Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Webmaster Discussion
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#1

I’d like to ask the sponsors who are on this forum to share their opinions about advertising in print magazines like Cybersocket and Just Us Boys, as well as online advertising with TraficJunky.net and similar sites. Which ones do you think gave you the best return on your investment?

I realize Old School posted a similair question recently but he was asking from an affiliates perspective and I’m interested in the sponsors point of view. I see that several of the companies advertising in the above magazines and sites are also members of this forum so I’m hoping some may be willing to share their thoughts and opinions about this form of marketing. There must be some value to it since companies continue to advertise there so I’m wondering which provide the best results.

Or if you’re a sponsor who has not advertised in these places, why not?

#2

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Want good value for your dollar see my sig.

#3

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I sent you a private message :slight_smile:

#4

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Since you asked for sponsors perspective I can’t really comment here since I own JustUsBoys but feel free to contact us with any questions you may have.

Thanks,
Mark
mark(a-t)blumedia.com

#5

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I have often wondered how Sponsors can determine their ROI (Return of Investment) in print advertising?

I think it’s a pretty well known fact that most computer users have no idea how to type in a URL. They usually go to a search engine and just type in the name of the site which obviously bypasses any attempts of print advertisers to prove the ROI via special URL’s in the print ad.

Would love to hear how print advertising can prove ROI?

They certainly can tell you how many copies are printed and that’s the end of story yet sponsors keep purchasing ads without really having any clue as to whether they are making any money off those ads or not?

I think all of us have read the magazines we find at the local bars… How many of us have actually gone home to type in a URL or search for that site later as compared to just checking out the pictures.

Sincerely,
Kevin.

#6

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

[QUOTE=mountequinox;112383]I have often wondered how Sponsors can determine their ROI (Return of Investment) in print advertising?

I think it’s a pretty well known fact that most computer users have no idea how to type in a URL. They usually go to a search engine and just type in the name of the site which obviously bypasses any attempts of print advertisers to prove the ROI via special URL’s in the print ad.

Would love to hear how print advertising can prove ROI?

They certainly can tell you how many copies are printed and that’s the end of story yet sponsors keep purchasing ads without really having any clue as to whether they are making any money off those ads or not?

I think all of us have read the magazines we find at the local bars… How many of us have actually gone home to type in a URL or search for that site later as compared to just checking out the pictures.

Sincerely,
Kevin.[/QUOTE]

It’s almost impossible to determine the effectiveness of an advertisement in a printed magazine.

Even when people don’t visit your site, it will help you to build your brand name. Aussiebum advertises a lot in printed magazines. When people see their ads, they probably don’t run to the store to buy a pair of their underwear. However, the next time they want to buy underwear, they remember Aussiebum and might consider to buy their stuff.

Some websites that advertise in printed press, use a specific url to measure their ROI. For example http://www.yourdomain.com/jub
If you give them a reason (discount, free stuff) to type in that url, it enables you to see how many came from JUB. But still… it doesn’t give you 100% insight of course.

#7

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I agree 100%… They aren’t expecting 100% ROI per advertising medium they are investing in name recognition.

[QUOTE=pocoloco;112384]Some websites that advertise in printed press, use a specific url to measure their ROI. For example http://www.yourdomain.com/jub
If you give them a reason (discount, free stuff) to type in that url, it enables you to see how many came from JUB. But still… it doesn’t give you 100% insight of course.[/QUOTE]

Off all your friends who aren’t in the tech field how many have you witnessed actually type in a specific URL? I can’t even begin to tell you the number of times I have seen people at Google typing in URL’s rather than just typing them in directly. Do you really believe that is an even remotely effective measure to track ROI.

I just find it amazing that when it comes to online advertising where it can be tracked all advertisers expect a high ROI… Yet, in print media it’s an I’ll be damned mentality and just keep spending month after month…

Sincerely,
Kevin.

#8

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I think all of my friends are just typing the url in their browser bar. Maybe some older people (my parents in law come to mind) type it in Google.

It might be different with Americans though. Even when I go to www.google.nl and search for “Assiebum”, their .com site comes up in the SERP, then I am seeing their wikipedia page, twitter account and so on. Aussiebum.nl isn’t on the first page in Google, so if someone wants to go to Aussiebum.nl they just type in the url.

I think we (people living in non English speaking countries) have been “trained” to type in the url - in order to get to a site in our own language.

Another way to track the effectiness is to ask people how they came to your site during their sign up process, but I know for myself that I don’t bother to fill in such things. I just leave it on the default choice or randomly click one of the options.

#9

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

It really comes down to what you are advertising. I sell adverts on GayDemon.com which for some sponsors works out very well but not for others. For example I would never recommend a sponsor who wants to sell underwear, toys or dating to buy my adverts as they won’t convert and pay for themselves. But if its a paysite with high PPS it will probably work out very well as their “cost” per sale is high.

I’ve never believed in Printed Mag --> Online Site. Very few people would remember and save a magazine just so that they can type in and visit a website. If I had to choose advertising for my own web site I would stick to online media which is always going to be cheaper anyway and will have options for all budgets.

#10

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I’ve considered several avenues, but of course the main problem with print advertising is that it can be difficult to assess the impact it has unless you include some form of promotional aspect that you can use as an identifier.

