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Auction Ads Launches

Posted March 6th, 2007 by Jeremy Schoemaker

auction ads

In the beginning…there was ShoeMoneyAds. Our affiliate system was designed so that users could insert their ad links and then display contextual ads. We built upon this foundation and implemented ShoeMoney eBay Ads. Users who already had a relationship with the eBay affiliate program could now display targeted auction code on their websites.

But as the affiliate system was used, holes in the concept became apparent. The basic system worked but needed some tweaking. Although ShoeMoney eBay Ads allowed users to display ads, the tracking system was lacking and users requested additional features. We had provided a way to use eBay affiliate code but we did not pay out directly. Many users had some difficulty grasping that concept. Another issue confronted us when we discovered that almost 30% of the traffic generated by ShoeMoney eBay Ads was international as thus essentially wasted traffic.

With all these issues in mind, we set out to add layers of functionality within a streamlined framework. Introducing the next incarnation, AuctionAds. AuctionAds is a revolutionary advertising network that allows publishers to create new revenue streams. It pumps even more revenue out of each click. The ads displayed are keyword targeted since the webmaster selects the specific keywords that are appropriate for his site. Even the most focused, niche site can earn money with AuctionAds.

A publisher can be up and running with AuctionAds within 5 minutes which means they are making money in 5 minutes. Each time a user clicks on AuctionAds and then completes an action on eBay, the publisher makes money. The publisher makes money even when the user just signs up for a new account on eBay. They also make money when a user places a winning bid.

Publishers can also make money with the AuctionAds Affiliate program. Within every ad displayed, a publishers affiliate code is automatically included where it says “Ads By AuctionAds�. The publisher receives 2% of any affiliate refered to AuctionAds.

Now we had designed a complete, seamless system for integrating affiliate code. But we wanted to compliment our system with great management. We needed a partner who was experienced with managing a large-scale project. We would need to support users and administer the huge job of tracking and paying publishers.We looked for an established, well-structured company to provide these vital components. MediaWhiz Holdings fit the bill.

Will AuctionAds be the best solution for every site? No. It is a great choice for niche sites. Virtually evey niche site can be monetized with AuctionAds. It is a great solution for many webmasters who are looking to make money on narrow content.. How can a user know if AuctionAds is right for their site? Just like anything else you should test and let the numbers speak for themself.

Disclaimer

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- Comment Likes - Comment Dislikes

117 comments. What say you?

  1. Good Comment?
    angie

    Auction ads can be the 2nd revenue after adsense.

  2. Good Comment?
    Ken Savage

    Hold on to your hats. I predict this becomes a very popular service.

  3. Good Comment?
    praguebuzz

    Does AuctionAds only work with ebay.com (usa) site? I used the ads for auctions from UK and Canada ebay sites. Should I remove the link?

    Thank you.

  4. Good Comment?
    GramBorder

    Hello

    I want to all of you know, World is mine, and yoursite good

    Bye

  5. Good Comment?
    Justin Cook

    I’ve created a free Joomla Module for people to be able to add Auction Ads to their Joomla-powered website very easily:

    http://www.justin-cook.com/wp/2007/03/14/free-joomla-module-for-auction-ads/

  6. Good Comment?
    Nathan Hannig

    Thanks for the reviews guys, Im very interested now

  7. Good Comment?
    Daniel

    yeah the international aspect is a good point, you guys got this one right

  8. Good Comment?
    Jeremy Miller

    I use them. I think they look better than the AdSense ads my site has. My users seem to like pictures better than text.

  9. Good Comment?
    Jack

    I signed up and have my first ads running. Cool platform. May it make much money

  10. Good Comment?
    rob70

    An email I recieved stated 7 days is the tracking time after a click through. The auction end time setting would be cool though.

  11. Good Comment?
    SonicReducer

    I was wondering this too. Does it place a cookie, if so what’s the expiration time?

  12. Good Comment?
    Nathan Hannig

    I like the concept, I will definitely have to try these ads.

