How to manage all my affiliate links?

[hfloyd]

Hi All,

I am just getting up to speed with my first affiliate site (http://www.GetYourHomeOfficeOrganizedNow.com).

I have read Rosalind's E-book and have the site set up at Content Desk.

My model is an article site, eventually adding blog, forum, and my own authored "e-course".

I have Google Adsense set up on the pages, but want to have affiliate links as well. Since I have a content site more than anything, I would like to have my affiliate links be discrete (a thumbnail image and title), and would like to be able to specify "product" links rather than "site" links. I also want to have them rotating, only displaying maybe 3-5 on any given page, and sorted out by the website section. I would prefer having the ability to mix them up (aka, from different stores or affiliate programs).

I have an account at CJ, but since they don't support product links in their "Smart Zones", I have been gathering the individual links manually. (you'll notice I haven't gotten very far with it yet!)

Anyway, I'd love to have some sort of software that will help me manage and rotate links on the various pages of my site. Any suggestions?

Thanks!

Heather

[Guest]

Hi Heather:

I think you have done a great job on the site design, layout and navigation - at least as far as I have looked.

BUT . . . and this could just be a result of my own response to glare . . . I find the use of the bright yellow background colors to be very distracting. I try to paint pictures (not particularly well, I might add) and one of the suggested techniques of a good painting is to provide areas of "gray" to rest the eye.

What the large area of yellow does for me is to cause my iris to close down and then I have to squint to read the text because I'm not getting enough light to the retina.

I will not be impertinent enough to suggest another choice of color but something muted would be my choice.

And let me please apologize for having my first post to you a suggestion for change. I certainly don't want you to perceive this as criticism. Just some input from another emerging affiliate marketer.

Your site looks very professional - I'm sure you'll do well.

Best Wishes

Jim

[hfloyd]

Dear Jim,

Thank you for your comments. I appreciate that you took time to look at my site and give your feedback here.

I have been wondering about the color scheme, I wanted to get away from all the blue online, and make the site look a little different, but was concerned about readability as well.

Just to clarify, the large expanse of yellow you were describing is the sidebar/menu area?

Heather

[Guest]

I have to mention my favourite sites for picking complementary colours for sites:

http://wellstyled.com/tools/colorscheme2/index-en.html

and

http://www.colorschemer.com/online.html


With regard to your ads, do a search for free javascript rotating banner code. There are heaps. The differences are usually based around whether you want the list of sites to start at the top and work sequentially down, or whether you want an ad randomly displayed.
You would define the image and url at the top of your code, modify the body statement to call the rotate function, and display the initial image. All instructions are usually provided with the code - all they want is for the authors name to remain in the code.

good luck

ozchris

[hfloyd]

ozchris,

Cool color sites. I recently got a great program - Color Impact http://www.tigercolor.com/

I suppose the JavaScript is an option. I was hoping for something a bit more integrated/easy to use, but will keep it in mind.

Be well,

Heather

[Sandra]

Hi Heather,

I find a lot of great free scripts that are easy to use, install, and that work at the following website:

http://www.dynamicdrive.com/

Two other observations on your site, the Site Map link at the bottom of the index page does not work, and second, take a look at your site on FireFox, it displays totally differently.

All the best!
Sandra

[hfloyd]

Sandra,

Thanks, I knew about the SiteMap, just trying to decide whether to create one, or delete it...

As to firefox... Oh crap...

<Be careful as you fiddle with your designs, its SOOOO easy to break them!>

I will look on the dynamic drive site.

Heather

[ajdirect]

Hi, hfloyd I just had a look at your site and although it looks yellow it needs to have substance as soon as you go to the site it should hit you with some interest and not a blank area it looks half finished you could put a picture of something in for now, just to keep your prospective customer looking around long enough to appreciate what you are trying to sell.

P.S. If you realy do want to have all your affiliate's in one place get a site built for the purpose its so easy saves all that work.

Give;s you more time to yourself. Yours Alan.

[Rosalind Gardner]

Hi Heather,

You know, the brilliant thing that you've done, is that your whole site layout and look is CSS-based.

I'm actually rather envious, as I'm now having to go back and do the same with my older sites.

Instead of having to do a global change in Homesite to 1,000+ pages, all you need to do is change a few of the background color and font color elements... ONCE.

OK, I'm REALLY jealous!

Well done!

Cheers,
Ros

[jbildy]

Rosalind,

you can also use CSS stylesheets in xSitePro too. You just create one (I do mine in DW) then import it into XSP via the File Manager on the "Other" tab. You also need to upload it to your server.

Works a treat.

John B