Four Simple Ways to Make More Money with Adsense’s Firefox Referrals Program

Google Adsense has a referral program which will allow you to earn up to US $1 everytime you refer one new user to install the Firefox browser. The more people you convert to the Firefox browser, the more income you will earn from your website.

Unlike other Google Adsense units, this referral program allows you to directly recommend products by using action-based text, which directs a user to click through on any specific links or ad banners.

Google Adsense’s Help Center clearly shows that this is something that is allowed:

Actively endorse the products you refer. Unlike with AdSense for content ads, we encourage you to endorse referral products by calling attention to the button or text link. If you believe in the quality of the product that you’re referring, feel free to let your users know! Of course, in line with our policies, you may not click your own ads nor encourage conversions for deceitful reasons.

Why I Like Promoting Google’s Firefox Referrals Program

Firefox’s credibility, usefulness and excellent features is the main reason why you should consider using Adsense’s Firefox referral program. Firefox is really a terrific and secure web browser that I and many others love and you will only be adding value for your visitors, by actively promoting adoption and usage of Firefox.

Secondly, Firefox is a risk-free investment that anyone can make. The web browser is free for download and your visitor will not have to give their personal details or email addresses. This may make conversion more likely to occur than affiliate programs which require initial investment of some sort from the interested user.

If you would like to try the Firefox browser, I’ve attached a referral banner below. Note clearly how I’m openly endorsing the referral product by encouraging you to download and try it for yourself. Don’t be afraid to do the same for your website.

Copywriting Tips for More Firefox Referrals

Writing sales copy for Firefox referrals is not a difficult process and there are some key elements which may help to make your promotional text more efficient.

• Mention Firefox Benefits. People need to know how Firefox will help them have a better and more efficient browsing experience. This list of benefits should be direct and factually accurate. You should also avoid overselling and the use of marketing speak or overly technical jargon.




• Compare Firefox with other browsers. I have not seen many marketers do this and I do think this is one of the most important conversion tricks you can use. People want to know what they are currently using matches up to what you are pitching. They need to know they are missing out on something.




• Include Referral links within Relevant Content. People are more likely to convert when you are promoting your affiliate link within a natural context, such as a relevant article on technology or one on Firefox itself.




• Associate your Site with Firefox. One of the easiest ways to convert users who visit your website is to inform them your site is ‘best viewed with Firefox’, which may indeed be true. Tying your site to Firefox will encourage some loyal visitors to consider using the new browser to experience your site.




• Outline Your Experiences. If you’ve been using Firefox for a long time, it will be useful to include your personal experiences you’ve had with other browsers and your opinions on Firefox. This will give your copy some validity while endowing it with a human voice which evokes empathy.

Four Simple Ways to Make More Money With Firefox Referrals

Here is a list of the four main ways to get more Firefox referrals. Do note that some of these tips can also be applied for all the other Google Referral programs as well.

I shall be writing more on Google Referrals specifically, but meanwhile these four points will help you set up Firefox referrals as an income source.


1. Create a Referral Landing Page or Fan Site

Simply register a generic domain name and set up a website or one-page sales letter outlining the benefits of using Firefox. Make it look clean, simple and helpful. Include your Firefox referral link throughout the copy or use a banner. You should choose to only show ads for non-Firefox users.

I have also seen referral websites encourage Firefox downloads by giving away free software and installation guides or user tricks. While they may seem like fan powered websites, they are thinly disguised affiliate sites whose ultimate aim is to get you to use their referral link and recommend others to their site.

There are some advantages in creating a referral site, namely because you can be used for social media sites like StumbleUpon. Here is an example (screenshot below) of a Firefox referral page, which I aptly discovered while stumbling.

The affiliate links are indicated with red arrows:

2. Write an Article about Firefox

Write about the Firefox browser or its plugins and features. Keep up to date on its developments and publish short blog posts about it. Alternatively if you own a tech-oriented blog, do a weekly or monthly roundup of Firefox related articles, themes and extensions.

If you have written about Firefox in the past (do a keyword search) visit those webpages/blog posts and insert referral links into the articles. This evidently will not work with sites in all content niches. Be very sure that your Firefox article adds value for your reader as well.


3. Use a Referral Banner or Text Link on your Website

This simply involves setting aside some space on your website and putting up a Firefox referral banner or text link. Places to consider include the space above your site logo, your blog sidebar, within the single post pages or in the footer itself.

Remember to include promotional copy (e.g. Browse the web safer with Firefox) as it will help to improve conversions. Here’s an example of a prominent ad banner strategically placed among content.

Note the use of a recommendation tagline too:

You may also want to consider only targeting the right visitors. Here is a PHP code that will only shows ad banners or links to non-Firefox users:

<?php
if(strpos(@$_SERVER['HTTP_USER_AGENT'],'Firefox') === FALSE) {
?>
<INSERT FIREFOX REFERRAL CODE HERE>

<?php
}
?>

Just place this code on any location on your website and the ad will only be seen by visitors not using the Firefox browser.

You can also use a simple CSS hack to display a simple text message for users who are not using the Firefox toolbar. This can be inserted right at the top of your website or on individual post pages as well.

Click here to get the code (taken from Sizlopedia) and remember to download the firefox icon and upload it to your own server. If you are using a Wordpress blog, insert this code before </head> in your header.php file.

Here’s a screenshot of the ad in action, at the very top of Dosh Dosh.

Alternatively, you might like to use Explorer Destroyer, a script that is considerably more aggressive, when it comes to promoting the use of Firefox to your site visitors.


4. Target Social Media Channels and Communities

Less web savvy communities are good places to acquire easy conversions. This would work best if you have a referral website/landing page, which will make it far easier to share your referral link.

Places to consider include forums, social video sites like Youtube, networking sites like FaceBook, Bebo or Myspace or even free online dating websites or community-driven info sites like Yahoo Answers.

If you are adventurous enough, there are literally hundreds of quality sites which will allow you to interact with others or drop a discreet link to your referral page.

This trick here is not to spam, but to connect with others on high traffic websites and share your link in a relevant context.

More Firefox Referral Marketing Tips

Some common sense guidelines apply: For your flagship website, don’t push Firefox too hard because it may irritate your visitors and hurt your brand. It’s more appropriate to promote Firefox harder on sites you care less about.

Most of the Firefox marketing methods are variations of the four points I’ve mentioned above. Want more creative ideas? Check out the Firefox marketing section in the Spread Firefox website.

While they focus on non-affiliate promotions, some of the tactics suggested can be easily applied for your own Firefox referrals conversion plan.

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