  13. Good Comment?
    Daniel

    I guess it comes to what kind of sites you have, product related sites could do really well with the auction ads

  14. Good Comment?
    rob70

    THE BIGGEST QUESTION I DON’T SEE ANYONE ASKING IS…..

    Does the user have to make a buy from that visit in order for revenue to be shared? There should be a time frame like with affiliate links where the user can make a purchase 30 days after clicking the link and you still get revenue. Otherwise, I’m afraid we aren’t going to see much revenue!

    Also, if you can’t do this, you should have an auction end time option for each script!

  15. Good Comment?
    Stuart

    Very nice, maybe I’ll have to give it a try.

  16. Good Comment?
    Joey

    I am a new blogger. I signed up for Auction Ads for my baseball card site. I set up a campaign for baseball rookie cards. The ads that it produces are very targeted. I am impressed. Thanks.

  17. Good Comment?
    Rick

    Trying it at www . spinoff . com

    We’ll see.

  18. Good Comment?
    Mubin

    You are going to be so rich after 6 months.

  19. Good Comment?
    john loch

    Yeah, very true.. I hope it didnt sound too critical. I totally agree that the relaxed nature of Shoes posts is part of the allure. It just seemed that he’d put more effort into the post than usual, so I figured it was intended for a broader less familiar audience ;)

    Its all good :)

  20. Good Comment?
    derrich

    Geez, you’re greedy, Michael!!!

  21. Good Comment?
    ToddW

    It doesn’t hurt to try I know ppl outside the USAin as well.

  22. Good Comment?
    derrich

    I’m all over this.

  23. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    What do you mean? I just bought an Anna Nicole DVD charger that came bundled with a Britney magnet. Was that a bad buy?

  24. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    Nope, you’re safe w/ this and Adsense.

    Check John Chow’s write-up on it:
    “The ads are triggered by the keywords that you enter. Because it is not contextual, AuctionAds can be used alongside Google AdSense. You just have to makes sure the two ads don’t look the same or you may run afoul of Google’s new “look and feelâ€? rule.”

    http://www.johnchow.com/new-ad-network-auctionads/

  25. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    Me too! Signed up and making… well nothing, but I did sign up!

  26. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    Signing up was very easy. Very similar to the ease of Adsense with the designing of the particular ads. I like how I can go in and change the topics on my own. So I just copied the code once and then for each post I can mod the ad in the content to match.

  27. Good Comment?
    TheBusinessMan

    Shoe, great product! I have one problem. Whenever I try to click on your ebay auction ads on this website, my ebay auctions ads or just anyone’s ebay auction ad nothing happens.

    Is their a problem with the script when it comes to trying click on the ads while in Internet Explorer?

    Funny thing, FireFox I have no problems clicking the ads and actually getting through to the particular auction.

    Thanks and Keep Up The Good Work!

  28. Good Comment?
    Michael

    All good points. I’ll give it a go.

  29. Good Comment?
    Maki

    I totally agree .. Shoe’s posts are fun to read because they’re so mellow and casual.

  30. Good Comment?
    Maki

    I think not having a traffic requirement is a good move.. there are probably a lot of small publishers looking to make a quick buck and Auction Ads can fill that gap.

  31. Good Comment?
    Dastar

    I like the geotargeting idea (never have implemented it myself, but have thought about it). Nice work!

  32. Good Comment?
    Amanda

    I found it is easier signing up for something like that then making your own auction site. I’ve seen a lot of places try to be the next ebay althought it hasn’t worked yet i think its better if people just sign up from places like that.

  33. Good Comment?
    Peter

    hey, fyi, the ‘About’ link on your homepage doesn’t lead to an About Us page..currently leads to a demo.. not sure if this was intentional..

  34. Good Comment?
    feedbuzzard

    SIGNED-UP AND MAKING CASH!!

  35. Good Comment?
    Kiley

    Fair enough.
    I think you stand to really go places with this setup. Clean site, clean backend and a insane amount of press coverage already.
    I think you really just ran away with this whole thing.
    Awesome.

