Make Money simply by viewing Ads (Paid To Click or PTC)

I've recently discovered a way to make money viewing ads.

A number of multi-level pyramid type schemes exist which pay you to view ads.  They are called "Paid To Click" or PTC sites.  Some will pay as much as 2 cents per ad view.  Others are a scam.  Using a referral system so that other people's clicks ad to your earnings and diligently viewing about 5 ads a day has topped up my account and sure it is not much but it all ads up !

The one I've used is one of the most established, is definitely not a scam and genuinely does pay out.

In text ads and Infolinks - Alternative Pay Per Click

I've recently discovered Infolinks, an affiliate program and pay per click (PPC) network and been trialling it on several sites so I thought I'd run a quick review.


Advertisers will be disappointed that Infolinks appears to focus on publishers and the website not allow advertisers to create an account.  In fact everything is done manually via email with their support staff.


I have been using Infolinks as a publisher, however, with moderate results.  Infolinks claims to be the highest paying context advertising.  However, the revenue per click is as low as 1 cent.  Adsense is capable of generating a hundred times more than that.  However the click rates for Infolinks are far higher than Adsense.  So a direct Infolinks vs Adsense comparison doesn't stack up.  On my site Adsense generates about 5 times more revenue each day.  However the good thing about Infolinks is that it can work together with Adsense and other programs in combination.  Together it can be an effective complement.  It also seems to be consistent based on page impressions, whereas Adsense doesn't work great with low traffic blogs.  


Other things I like about Infolinks is the low payout threshold and regular payments in comparison to Adsense which has a high threshold and confusing payment system. 


However Infolinks tends to be very distracting for users and I've had some feedback about misleading and offensive ad content which is unrelated to the highlighted keywords.


But as a means of generating revenue from a website or blog, Infolinks is worth a try.

Amazon Associates vs Borders vs Fishpond - Website Affiliate Programs and Commission Comparison

A few years back I began an experiment with commission based affiliate programs and began with Amazon.

I started with Amazon Associates and went to great lengths to target specific pages with specific products.  But eventually gave up having made just $3 in commissions for a product that I hadn't even advertised and never qualifying for a cheque.  The problem it seemed was that my websites had a primarily Australian focus and Australian buyers it seemed had bad experiences with Amazon's delivery prices and timeframes.  My Adsense ads were earning far more each day than Amazon Affiliates was worth for a whole six months.

I continued to experiment with other website affiliate programs including Payloadz and Commission Monster, but digital products just don't have the same effect as books and DVDs. 

Anyhow, in the last two months I have joined the affiliate program of Fishpond.com.au.  While I was a little skeptical given that I found the interface for creating ads to, it was not long before I made my first sale.  Within three weeks I qualified for my first payment.  I think they have done a lot in their marketing to make Australian consumers feel comfortable buying them and as a result my websites were a very good fit.  It is great to now see some quality affiliate programs emerging for content publishers.

I have been tempted to give Borders more of a go given its strong brand in Australia, however its commissions are relatively low and Fishpond has the advantage of being 100% Australia.  I also wish that Readings, one of my favourite booksellers would start an affiliate program.

You'll find below a brief commission comparison of the various website affiliate programs for online DVD and booksellers.

Commission Comparison

• Amazon - 4% to 15% (typically 10% for books)
  
• Borders - 5% to 8% (typically 5% for books)
• Fishpond - 10%