Running a private ad network with custom Amazon ads

3 replies
My properties across the web are now getting enough traffic from SEO that I think it's time to start aggressively monetizing. My primary site is on contract with a private-label ad network. I'm not making a ton of money here, but it's a steady monthly rate and I loath walking away from that. I am, however, observing how they are operating and what ads are displaying.

It seems as if their base ad inventory are links from major networks like LinkConnector and Pepperjam. To that, they've added their own clients, presumably on a pay-for-impressions basis.

I have a secondary site in a similar niche that is getting a consistent 50 or so uniques per day from Google that I want to experiment with. I've used OpenX in the past, and it seems like a viable platform to begin my own internal ad network. My plan right now is to go through Amazon's "Best Sellers" listing for areas in my niche, and create a series of a half dozen or so custom ads for those products. I then want to rotate these ads on my sites and see what is performing the best. The tracking will be a challenge - I'll have to set up 10 or so Amazon tracking IDs to test conversion, and keep records as to when each ID is tied to each ad.

I've got a request in to Amazon.com to see if they will allow me the use of their name and logotype in my ads (as in "buy on Amazon.com"), as I strongly suspect their logo on the ad will increase conversions. Even if this is not granted, though, I intend to go ahead without using their name.

Has anyone here had experience in running commission-based ads through OpenX? What tools did you use to measure CTR and conversions on an ongoing basis?

I plan to update this thread as my experiment progress, so if you have any questions, shoot.
#ads #amazon #custom #network #private #running
  • Profile picture of the author zeplin169
    Originally Posted by Capitalist_Pig View Post

    My properties across the web are now getting enough traffic from SEO that I think it's time to start aggressively monetizing. My primary site is on contract with a private-label ad network. I'm not making a ton of money here, but it's a steady monthly rate and I loath walking away from that. I am, however, observing how they are operating and what ads are displaying.

    It seems as if their base ad inventory are links from major networks like LinkConnector and Pepperjam. To that, they've added their own clients, presumably on a pay-for-impressions basis.

    I have a secondary site in a similar niche that is getting a consistent 50 or so uniques per day from Google that I want to experiment with. I've used OpenX in the past, and it seems like a viable platform to begin my own internal ad network. My plan right now is to go through Amazon's "Best Sellers" listing for areas in my niche, and create a series of a half dozen or so custom ads for those products. I then want to rotate these ads on my sites and see what is performing the best. The tracking will be a challenge - I'll have to set up 10 or so Amazon tracking IDs to test conversion, and keep records as to when each ID is tied to each ad.

    I've got a request in to Amazon.com to see if they will allow me the use of their name and logotype in my ads (as in "buy on Amazon.com"), as I strongly suspect their logo on the ad will increase conversions. Even if this is not granted, though, I intend to go ahead without using their name.

    Has anyone here had experience in running commission-based ads through OpenX? What tools did you use to measure CTR and conversions on an ongoing basis?

    I plan to update this thread as my experiment progress, so if you have any questions, shoot.

    Subscribed to the thread, will follow with interest =)

    Good luck
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    • Profile picture of the author Capitalist_Pig
      Amazon responded to me... Worthless customer service, in my opinion. Here's my question:

      I am considering building several custom banners to market individual products on Amazon.com to my readership. I'd like to be able to use the Amazon.com logo in the following context: "Buy on Amazon.com".

      Is this use - the use of the Amazon.com trademarked name and logotype in ads created by my own graphics team - permissible under the terms of the Associates program?
      ... and their response:

      We do appreciate your concerns regarding our Operating Agreement and the possibility of using the Amazon.com trademark to create custom banner links for your readership.

      However, before proceeding to create these banners, please know that we are unable to provide you with specific advice in response to your question. I would suggest contacting a legal professional for further clarification in regards to your inquiry.

      Also, you may want to ensure that any attempted use of Amazon trademarks and logos adheres to the Trademark Guidelines:

      https://affiliate-program.amazon.com...trademark.html.

      Thank you for contacting Amazon.com.
      So... I'm left to my own devices. Seeing as my Amazon account is tied to my LLC and not myself personally, I may risk it - at least for testing purposes.
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  • Profile picture of the author Capitalist_Pig
    I created two very simple product banners last night, and saw a click-through in my first 50 impressions this morning. Waaaay too small a sample to have meaning, but it's certainly looking promising.

    I'll consider revealing the site I'm running as a testbed and the ads if there is demand - since I'm using this in a niche that I have an LLC for, any footprints should be limited to that niche - and all of those sites are networked anyhow.
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