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Website Review/Help please!
blondekatie
Posts: 2
Joined: 20 Jul 10
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21 Jul 10 11:01 am

Website Review/Help please!

Hi there, I've been working on my website www.social-media-forum.com for a month or two.

I just want to see if I can make some money from adsense and from the links to clickbank products that I have on some of the pages. It is on the first page of google and yet I am getting little traffic or interaction in the forum.

What am I doing wrong?!

Any comments or suggestions would be much appreciated as I am new to all this!

Katie
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sonitin
Posts: 152
Joined: 26 Apr 07
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21 Jul 10 12:04 pm

 Ok katie, here are few things that I noticed and might be part of the problem.

You are way down towards the end of Google page 1 for social media forums, I dont think that will drive a lot of traffic. May be 10-50 visits a day depending on keyword volume etc.

When I land on your site, it doesn't looks like a forum at all. Take a look at affilorama forum.

Also, most people come to forums looking for solutions to a problem or to post a new problem. You need to facilitate that, check out Yahoo answers layout for more ideas on this.

Just my 2 cents..
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faradina
Posts: 1895
Joined: 01 Jun 09
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21 Jul 10 12:06 pm

 Based on what I see of your Alexa traffic rank, traffic indeed seems to be a problem for your site. However, it is barely two months old so you should give it a little time and continue to build backlinks and add content.
Re: the sidebar, it would be best to not put the google ads near the top. It somehow comes across as spammy. You should place it elsewhere.
Does your wordpress theme have a no-sidebar template? Your forum section will look so much better without the sidebar.
In general, your site is a well-built one. It's easy on the eye. Just tweak it a little for better presentation.
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blondekatie
Posts: 2
Joined: 20 Jul 10
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21 Jul 10 1:37 pm

 Hi guys, thanks for your comments, they are really helpful - it's always good to have a fresh opinion!

I just had a look at Yahoo Answers so I've got a few ideas to make it look more forum-y.

I did think the ad box looked a bit spammy where it is, but if I move further down the page then aren't people less likely to click on it? I feel like I need to make it as easy as possible for people to click on it, otherwise how do I monetise the site? Or would you recommend focusing on the clickbank products?

Thanks so much
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sonitin
Posts: 152
Joined: 26 Apr 07
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21 Jul 10 3:44 pm

 If you are looking to monetise from adsense then you need to wait some time before traffic builds up. 50-100 visitors a day are not going to make you anything substantial using adsense.

If you are focusing on clickbank, you should try to do product reviews or recommend clickbank products thru articles. Once again banner ads will work only when you have some volume coming.
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PremiumMember
jmpruitt
Posts: 3918
Joined: 19 Jun 09
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21 Jul 10 4:07 pm

 Hey, nice looking site. i agree do away with the adsense or at least move it down. A forum is about building a community. Look at how many ads are around here. yet they make a bit of money off of this forum I bet.

Don't focus on people leaving your forum through ads, focus on keeping them there and building up a relationship with them. it takes time, but you will make more in the long run.

I have a forum that i use regularly with no banner ads or adsense. he has his products in a signature, and occasionally posts an article with a link to a product. he also has a for hire section for people that want to offer services that help people build their businesses. I actually have run several of my own services from there.

Right now, focus on adding content and building your community. You won't make any money if people don't come and join you.
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