Here’s a Quick, Easy and Compelling Way to Get More Advertisers for Your Website

An effective way of making money from your website is to practice direct advertising sales or the sale of ad space to potential advertisers without the intervention of advertising brokers or middlemen.

Instead of relying on popular online marketplaces and networks which take a cut of your earnings, you focus on negotiating and acquiring advertisers directly for your websites.

I’m a strong advocate of direct ad sales and have written extensively about it in my beginner’s guide to direct advertising sales. This is something anyone can do for themselves and you don’t even need a terrifically popular website to get advertisers on board.

I don’t believe in giving a large percentage of your revenue to an ad broker because they seem to do so little but take so much. It almost seems odd when you consider how convenient it is for them to earn a hefty commission from a website that you’ve personally built with your precious time and energy.

If you’ve never had success selling advertisements through ad networks like Text Link Ads or Blog Ads, consider dropping them and using direct advertising options instead.

I’ve previously developed a primer on how to find advertisers for your website and now I’ll just add one very simple but effective tip that will very likely increase your direct ad earnings.

Understanding the Potential of Incoming Emails

I receive many emails on a daily basis and each of these emails concern various matters concerning my websites. I’ve come to realize that while the content of these emails differ, a similar current underlies most of them.

Herein lies their essence: These people are interested in either my website or opinion and want to get something out of that email, be it a reply to a question or a mention on my website.

They are interested. They want something. And that something is almost inherently connected with your website. This is what you need to control and use to your benefit.

Using Email Responses to Market your Ad Space

To obtain more advertisers for your website, you need to first of all let them know that you are actually selling ad space. This best way to do this is to send them to the ‘Advertise‘ page on your site, which lists all the different ad options while selling the benefits of advertising on your site.

One way of actively promoting your ad space is to directly contact businesses and webmasters in your niche, in the hope that they will be interested.

The method I propose here is somewhat similar but focuses on converting people who send you emails with questions or suggestions concerning your website.

As I’ve mentioned above, these people have elicited an interest in your website and you need to make full use of this pre-established relationship to push your ad space.

Four Steps in Email-Based Ad Marketing

Here are the four simple steps you can take to start promoting your ad space via email interactions.

1. Check the recipient’s listed website. When replying to an email, check the recipient’s URL (if any) and assess its relevance to your site niche.




2. Include an ad pitch within the body of your email to inform the recipient that he or she can purchase ad space on your site. Provide a link to your Advertise page so they have access to more information.




3. Or include a signature with a link to your Advertise page, if the recipient’s website does not appear to be relevant.




4. Be sure to followup with any email replies or queries that may come afterwards.

There are generally two main ways to promote your ad space to the recipient of the email: either through a email signature or a message directly within the body of the email itself.

I would suggest using a one-liner with an ‘Advertise‘ link in the signature for all types of emails. An example of a line you could use would be “Need more exposure for your website? Advertise on Dosh Dosh today.”

For those with high relevance, drop the signature and include a personalized message in the body of the email. Remember to always go for the mutual benefit angle by suggesting a collaboration and not simply a sale.

Why Email-based Ad Marketing Works

• It’s natural. Replying to an email that someone sent you is perfectly natural and in the flow of things. You’re not sending an unsolicited email to promote your services. Instead your brief ad pitch is subtle and viewed as an ‘addon’ to your actual reply, which is the main topic at hand.




• Relevance is high. You’re promoting your ad space to people who have shown an interest in your website. The use of either an email signature or an in-content pitch also allows you selectively target different recipients for higher relevance. This also prevents you from over-obscuring the original message in your email.




• Complements your actions. Just helped someone a great deal on any specific matter? Don’t be surprised if they decide to take up an ad to show their gratitude. While you shouldn’t expect this to be the case all the time, bundling your actions with an ad pitch can be a very powerful motivator.




• Inform the familiar. Some loyal users might have been visiting your website for some time but never realized that you were selling ads. This is a good opportunity to run a quiet sales pitch by them.




• You target the new. Some of the emails you receive will come from visitors who land on your site through search engines. Usually some of them fire off an email without exploring your site in detail and your reply should give them a clear understanding that they can advertise on your site if they wish to.

Other Email-Based Marketing Uses: Going beyond Direct Ad sales

If you’re an affiliate marketer you can use this technique to encourage more signups for your email list. This gives you a greater reach and more monetization potential in the future.

Just be sure to include information on what joining your list entails and the options they have for opting out when they no longer find your newsletter suitable for their needs.

I don’t recommend using this method to promote affiliate links because that’s tacky and a little too aggressive. If you really want to push your affiliate programs, include a link to a webpage on your website with a well-written list of affiliate programs you recommend.

This doesn’t bode well with everyone so try at your own risk and remember to include proper disclosure if needed.

More Thoughts on Email Ad Marketing..

This method of sourcing for advertisers is largely passive and will work for time-pressed webmasters because one doesn’t have to go out of their way to look for potential advertisers.

The act of promoting your Ad space subtly through email interactions is largely ignored by most people and unjustly so, because it does offer a great deal of untapped opportunities.

If you consistently receive email queries from the public, this method might work remarkably well and will definitely help you to make more money from your website.

For more fresh tips on ways to increase your advertising revenue, do consider subscribing to Dosh Dosh’s blog feed for free updates.