Summer Slowdown – 3 media buying tips to surf through the wave

Summer Slowdown – 3 media buying tips to surf through the wave
Crakrevenue-BLOG-summer-slowdown

Affiliate Marketing

Written by

Papa Whale

PUBLISHED ON

July 9, 2014

Category

Affiliate Marketing

CR_BLOG_605px_summer_slowdown

Summertime is here, and you know what that means. The ladies are out and about; the girls are tan, and the shorts are short. Could this be one of the reasons for a summer slowdown?

With summer heating up, this cyclic event, unfortunately, comes with a less-than-cool cool down for webmasters.  It’s not unusual to see a drop in traffic volume or leads over the summertime months.

If you have Australian traffic and you’re thinking, “Slowdown?  What slowdown?!”

Well, that’s because your visitors are from Australia.

North America and Europe are two continents north of the equator ㅡ and you guessed it ㅡ these are the two top converting ones.

We know.  Tough pill to swallow.  We already faced an economic, housing, and environmental crisis… and now THIS?

No need to stress, we got you covered: optimizing your conversion rates this summer will be like a walk in the park.

1 - Keep wise and careful

If you find yourself channeling your inner-mad-scientist, obsessing over new experimentation methods ㅡ don't!  Summertime isn’t always the best time to take a new path to monetization.

Do you normally have part of your budget dedicated to the R&D aspect of new opportunities?  Less people at their computers during these months = Less traffic to track down.

As a result, tighten the belt and spend your money more wisely during this slowdown.  Stick to the essentials and what works.

Nevertheless, it would be a shame to rule out a good opportunity that just happens to have less traffic during the summer.  Your marketing presence should never cease completely; always remain active and never stop taking advantage of any potential traffic generating opportunities.

Leave the riskier business behind and decrease the banner rotation in less rewarding spots, all while still closely monitoring them. If you are working with an Ad Network, ask if you can opt for some nifty additional options.  See if they offer a time target or frequency cap.  Don't think of it as wimp behavior, but rather, strategic adaptation.

In other words, don’t be too adventurous.  Concentrate your efforts on the good, proven spots.

2 - Get the best price for your good ol’ spots!

In some cases, a summer slowdown can be a good thing. The drop in traffic volume usually comes with a drop in competition: with numerous webmasters on holiday and others taking full advantage of this period to embrace and pursue their lifelong lifeguarding career ambitions ㅡ there’s now less sharks on the market!

Indeed, summer is the perfect time of the year to get the best price for the top spots.

Dealing with flat rates?  Time to come to the table and re-negotiate!

Prefer buying traffic per click?  Look for the CPC prices dwindling down as the days grow longer.

CPM bidder, are you? Discover how convenient it is to bid with less media buyers around.

It’s an Internet firesale!

Even with less conversions, you’ll keep a larger chunk of profits thanks to the money you’re now saving on the diminished traffic market.

3 - Use your best banners

Summertime as we all know, is a time for sports.  Let’s talk about golf for a second.  A GREAT banner to a skilled affiliate, are what golf clubs are to pro golfers.  Do you think a pro athlete would leave home or enter a competition without their very best?  No way.  The banner (or club) that the pros use have been tested and proven to deliver, time and time again.

Stay at the top of your game by using the most effective tools.

If you monitor your stats regularly, you should already be aware which of your banners have the highest CTR. Therefore, if you’re displaying 7 or 8 banners in the same spot, pinpoint the successful ones, and replace the rest with the top 2 or 3 most effective ones.

Quality over quantity.  Always.

Unable to determine which banners have the highest CTR?  Ask your affiliate manager!  They have collected stats and data all year long so they know which banners are the true money-makers.  They'll guide you through the summer slowdown by finding you ones with the highest CTR.

In a nutshell - Hang on tight!

Never give up!  And, even after all our good advice, if you can't seem to stay afloat with nice profits this summer, it might be time to have a quick chat with your account manager.  He always knows the best tricks!

This summer, keep your eye on the prize, stay focused on your business, and always wear your sunscreen.  Money’s great.  Cancer, not so much.

Remember, there’s always a way to keep or maintain a good ROI.

Enjoy summertime!

 

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