- What
are the Site Statistics? How
many visitors per month, year? Per page, subject, or category? What’s the
average bounce rate of the site? How long do visitors stay on the site and
what’s the average number of pages they visit?
- How
does the Site Rank in Google?
This you should check yourself. Search in Google to find how the website
ranks for a variety of keywords. If it doesn’t rank well for any of them,
that’s a red flag.
- What
are the Advertising Rates? Are
they quoting the rates on a CPM (cost per thousand impressions) or a flat
monthly or annual basis? Can you negotiate a lower rate on the CPM model
if you advertise for a longer period? Do they offer any free or discounted
ad space in their print version, if they have one?
- Is the
Site Well-Known by People in Your Industry? If it’s a well-known industry site, that a good
indication of popularity and potential success in driving leads your way.
If it’s a locally based site, do they advertise? Where? Do they have a Facebook fan page and are they on Twitter?
- Are
Your Competitors Advertising There? If so, how many? Will your ad or directory listing get lost in a
sea of competitors? Can you pay more to get a top of the page listing; a
bolded listing; an active link; a graphic ad?
- Will the
Site Publisher Create the Ad for You? Is that included in the price of the ad? Or will you need to hire
a graphic artist to create the ad? Will they create multiple versions of
the ad, say in different online newspaper sections such as, sports,
community, life, etc.?
- Can You
Change the Ad once it’s Live?
Is there a fee to change the image if it’s a graphic ad? Can you change
the description/copy in the ad at any time? Is there a fee?
- Will
the Publisher Provide Ad Performance Reports? If so, how often? What will they show? The
number of impressions and clicks are important.
- How
does the Publisher Handle Poorly Performing Ads? If the ad doesn’t perform well, is there any
recourse? Will they re-do an image-based ad for free?
- How will you Measure the Success of Your Ad? Do you have ad tracking mechanisms setup so you can judge the effectiveness of the ad? Did the ad work? Did it result in increased traffic, new sales, new leads?
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