  36. Good Comment?
    fivecentnickel.com

    Yeah, I don’t think this would work very well on my sites. Not just niche, but also probably product-oriented.

  37. Good Comment?
    fivecentnickel.com

    But, as with all ad programs, you won’t make much if you don’t have much traffic.

  38. Good Comment?
    fivecentnickel.com

    Yeah, what’s may or may not happen in 6 months isn’t a good reason not to try it out since you can always drop it.

  39. Good Comment?
    jim

    pretty much the same as the standard adsense with maybe a few more thrown in, i dunno if those are IAB standard but they’re enough that you can find one that will work.

  40. Good Comment?
    jim

    100%

  41. Good Comment?
    jim

    dang you don’t play around…

  42. Good Comment?
    Michael

    What are the ad sizes? Are they IAB standard?

  43. Good Comment?
    jim

    I just signed up, glad to see you migrated all the old accounts over, saved me some precious minutes :)

  44. Good Comment?
    jim

    Misspellings are part of the allure of the Shoemoney phenomenon. :)

  45. Good Comment?
    jim

    It sounds like the program is easy enough to implement and so if they decide to ratchet it back to something unfair, you can just leave. Granted, they have to make their own but I don’t see it going from 100% to 10% because nothing stops you from leaving.

  46. Good Comment?
    awesomo

    I placed it on my blog; I’ll test it for a couple of weeks to see how it performs. It looks like a great monetization method for high traffic sites.

  47. Good Comment?
    Brent

    Congrats Jeremy! One question, and maybe it’s for Google and not you but, are AuctionAds considered ‘competitive’ when it comes running them on sites with Adsense?

    https://www.google.com/adsense/support/bin/answer.py?answer=48182&sourceid=aso&subid=ww-ww-et-asui&medium=link#com

  48. Good Comment?
    Cas Thompson

    Great program Shoe. I’ve been running it since you launched on one of my tight niche sites and the only thing I have on the wish list is more control over the keyword issues. I see a fee people up top have already mentioned it so I’m sure it’s in the works. Also, I didn’t notice any affiliate tracking in the reporting area. Could be an over sight on my part. Other than that, amazing concept and execution.

  49. Good Comment?
    Staska

    Great idea. Putting them up on my blogs.

    But I am a little worried if your ads are compatible with new Adsense policies?

    Google does not allow ads that look similar to adsense on the same site, and if I blend Ebay ads to my content, except for pictures, they look very much like Adsense.

  50. Good Comment?
    sabahtravels

    Wow, this is a cool program. I think I’m going to implement it one of my sites. I sell EPL football jerseys.

  51. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    Um… No?

  52. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    This looks great. I’m excited to sign up and start using it.

  53. Good Comment?
    wildbluff_matt

    Good question. Paying out 100% sounds great, but may be too great to last too long.

  54. Good Comment?
    lyndonmaxewell

    Interesting concept. Yet, it seems that it is a great choice only if yours is a niche site.

  55. Good Comment?
    Ahmad Uzair

    That’s shoemoney show’s!

  56. Good Comment?
    rxbbx

    It would be nice if you have the option to choose categories, second categorie etc. and then just display random stuff from that specific categorie. Sometimes its real difficult with those keywords to get what you want. But it looks great..

  57. Good Comment?
    soul-healer

    i dont have any success with any aff marketing. But i will try again and again till i find the right niche to work on. I have entertainment sites that receives almost 7000+ uniques a day and more likely anyone convert. I thing my traffic isnt good enough but i have started working on different niche and hope this Auctions Ads can help me.

    I will work hard to find the perfect solution. Thanks shoemoney for this solution i hope to learn more and more day and start implementing it.

  58. Good Comment?
    rob70

    I got up and running incredibly fast, but wish the Keywords were more powerful. Features i’d like to see:

    – Categories: specify category to select results from
    – NOT keywords: surfboard;-modem
    – disable product description

    Thanks!

  59. Good Comment?
    DaEMoN

    That’s great Shoe, I have just implemented them on one of my sites, Plenty of Vids and they integrate very well in the layout. I sure do think they will convert better than AdBrite or Cpxinteractive. One question, though. Why not make the 250×250 square a three products box instead of just two? They would fit no problem.

