Issue 161

One To Click On by Jon

Welcome to the new issue of Hit Exchange News!

Stop stop stop! I just read an update from a traffic exchange that basically said this 'unique traffic is the most important factor for deciding which exchange to use'. No no no! Please folks, if you can learn anything from Hit Exchange News, understand that unique traffic and it's importance in the traffic exchange industry is the biggest myth that some owners have been trying to throw your way for years.

I even logged into another exchange to find out the factors for getting listed in their downline builder is unique traffic. Garbage! Let's put it this way, if you had 100 new people coming to your site every day only once, how effective is your advertising message? Anyone that studies advertising knows that it take multiple impressions of any given ad to make an effect. Remember that old saying about it takes 7 times to get your message across, bingo!

Unique traffic is not going to help you. Neither is 5% unique traffic. However you should be looking for a healthy mix. A traffic exchange delivering between 30-70% unique is perfect. Some of the ones that deliver higher unique percentages, try to use your banners to increase awareness so that your message is seen more than once per day. Don't believe the hype!

Have a great week and enjoy Hit Exchange News!

Jon Olson
The Traffic Exchange Guy

Want to have your say? Do you agree, or disagree? Why not visit the Net Marketing Forums and join a community of REAL people, building ideas and businesses...Together!

In This Issue

The News

The HEN Top Ten

Deep Thoughts

Voices of the TE Industry

Program Review -- Magnify Traffic

Things the make you go...Hmmmm

Advertising Options

The News

• Link Crews got a brand new site design and logo this past week. Expect lots of promotions from Link Crews in the next few weeks as they attempt to bring back awareness to one of the most unique and fun traffic exchanges out there.
• Smiley Traffic hit 15,000 members this past week. Now if we could only convince Vern to get rid of the auto surfing, my what a treat that would be!
• Want $250 bucks? It looks like Royal Surf and Traffic At The Races have partnered up to give away $250 to the member that brings in the most referrals. Not a bad little paycheck for promoting two of the better traffic exchanges on the net huh?
• This Week's Splash Page Hall of Fame Entry is this page...Errrr banner! This is great! I love the creativity and the 'shock and awe' about this campaign. Very cool designs and a really great way to brand your name.

  
  
  

The HEN Top Ten results are based on traffic statistics (unique hits, traffic flow, hits delivered, traffic quality) and a touch of good old fashioned 'opinion'. The industry changes just like in the real world, so an exchange may not be on the list this week, but will be number 1 next week! Discuss this week's Top 10 list in the Net Marketing Forum!

Enjoy this week's list!

Analysis and Tracking by HitsConnect.com - The Official Link Tracking Service of Hit Exchange News! Sign up today and get your 30% Discount!

Hey Jon, how come I Love Hits, Click Crazey and SWAT Traffic are never on the top 10 list? Since I own them, I feel it would be a conflict of interest to place it on any of my rankings. If you want to see how well they are performing each week, please check TestHoopla top 20 weekly ranking!

Deep Thoughts - Feature Articles

Deep Thoughts by Jon Olson

Help me! Please!

I've got a major concern when it comes to traffic exchanges and the lack of customer support that exists. I mean, don't get me wrong, sometimes I mess up and miss emails / phone calls, however the chances are you can get a hold of me if you try. Support is one thing, but when you offer support and make it more complicated than it needs to be, you miss the boat too. Here's what I mean.

The new thing seems to get these help desk programs installed. These only exist to frustrate customers. Have you ever tried to 'set up a ticket'? You need to register for this silly little ticketing system which is completely separate from the registration you used to get into the program in the first place. This is not customer service, this is brushing people off.

I know, I will hear the garbage about how much time it saves, yadda yadda yadda. Sure, it may save the program owner time, but what about the customer (remember them?) who wants the answer as quickly as possible.

I detest ticketing systems and it's the number one reason I will never get one on my traffic exchanges. I know I am only one person, but maybe instead of force feeding your members a 'help desk' why not ask them first what they want? I'm willing to bet they will say they want answers quickly...Hmmm, I mean we could always give out a phone number for support too...But that would mean people would get help right away...Hmmm...

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Are you tired of getting little or no results from the traffic exchanges? Learn exactly how to build a successful business using the traffic exchanges directly from Jon Olson! Check out the Traffic Exchange Guy Consulting. Space is extremely limited, only 1 spot left for the month of February.

The Voices of the TE Industry

By Tim Whiston

The Work from Home Farce - Rethinking the Term 'Business Opportunity'

Few people would consider a trip to the casino a lucrative business opportunity. Yet every day on the World Wide Web, thousands of people invest their money into obvious scams claiming to be internet business opportunities.

What comes to your mind when I say 'business opportunity'? This is a broad term that could easily apply to dozens of scenarios.

For example, someone with an interest in running their own restaurant might see a great deal on a piece of commercial property as a business opportunity. And a young person with a pick-up truck and a set of strong garden tools might seize the opportunity to start their own landscaping business.

Of course these are just two quick examples off the top of my head. Not everyone has the investment capital to buy up commercial real estate, or the aptitude for hard physical labor needed to plant large trees and build stone retaining walls.

But there is surely an opportunity for every budget and skill set. Sometimes it just takes a little creativity and open-mindedness to spot a potential venture.

Of course the reality is most people have no desire to be either creative or open-minded. They say they are looking for a business opportunity, but all they really want is a hand out.

Enter the age of farcical work from home "opportunities".

If you spend a significant amount of time surfing the web, you have no doubt seen your share of alleged business opportunities being promoted. In fact, it’s hard to make it through an entire day of being online without seeing phrases like 'turn-key business' or 'proven wealth system' at least a dozen times.

Almost all of these ludicrous programs are built on the premise of recruiting people who pay for the opportunity to make money. These individuals are then required to refer other people to the 'opportunity' in order to accrue commissions.

Some systems use a product or service as the basis of their referral program, i.e. over-priced health products, information products, etc. But quite often the entire business model is based on recruiting new members who then pay a monthly membership fee.

I should point out that any program that relies solely on the membership fees of new recruits to pay existing participants is a blatant ponzi scam. Such systems are illegal in the U.S. and many other nations.

Of course there are ample ways around this in the wonderful world of business law. And numerous companies have found loopholes and technicalities that enable them to operate (often barely) within the legal framework.

But the point of this article is not to debate the law as it concerns the structure of so-called business opportunities. Many programs that are compliant with FTC regulations are still very much scams in the truest sense of the word.

Consider this:

A website promotes a 'business opportunity' to millions of people via the Web. Every individual who decides to join the website and participate in the perceived opportunity is required to pay at least a nominal fee, and usually on a recurring basis.

According to research compiled by the FTC and numerous independent consumer research firms, approximately 1% (and less according to some studies) of everyone who participates in this type of business model ever sees a profit.

But what about all the money being paid into these work-from-home opportunity sites by millions of people every year? How can it be that less than 1% of all these people ever see a return?

It’s simple. This is exactly how these systems are designed to work.

The individuals and organizations that found these dubious opportunity systems and then mass market them to a population of gullible, lazy, and unimaginative cyber citizens enjoy multi-million dollar profits.

In reality, operating a work-from-home opportunity site is much like running a casino. Lots of people are going to pay to play, as it were, but almost nobody is going to leave the floor with any money. Close to 100% of the revenue put into the system by the participants is absorbed by the business owners.

So the only people exploiting a true business opportunity are those who conceive, launch, and promote these programs in the first place. The members who participate in the system are, at best, independent sales representatives and, at worst, suckers caught in the con game.

This is such an obvious fact that it should require no emphasis. Yet people continue year after year to dump their hard-earned money into business opportunity scams, and then whine and moan about their losses after the fact.

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Tim Whiston is a full-time entrepreneur and Internet marketer. He assists small businesses in his local area and Internet entrepreneurs with the development of a profitable web presence. Check out Tim's Internet Marketing Course for more great info.

Program Review - Magnify Traffic

There is something to be said about completely unique traffic exchange scripts. They seem to attract more attention than your everyday commercial script. Sometimes it's warranted, other times it's not. Take for example True View Traffic. This was one of the best ideas to ever come out of the traffic exchange industry and while it was completely unique, it never did reach the levels some hoped it would have.

Round 2! The same guys that brought you True View, have now released Magnify Traffic. This script is another unique shell but it does two things very well. First, it allows people to earn bonuses the more they surf. More activity means better surf ratios. The next thing it does so well is have simplicity. It's pretty straight forward, you surf, you earn credits, you get traffic.

While the site design is not the most earth shattering look, the script is solid. The theme is great, as I feel more 'simple to use exchanges' are needed in this business. And with a slow and steady advertising plan, Magnify could be one of the better exchanges to come along in quite sometime. A solid addition!

Uptime: 5.0
Features / Bonuses: 3.5
Site Design: 3.0 out of 5.0
Customer Service: 4.0 out of 5.0
Ease of Use:5.0 out of 5.0

Overall Rating: 4.0 Mouse Clicks (Rating out of 5.0)

Have a look at Magnify Traffic by clicking the link!

Things That Make You Go...Hmmm? (A 'Different' Look at the Industry!)

• New York Traffic Exchange is offline? Hmmm....
• Both Hit Safari and Max Traffic Pro got redesigns this past week as well. It's the week of the re-design =) Hmmm....
• Splash Points is coming... Hmmm....

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Comments and Suggestions

That's it for this week folks, thanks again for subscribing to Hit Exchange News. Next week we will continue to bring you useful information and late breaking hit exchange news.

If you want to see anything addressed, looked into or discussed, please let me know. This is your e-zine with content that YOU want to read. I value your input and look forward to talking to each of you! Drop me a line here or visit me in the forums. We're building a professional community in there and we'd love for you to join us!

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Have a good week everyone and may the CLICK be with you!

Jon G. Olson
Publisher / Editor - HitExchangeNews.com