Hate The Grind

This trick is primarily focused towards those that run discussion forums as it is especially effective in those environments, but it can also be adapted to other websites. Since AuctionAds started, I have been looking at ways to optimize the system to make as much money as possible, without violating the terms of service. This is one of the first “tricks” I utilized on my site, and its been implemented for roughly two months now.

On my car forums, even though it is mainly an automotive enthusiasts community, there are discussions on every topic imaginable. Quite often eBay auctions are discussed, with users asking for other opinions on a product being sold on the auction site. There are also the threads with funny eBay actions such as the now infamous tea kettle auction (who hasn’t recieved that one in their inbox?).

So Whats The Trick?

It was late at night when I came up with the idea to take advantage of this to make some money. What I did was utilized the AuctionAds URL Converter in an automated way. Using vBulletin’s “replacement” system, I am able to automatically convert eBay auction URLs into money making affiliate links. Essentially, every time someone posts a link to an auction, a new affiliate link is created and money is made. So, if you use vBulletin, your replacement rule should look something like this:

href=”http://cgi.ebay.com/

is replaced by

href=”http://ads.auctionads.com/pagead/link_25426ee0db0c7759261b_0_http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/

Of course you will want to change the actual account ID unless you want to donate some money to me. If so, just leave the code as you see it :) As with everything, give it a try on your forums or website to see if it works for you and remember to test it for at least two weeks to see if the clicks convert into successful transactions and money in your pocket.

This same trick can also be utilized on large blogs with many comments. A plugin can easily be coded to automatically replace the eBay Auction URLs in comments to URLs with affiliate information in the URL. I don’t know of one currently out there, so if anyone knows how to write plugins for blogs theres a good idea!

My Results

Since implementing this trick, I went from making around $30 to around $200 per month from AuctionAds. Click Through Rates jumped from roughly 1.5% to over 15%. The CTR skyrocketing was no surprise as users are more inclined to click on auction links when its in a forum post as opposed to an ad banner. On a consumer products based website or forum, I am sure the results would be incredible!

Sign Up for AuctionAds and try this on your forums, I guarantee you’ll have success using this trick.

Other posts you may be interested in:

AuctionAds Announces Two New Bonuses!

AuctionAds eBay URL Converter

Integrate AuctionAds Into Your Posts With Plugin

Got My First AuctionAds Payment

AuctionAds Encountering Issues