  60. Good Comment?
    Dominic Hodgson

    Thats not true, im outside the US and applied for eBay.com and got accepted, I have no special relationship or even a fantastic site ;)

  61. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    mrmike it should show the ads you have targeted within a few seconds of putting the code on the site. If you are having issues please contact support and we can see whats up.

  62. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    hrmm I wasnt really pitching it… more explaining how shoemoneyads had evolved. This is still my personal blog ;)

  63. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    I don’t think eBay has really dropped the ball so much. It just makes sense they would focus more resources on building a backend and keeping that going so that people like us can make nice tools and creative advertising systems for there system rather then try compete with there affiliates. I welcome there program though when it launches. Competition is always exciting and publishers will be the winners.

  64. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    there current is no minimum traffic requirement

  65. Good Comment?
    Kn10

    This appears to be a bug with the system. Ive tested it with multiple people from multiple countries on Mutiple sites. It even happens with the ads here on Shoemoney.com. I’ll report the details to Shoemoney/AuctionAds only.

  66. Good Comment?
    Maki

    That is just awesome.. this will be a huge selling point for a lot marketers I know.

  67. Good Comment?
    Maki

    Just signed up and the site looks great.. will be pushing Auction Ads on some of my blogs. :)

  68. Good Comment?
    Stuart

    Wow, this sounds great man!

  69. Good Comment?
    Paul

    Always nice when these things fall from the sky. Especially when you have some sites getting traffic which you put up not knowing how you were going to profit.

  70. Good Comment?
    State Of Brain

    I have a golf site that is about 80% done, I can’t wait to try these kinds of ads out on it.

    Of course I will need traffic as well. Ah, details…

  71. Good Comment?
    State Of Brain

    Yes, he is still part owner, I read about it over at TechCrunch.com.

    Here is a link: tinyurl.com/ytfplt

  72. Good Comment?
    Kn10

    Will they always just point to the front page of Ebay, or will they go directly to the auction mentioned in the ad?

  73. Good Comment?
    Luke

    Looks pretty sweet. I’ll have to test it out. Congrats shoe :)

  74. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    Very understandable. That is why we have the business model that we do. Focus on growth then use our volume to ensure the best payout possible while being profitable ourself.

  75. Good Comment?
    Gary

    Really Interesting Concept. I’m gonna try and figure out how I can intergrate my newsletter campaign into this.

  76. Good Comment?
    Chris Alexander

    Also, it looks like the link is broken throughout the post.

  77. Good Comment?
    Chris Alexander

    I will definately be trying this out soon on some of my sites. This makes it very easy to come up with more niches.

  78. Good Comment?
    MrMike

    Looks good. Just hope it starts showing relevant auctions by morning. Anna Nicole dvds, ipod chargers, and britney spears bad hair day magnets don’t really fit w/ my niche. who buys this crap…lol

  79. Good Comment?
    Andy Beard

    If you are outside the US, and you apply for the affiliate program for ebay.com, they will almost always refuse you unless you have a “special relationship”

    If you are in the US, I am surprised – just use AuctionAds instead and wait for Shoemoney to add more features.

  80. Good Comment?
    Clarke Henning

    This is very interesting. I just signed up and am getting ready to try the system out. Thanks!

  81. Good Comment?
    Kn10

    Awsome work, Im impressed, the site layout is easy to navigate and work with. The actual ads even look nice.
    A small suggestion/tweak is that make the TOS link on signup a popup or something. The reason why is that after I filled out my details it asked if I agreed to the TOS. I clicked the TOS to read them and then clicked back to go back to the signup page. All of what I entered was gone.

    For those of you looking for the signup link, I took me a few minutes to find as well since Shoe didnt post it. Here are the links:

    http://www.auctionads.com (non-aff) – http://www.auctionads.com (aff link)

  82. Good Comment?
    CPA Affiliates

    Yes similar to CPA but based on Ebays auctions, but you also get paid for new ebay signups.

