actually earns some cash because they get TRAFFIC! Not so for the rest of us with limited traffic.
Your adsense example on the ArtFest site is probably a direct result of one item ----- "Frank McQuire & Associates" certainly sounds like a legal firm to me... and I'd be pretty certain that it is found in their keyword list.
The other ads you've seen ---- poor Adsense keyword administration or that little burp that occurs all too frequently on the net...
In regard to Adsense, you could check your sites hourly, and not see all the ads being served. Tough to fully monitor relevancy, without extensive digging.
And one more thing --- really, I'm not bashing you, Paula! I just find that almost everything has a different perspective than the one each of us bases our opinions on...
I don't find the May 9, 2009 show being featured, as a negative.
With only four shows on the rotation in the featured box and maybe the 2010 dates not being assigned beyond January, it is good to maintain the link to a main event that already occurred this year. If nothing more than for search engine reasons, but also for folks visiting for the first time. This allows us to see that a big event will probably take place in the springtime.
Now to retract that: The Henderson event is always on Mother's Day weekend, so not too tough to figure it out...
But, their website update/upkeep is terrible for another reason - the vendor information documents for download are for the 2008 shows. Not good at all.
They have a series of sites to maintain, so constant update may not be a priority. And they do have a write-up for the next big event in November as their main article.
But somebody dropped the ball on their bread and butter ---- the VENDORS!
As Ted Kennedy said, "Inexcusable!". (Used simply because it was a recent headline. My thoughts? The treatment of that case was INEXCUSABLE!!!)