I still plan to run some advertising in a couple of UK gay mags, with a promotional offer, and I’m considering a couple of ads for targeted UK traffic on sites too, but I need to get my act together on both and find the time to actually do it.

As for sponsors not advertising in those places, there could be plenty of reasons. I’m not a sponsor, but I wouldn’t advertise any of my businesses with CyberSocket for example, because of their reputation and their association to Lawley. While that might be more relevant to webmasters, there are plenty of people who now know the problems with .XXX who are not in the business, and I wouldn’t want my brands mixed up in that.

#11

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Definitely agree. There’s a lot of advertising out there these days that does not work for ROI in the short term, but it is about brand promotion rather than sales.
Over time, if you can keep spending consistently in the same places, to the same audience, you become more familiar to them and you gradually see an increase in sales.

I think a lot of businesses think that advertising is just a matter of the revenue generated covering the cost of the ad for a week. They only focus on the short term profit from an ad and placement.
It’s definitely not that simple and needs monitoring over several weeks or months with consistent promotion to finally be able to make a judgement on whether it has been worth the investment.

#12

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

For anyone who’s looking to get to know more about Traffic Junky and what we have to offer; we will be at the Phoenix Forum next week & will be more than happy to chat with everyone!

We will be sharing a poolside suite with the lovely gents of Men.com; so come by & say hi! If anyone wants to set up a meeting; please PM me on here, or email me @ [email protected]

:slight_smile:

#13

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

[QUOTE=julz_x;112404]For anyone who’s looking to get to know more about Traffic Junky and what we have to offer; we will be at the Phoenix Forum next week & will be more than happy to chat with everyone!

We will be sharing a poolside suite with the lovely gents of Men.com; so come by & say hi! If anyone wants to set up a meeting; please PM me on here, or email me @ [email protected]

:)[/QUOTE]

Highly recommended Traffic Junky. :slight_smile:

#14

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Print is for branding. Branding takes time and money. One ad wont cut it. You will need a series of ads over a long period of time. Branding can help back up and aggressive web campaign. I would get your web campaign going then look into branding at a later time.

#15

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

The fancy url’s such as Badpuppy.com/magazinename does not give you a true sense since we’ve found most just type in the root anyway. However for the last roughly 14 years of or nearly 17 online, since we began advertising in print and even some paid advertising spots, we’ve offered a “How did you hear about Badpuppy” with a drop down window and most all users won’t just go with the first one, they truly go through and look and select. So if they take the time to scroll down and say they heard about us from a specific magazine, we really have no real reason to doubt them. Is it 100%? NO and nothing will be, but I can tell you that we have enjoyed success over the years with print magazine advertising. We just need them to remember one word, “Badpuppy” and whether they type that in the browser line or at Google and submit, well there we are. So it’s about branding your name in the minds of the readers. So be crafty with your ads, don’t do one time ad runs and change up the models with every ad. It has been my job to brand the name of Badpuppy since 1996 and whether it be in print, online, at bars or club events, industry events, give aways, etc… if done right, it will pay off for you.

#16

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I failed to mention that the “How did you hear about Badpuppy” is a part of the order process and not just a poll on the site. They select this information upon sign up.

#17

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Yeap, simple Marketing 101 never changes.

#18

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

Good point, but that really is down to good branding and a excellent easy name to remember. In your case and probably in my own with GayDemon, it’s more about the brand and name than what type of advertising. They remember Badpuppy because of the name, not because of the advert or?

That would simply not work with for example, LatinGangBangBus.com… or whatever site names people are forced to use now days.

Oh and may I commend you on doing a bloody good job with the branding! Very admirable. (didn’t know you been working on that all this time!)

#19

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

I have used JUB, CS and TJ - and i am a fan of online marketing so you can fully track the results. However, for branding, i prefer print :slight_smile:

#20

Re: Cybersocket vs JUB vs TrafficJunky, etc.

[QUOTE=gaydemon;112474]Good point, but that really is down to good branding and a excellent easy name to remember. In your case and probably in my own with GayDemon, it’s more about the brand and name than what type of advertising. They remember Badpuppy because of the name, not because of the advert or?

That would simply not work with for example, LatinGangBangBus.com… or whatever site names people are forced to use now days.

Oh and may I commend you on doing a bloody good job with the branding! Very admirable. (didn’t know you been working on that all this time!)[/QUOTE]

You’re absolutely right Bjorn. When you go beyond 3 or 4 words in a url, it’s far more difficult to brand that site, especially in means other than online. I think people remember the badpuppy name, due to not just the name, but our logo, which makes it stick in their heads.

Thank you for your very kind words Bjorn, they mean a great deal to me. You’ve made my day! I’ve done my very best at getting our name out there in every media that would accept it, even in Radio advertising for awhile. Radio is much like print, it’s the consistent crafty ads, multiple times a day, every day for at least a monthly run or more, to gauge some sort of response. It was determined that the Radio advertising did not do as well as we’d hoped. In my many years in speaking on seminar panels since 1998, it’s the panels about branding and means for good brand name recognition that I’ve enjoyed the most and feel that I’ve been the most helpful to those attending, in particularly the newer companies or webmasters.

Yes, I’ve been doing this for what seems like forever. Thus the reason that several of my long time friends, who are also business associates, lovingly nick named me Grandma Porn, so maybe that should be Grandpa Porn, since I seem to have become a Gay man in a woman’s body and have totally learned to think like a Gay man.! :wink: