Issue 179

One To Click On by Jon

Welcome to the new issue of Hit Exchange News!

What do traffic exchange surfers want?

The million dollar question huh? Since the first time I watched the timer count down on Hit Harvester way back in like 1999, I have always thought we (traffic exchange surfers) were after results! It makes sense right? We are not sitting in front of our computers day in and day out for the benefit of our health. We want results! We want a return on our time invested behind the screens….Or do we?

I'm not sure anymore. I am very active in this business and have been for years but each and every week the traffic exchange industry seems to puzzle me more and more. So instead of Jon Olson 'assuming' what the rest of industry is looking for as a return, I'll ask the question. What do we want? More money? More referrals? More sales? More networking? Maybe a bit of everything…

Post your comments on the forum and feed the beast which is the traffic exchange industry. Let your voice be heard!

Thank you very much for being a subscriber 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

Program Review -- Surf 4 The Earth

Things the make you go...Hmmmm

Advertising Options

The News

• X Day is coming... Traffic Splash is having a very unique contest where one day in June has been dubbed 'X Day'. This means from now until the 'X Day' you have the chance to win huge cash prizes, bonus credits a nd ton of other neat stuff. Here's something that should be commended for actually stepping outside of the box and doing things a little bit differently.
• Forum Know How has already passed the 1000 member mark. This exciting new forum has the entire internet marketing industry talking and for good reason. Be sure you join and pop by the 'traffic exchange' section for some good old fashioned T.E. talk with yours truly. This is doing very big things for our awareness in other areas of the internet!
• I've been getting a few emails this past week asking where the I Love Hits newsletter has been hiding. I have not been able to mail out for the past two weeks because of some mailing script work I am getting done to the system. We've got a few surprises in store for ILH, be sure to stay tuned for that.
• This Week's Splash Page Hall of Fame Entry is this page! Another great new contest from three exchanges that again are trying to do something unique. It's got everyone's logos on it and it really stands out. Not only is this a great page to promote the contest, but it also brands each exchange as well.

  
  
  

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

30%

Nice round number huh? 30%. What does that mean? That is the percentage of surfers I saw in a market sample I took while surfing SWAT Traffic this week, that are using splash pages. 30%! Now here's the kicker, I'm not going to start to say how important it is to use splash pages in your traffic exchange advertising, I have dedicated quite a few issues of HEN in the past about it. I'm going to use that number 30%, and show you how this benefits you.

So we know that only about 3 out of 10 traffic exchange surfers are using splash pages. That translates into a much better opportunity for you to stick out from the crowd. You already have 70% of your competition that is essentially wasting their time surfing. But let's take it even further.

I'm a splash page critic. I know what I like to see when I surf, so I usually only pick out about 1 in 10 of the splash pages I see while surfing as having enough 'eye candy' to make me stop and look. How's that for odds? We went from 30% down to less than 5% (forgive my math) of the pages in rotation that captured my attention. Now I'm not saying Jon Olson is the end all be all of traffic exchange surfers, I'm just giving an example of what I notice when I surf.

So what can you do to stick out like a soar thumb? Hire a professional to design your splash pages! There are some amazing people in this business that design some great pages and it MAY cost you about 20 dollars to stick out from the crowd. Remember, the real 'secret' to traffic exchange advertising is to stick out from the crowd and keep your page in front of people for the long run. You can tackle the first 'secret' by getting an attention grabbing splash page today!

Remember, your competition is not going to do this. They will not invest in their traffic exchange campaigns. Rise above the competition and focus on promoting something unique, fun and that really sticks out.

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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.

Program Review - Surf 4 The Earth

There's something to be said about site design. Even in my article above, I talked about how your competition will not invest in their splash pages, they will not take the bull by the horns and make their web sites stick out from the crowd. Thankfully, this is an example of someone who does try to stick out from the crowd.

Surf 4 The Earth got it's start a year or so ago and followed in the same trend as Hits 4 Hits and Giving Hits. It's a traffic exchange that gives a percentage of it's revenue to charities and causes that tie into the theme of the exchange. Surf 4 The Earth is all about the awareness of nature and follows the theme very well.

As for the traffic exchange side of things, it's a solid program. The ownership behind it is always innovating new ways to spread it's gospel and has one of the better site designs on the net today. If you are looking for a solid traffic exchange where you can give back a little to the world we live in, Surf 4 The Earth has all the right pieces in place.

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

Have a look at Surf 4 The Earth by clicking the link!

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

• Is Web Meld still around? Hmmm....
• Hit Exchange Blog is actually starting to look like a real blog these days. Who would have thunk it? Hmmm....
• Only a few more weeks to go until...The Transformers movie opens. I'm sorry, I grew up playing with these toys and to see them live on screen will be...I'm getting choked up just thinking about it! 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!

And finally, if you know of anyone that would like to receive the News, please feel free to let them know about HitExchangeNews.com as I appreciate all the extra promotion I can get *s* !!!

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

Jon G. Olson
Publisher / Editor - HitExchangeNews.com