Solo Ads and Lemons
I don’t know about you, but I don’t like sucking lemons.
It’s the sour taste, which can sometimes causes my mouth to smart.
There are, however, a lot of people in the world who do actually like the sour taste – if you are one of those people then good-on-ya! Because if we were all the same, then the world would be a pretty boring place.
A place where everyone wears the same clothes, agrees with the same things, thinks the same thoughts.
On the other hand, a place like that would be predictable and if everyone in that place sucked lemons, then I would just have to learn to like them.
So, in a place that is controlled and predictable, there would only be one solo ad vendor, approved and vetted by those in power.
I’m very glad that I don’t live in a place like that, democracy gives us lots of freedoms, including the freedom to choose lousy vendors. And that’s where my analogy of learning how to suck lemons comes back into play.
I have never placed a solo ad before – that is, not before Friday the 9th of May 2014.
I’ve done my research, scanned forums and social media for opinions and feedback on different solo ad vendors until I chose a couple to try out for myself.
Advice found from various sources all suggest taking the minimum package on offer from two, three or more vendors. It appears to be common practice for vendors to over-deliver and postings I have read on-line confirm that this is indeed the case.
Packages on offer take the form of number-of-clicks. Some vendors may offer a minimum of 50 clicks, others may have 100 as their minimum.
There also doesn’t appear to be any kind of fixed rule for over-delivery. Comments I have read from satisfied customers indicate over-delivery rates between 10 and 20 percent. But as I have said, there is no fixed rule and these percentages are just rough figures from my own estimations.
Spreading your budget amongst different vendors is also sound advice, which minimizes your risk and avoids having all your eggs-in-one-basket, as it were. Not forgetting, of course, that the whole point of doing this is to measure the quality of the traffic and the amount of opt-ins gained from it.
Tracking therefore, is essential to gather meaningful metrics from vendors, which will help you decide which one will be chosen for a larger campaign, by purchasing a greater number of clicks from them.
On the subject of tracking, I’ve come across three FREE ad trackers:
- Prosper202 – http://prosper.tracking202.com/apps/
- CPV Lab – http://www.cpvlab.com/
- ClixTrac – http://www.clixtrac.com/
Prosper202 and CPV Lab are both self-hosted, which means that you will need to install them on a website you own. With ClixTrac, just create a free account. I haven’t tried any of them out myself yet.
Anyway, back to the subject of this post – solo ads.
Another very important metric is something known as Tier 1 traffic. Simply put, it is the amount of traffic – or clicks – originating from the USA, UK, Australia, Canada…. They all have strong economies and are predominantly English speaking countries. I don’t wish to insult citizens of other countries and apologies if I’ve left out other Tier 1 countries from my short list. I’m only reporting the information that I have found.
So, the best way to learn how to suck lemons – and maybe even gain a taste for them – is one segment at a time. Just like Solo Ad vendors, take small portions of what each has to offer to begin with, because spending a large bite of your budget on the first one you come across could leave a very sour taste in your mouth.
Hi Mike,
Thank you for the leads on the ad trackers. I have not placed any solo ads yet, but I am planning to do so. An Ad tracker will certainly come in useful.
Cheers, Boon
Hi Boon,
Thanks for the feedback.
My solo ads run is due to start today and I’ll keep an eye on the results I get.
You’re welcome for the ad trackers info, helping & sharing is the only way to build up trust as well as an honest & ethical business.
Mike
I don’t like sucking lemon but I love it on my fish. Well you didn’t actually say what buying a solo ad had to do with sucking a lemon but anyway. I actually sell solo ads and the most important thing you need to do is contact the vendor and talk to them.AVk them how they built their list and what sort of offerswork well with their list. You can do all the research you like but until you get an answer from a vendor don’t even look at buying a solo ad from them. There are a lot of bad solo providers out there but there are just as many good ones that have integrity and do everything they can to ensure the buyer has a successful campaign. Due diligence is a very important part of buying a solo ad
Jenelle
Hi Jenelle,
Thanks for the comments and advice on what to ask solo ad vendors. The underlying message in my lemon analogy was to proceed with caution when buying, just in case it does turn sour and even after due diligence. So, just like eating a lemon – control the impact by trying the smallest click package first or – one slice at a time.
