To Ad or not to Ad?

[techieMoe]

That is the question. Or rather, the topic. For some reason unbeknownst to me, my site was recently RSS subscribed to LinuxToday.com. This has resulted in an inordinately large amount of traffic on my site, and although it has yet to result in any increased hosting costs, there is a possibility.

My question to you all is, do you think it's worth putting an ad or two on my site to see if I can gain a little revenue from some of these unexpected visits? Would this make me a "sell out," and should I care?

I'm a fan of the clean look on my website, so the hypothetical ads would certainly need to blend in somehow. What are all your thoughts on the matter?

[oz]

I personally don't find properly placed text ads overly bothersome, but graphical banners can be really annoying.

[bigtomrodney]

Adsense is your only man. Unobtrusive and relevant. I don't even bother adblocking them

Though banners on the other hand aren't great. As long as they don't steal your focus or hog the clientside bandwidth then everyone is happy.

[techieMoe]

I was already thinking of something text-based. I generally find them inoffensive on other sites.

[elija]

Everyone has to make a living. If ads help then there is nothing wrong with
that.

[techieMoe]

I think I might start with a small box of AdSense text ads at the bottom of my rants and see where that gets me. If a few months pass and I've only make $1.29 I'll either change my ad service or scrap the idea entirely.

Google AdSense holds off on cutting you a check until you have at least $100 in revenue. Even if it took me 6 months to get to that point I'd have paid to host my site for the whole year, so it's worth a shot.

[fingal]

Yes I think ads are the way to go. Online publishing is a growing field, and if you can pay for it that way do it man.

[geese]

Yes, ads can help pay for your site. And as long as they are not intrusive it shouldn't be a bother.

[cousinlucky]

Two cents from the computer Illiterate old man, if you please!!

TechieMoe, whereas you are an " authority with vast knowledge " I would think that the products that you would recommend to people would be glad to pay you to advertize on your website.

However placing ads for products that you do not believe in on your website; would only damage your integrity and fine reputation.

Some of the websites that I visit for intellectual content disgust me with ads for liquor and such. There are websites that I have stopped going to because I find the advertizing so tasteless and objectionable.

I would also recommend you hire a lawyer to go over the " fine print " of any ad agreements that companies wish you to sign.

Sorry for intruding here!! Good Luck!

[rogcollins]

It is an honor to get genuine targeted traffic on the Internet. Congratulations on the increased popularity and of course if you can make some money from it do it. Money is good.