The Pros and Cons of CPM Advertising
I've seen reviews of ad networks popping up lately and frankly, I'm surprised these networks need any publicity at all.For example, The Blog Herald has a nice overview of Fastclick, a cost-per-thousand (CPM) ad network used by all sorts of publishers (full disclosure: I feature ads from Fastclick and other CPM networks on some of my sites). Some of the reader comments following the Blog Herald overview show a surprisingly low level of CPM knowledge among bloggers/small publishers. It would appear that many believe cost-per-click (CPC) campaigns are their only advertising option.
Not true!
If your site attracts 3,000 or more impressions per month, a CPM network could bring in reasonable supplemental income -- perhaps a couple bucks per day for sites with good traffic. Better still, CPM campaigns do not (in general) violate the AdSense and Yahoo Publisher terms of service. CPC networks, such as those from Google and Yahoo, don't view CPM networks as a threat because CPM ads don't rely upon contextual relevancy to serve ads. In other words, CPC and CPM are apples and oranges, and neither the apples nor the oranges care if the other hangs out in the same orchard (sorry, fruit metaphor).
Note: Some CPM networks have ventured into the contextual advertising market. Before you feature CPM campaigns on your site, make sure you have opted out of your CPM network's contextual campaigns. When in doubt, ask your CPM network for clarification. I cannot stress this enough. Google and Yahoo do not take contextual threats lightly. You will face stern punishment, including dismissal, if you violate the CPC networks' terms of service.
Moving on ...
CPM networks, while often worth the time and effort, do have some notable drawbacks:
- The quality of advertisers often leaves something to be desired. When you first join a CPM network, you'll see a lot of flashing and whirling "punch the monkey" banners. Fortunately, most good CPM networks -- such as Fastclick, Casale Media and Burst! Media -- allow publishers to filter ads. But be warned: filtering requires consistent diligence. Those punched monkeys have a bad habit of reappearing under new campaigns.
- The CPM rates are not mind-blowing. If you do the math you'll see that most of your CPM rates are below a dollar. If you were to sell ad space on your own, you could probably earn significantly more (assuming you have willing advertisers and decent sales skills). But here's a positive aspect to keep in mind: Networks do the selling for you, which means you don't have to massage advertiser's egos, nor do you have to engage in soul-crushing cold calls.
I've learned to temper my own CPM disappointment by factoring in a cost-per-hour figure for my time. Ultimately, my return on investment with CPM networks is still quite good, even with the lower rates.
- Banners can muck up your design. My first experience with ad banners was a disaster. My site wasn't built with display advertising in mind, so I plugged banners into ridiculous slots (see Filmfodder circa 2001 -- it's ugly incarnate). I eventually redesigned the site so content could co-exist with banners. The results, and the revenue, are much better (see Filmfodder today). I still won't win any design awards, but at least the ads have a defined space.
Related Resource:
-- Mac SlocumMore Recent Stories:
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