  83. Good Comment?
    Michael

    Thanks Shoe. Will the TOS change after six months when you begin taking a percentage?

  84. Good Comment?
    Michael

    Ah, thanks! And if I read right above, Shoe is giving out 100% for six months. It should be good, but I’d want to be on top of every penny to see where it’s going. I’m greedy like that. ;)

  85. Good Comment?
    JayW

    ok. . but what’s the percentage?

  86. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    Good points. We are focused 100% on growth and are paying out 100% for at least the first 6 months. At that time we will have a better idea of the volume and tier structure we will be in. The worse case scenario is that you will make as much if not more (because of the affiliate) as any other eBay affilaite program

  87. Good Comment?
    Tyler

    I’m signed up Shoe! Let’s make some dough!

  88. Good Comment?
    SonicReducer

    Just to be clear, this is a CPA type system? To be paid the user has to win the auction after clicking, we aren’t paid just for the click? (sorry, had a few beers everything is a bit fuzzy).

  89. Good Comment?
    Tye

    Cool Shoe – just signing up now :)

  90. Good Comment?
    john loch

    Shoe, wheres the signup button/link ?

    Also – since you’re pitching this professionally, you might tweak the word ’samless’ to ’seamless’.

    Since you’ve gone to this effort, I suppose its time to try it out.. :)

  91. Good Comment?
    ShoeMoney

    We have relationships with every eBay country affiliate program and they are all properly geotargeted and redirected.

  92. Good Comment?
    ToddW

    I need to expirment with this on some other sites… the SM Ads working good.

  93. Good Comment?
    Chuck

    Ummm…and I’m looking for the signup button, and, uh…uh…

    Seriously, it sounds great…let’s roll…! ;-)

  94. Good Comment?
    Kiley

    I joined the minute I saw it on TechCrunch.
    Been waiting for eBay’s program for a while, seems like they dropped the ball.

  95. Good Comment?
    Ryan

    This is very nice. I can’t wait to complete one of my sites that I think this will be a good spot for.

  96. Good Comment?
    Tye

    What happens to international clicks… are they redirected to the international ebay sites?

  97. Good Comment?
    CPA Affiliates

    Glad to hear it is finnally up and running full steam ahead. I will be putting it to use on a few sites.

  98. Good Comment?
    Chad

    Very nice shoe. I think I’ll try this on one of my sites with content that has been difficult to monetize.

  99. Good Comment?
    knupNET

    Awesome shoemoney! I have lots of sites this might work well on. What are the traffic requirements if any to sign up?

  100. Good Comment?
    Dastar

    I am using some contextual eBay ads on some of my sites using the ebay API and I do like the results. I’d be curious to see how it works out for everyone else. :)

  101. Good Comment?
    Craig McGinty

    The look and design has real appeal, just struggling to get it to hook into the correct keywords and display in UK£s.

    I’ll leave it up for the next few hours to hopefully see a change – but will stick with it to hopefully get it working.

    All the best

    Craig

  102. Good Comment?
    Toivo Lainevool

    Cool. I’m signed up and display ads already! Can’t wait for the money to come rolling in.

  103. Good Comment?
    TuBigg

    The bad news is eBay always decline me when i try joining the publisher program on CJ.

  104. Good Comment?
    Tyler Banfield

    I definitely have a few sites that I will be testing this out on

  105. Good Comment?
    Michael

    “Each time a user clicks on AuctionAds and then completes an action on eBay, the publisher makes money. The publisher makes money even when the use just signs up for a new account on eBay. They also make money when a user places a winning bid.”

    Sounds great, but what’s the percentage?

  106. Good Comment?
    Andy Beard

    You missed out on the #1 feature of this system – it gives access to the US Ebay market for international affiliates which I highlighted in my review.

    Also I believe there might be significant cashflow benefits depending on how you handle accounting.

  107. Good Comment?
    Dominic Hodgson

    So is AuctionAds a shoemoney company or did you sell it?, you said you sold it a while ago but this sounds like its YOUR website.

    Cheers
    Dom

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