By Rich 34 Comments

Over the past few weeks several companies reached out and asked me if I sell advertising space on Direct Response or do paid reviews?    The answer is unequivocally no!

While I’m flattered that people would like to advertise on DirectResponse.net,  I simply cannot allow it.  Advertisements on blogs devalue the authenticity of your message.  I don’t feel comfortable placing an ad on Direct Response from a company that I haven’t personally worked with.  What if their service sucks?  Or even worse, what if it’s a scam and one of our readers gets harmed.

Luckily I’m in the financial position to avoid the advertising pitfall.  You know the blog type, with Ryan Eagle Blam Ads splattered all over it, or 8 125×125 flashing banners.  How about the popup “give me your email address and you’ll get my ebook” shit.  Damn, half the time I’m reading those blogs on my iPad and I have to exit off the page because I can’t find the “x” on the popup.

How about the blogger that gains access to your email and inundates you with promotions!  My friend DK recently promoted “The Magic Bullet” to his email list.  I had to unsubscribe to DK’s emails because I was getting flooded with bs about “The Magic Bullet” program, which appears to be a biz opp scam.  Come on DK, seriously?

There are so many better ways to monetize your traffic.  I monetize Direct Response through referral agreements I have in place with many of the vendors I discuss.  After I conduct my independent due diligence on a value added service, I reach out to setup these contracts.  Several companies I list on DirectResponse.net do not entertain referral agreements, however I still promote their businesses.  Why?  Simple, these companies provide value to direct response marketers.

Another great way to monetize your traffic is to offer a consulting service to your readers.  We quickly vet those that are serious about building campaigns and running traffic by requiring $350 for 1 hour consultations.  Nearly everyone that has money quickly retains our staff for a campaign.

So far the referral agreements and consultation fees place this blog at a 6 figure revenue stream.  This cracks me up because the purpose of the blog was to bring together the best minds in the space – not to turn a profit.

The only banner on the site is Chris Rugh’s Custom Toll Free service.  Chris is a friend of mine that hooked me up with a vanity telephone number: 800-923-1111.   In return I added a link to his website.  His vanity telephone service is awesome, and it’s a great tool for direct response marketers.

What are your thoughts on allowing advertisements on blogs?  Are we remiss?  Do you think the message gets diluted?