Don’t rush things and always measure results. Communicating with vendors should be part of a due diligence process, but to use another analogy, ‘the proof of the pudding is in the eating’. The only way to know for sure is to commit with cold hard cash as any amount of communication, research and due diligence will not produce any factual evidence until an order is raised and paid.
I saw your message in the Facebook group about you selling solo ads and I visited your site. I’ll send you an email to see what kind of deal you can do for me.
MIke
Hi Mike: I really like the format of your blog, it’s spacious feel. In the next iteration, I’m going to work to getting my blog like yours. You seem to have done some excellent research, and I would be very curious to learn of your results. I tested one vendor, did only a little research, to do a est run; may have gotten a 50% optin rate (haven’t separated those coming from solo ads and from website) but no sales. I need to get back to the drawing boards and so more than a little research. The best to you!! Anne
Hi Anne,
Thanks for visiting and for the feedback.
My solo ads run is due to start today and I’ll keep an eye on the results I get and publish the results here and in the iPro Facebook Group.
I’m taking my time with the blog and taking things slowly, the simple magazine format probably also helps to give a spacious feel.
I’ve played about with IM for a while, but didn’t really take it seriously and didn’t make any sales. But, I guess it was probably also because I tried to cram as many affiliate links as I could to websites I created. I now realize that could have put people off and given me “black marks” with Google!
Mike
Hi!
Thanks for share your expierence! Very interesting writing style and I like your comparison with lemon 🙂 it’s juisy 🙂
Thanks for your comments Santa!
I really appreciate that you picked up on my writing style with comparisons to lemons!
I wanted to approach the topic in a different way, rather than just dive in with a static list of facts and comments 🙂
Mike
Hi Mike, that sounds like a good approach to me – thorough research and then thorough testing to separate the wheat from the chaff! I hope the results go well for you and you avoid the sour taste – I’m sure with the way you’re going about it the results and success from the solo ads will follow!
Thanks for your encouraging comments, Rich!
I haven’t yet properly assessed the results of the 50 clicks run that happened this week, due to other commitments. But I can sure hope for nice surprises!
Hi Mike,
I like your title and where’d you find such a great pic!? Thanks for explaining Tier 1, and also I have been paying for Linktrackr for a while, I didn’t know there were free trackers out there, I will check it out! Overall, great post, and thank you for the info!
You’re most welcome Mary – and thank you for your comments.
I’m glad that the information was helpful to you and hope that the free trackers will give you what you need, so that you can save some money!
For the pic, I used a software tool that I bought as a WSO some time ago. It’s called Viral Image Curator Pro (VICPro) and is really a meme creator, but has a built-in search function to find freely available images related to the query that is put into the search box.
Hugh Hitchcock from Web Dimensions Inc is the guy that created it, as well as lots of other software tools ranging from keyword research to content curation and creating silo-d websites.
I’m actually a monthly paying member of his ‘Unlimited Software Membership’ site http://www.unlimitedsoftwaremembership.com/
If you do get in touch with Hugh, I’d appreciate if you mentioned that I sent you 🙂
Hi Mike
You have shared a great analogy re solo ads (actually all of life!). I haven’t got to that arena yet but it is coming up soon. Thanks for the tracking info too. Very helpful. Look forward to hearing more on your experiences along the ipro track.
Bev
Hi Bev,
Thanks for the kind comments!
Yes, it really is an analogy of life, because there are things that we all just have to suffer through – but it’s the way we learn.
Due to other commitments, I haven’t had a chance to properly assess the results of the 50 clicks solo ads run that happened this week, but I hope there are some nice surprises!
I’m glad the tracking info was helpful to you and hope that you make good use of the free trackers.
Hi Mike,
Sage advice. I’ve just ventured into the world of solo ads and, interestingly enough, I’m approaching it as you suggest.
I’m currently in the midst of a small solo (100) clicks to test the waters. At last check, I had 31 opt-ins, so I’m pretty pleased.
Once this one runs its course, I’m doing another relatively small solo from another vendor — “testing the waters” — as you say.
I’m hoping to get more targeted traffic to help build my business. I’ll keep you posted.
Hi Bob,
Thanks for the comments. It’s good to know that the approach I’m taking is in line with the way you, and I guess others, are doing it.
I only had a 50 clicks solo ad run this week, but due to other commitments, I haven’t had a chance to properly assess the results yet.
There will be another run from a different vendor, so that I can compare the percentage of opt-ins.
I’m also hoping to get more targeted traffic to build my business. Hope it all works out successful for you.