has“I also wanted to have an edge, something that would set *my* Pic Post apart; so I decided that I’d cater to a specific theme.”
In my first installment, I introduced Project: Pic Post and discussed the basics of what a Pic Post is, the type of traffic you can expect from one, why you would want to submit images to one, and why you might want to operate one. Today I will reveal the planning and conceptualization I did before implementing my site:
The Concept
While considering what I wanted to gain from running a Pic Post, I thought about many things. Of course I want to have a profitable site (as my first Profit Project, it has to be profitable), but it also has to be an effective teaching and learning tool, one that I could use to provide you with valuable “hands on” information. Furthermore, as I have many projects underway, it has to be easy to operate and maintain. These considerations deem that it must be a simple yet effective site that could start quickly and grow as my experience operating it grows.
A Reason for Being
I also wanted to have an edge, something that would set my Pic Post apart; so I decided that rather than have a general Pic Post, I would cater to a specific theme. But which theme would I and my readers benefit the most from? Then it came to me: I receive a lot of email from amateur site operators who are looking for ways to get more traffic. These sites often feature a single-girl or couple, and offer the type of unique content that is well suited to a Pic Post. As I had already planned on building a site to provide amateurs with the resources needed
to share themselves with the world, my decision was an easy one, and the AmateursGuide Pic Post was born!
Adding Profit to the Plan
Now that I have my site planned, I need to find a way to profit from it. The easiest way of course is through a targeted sponsorship program. Because I do not want to overload my site with advertising, I will place a banner at the top and bottom of my main page, and perhaps a text link or two on the image pages. To be fair to the webmasters who submit pics to my site, I will only display their banners on the image pages.
Next, I needed to choose a sponsor. I wanted one that allowed blind text links, and as I hoped surfers would bookmark my site, having a sponsor that updated their banners frequently was very important. I don’t want my visitors seeing the same stale ads over and over again.
Finally, I wanted a sponsor with a strong “amateur” program to fit my site’s theme.
With this in mind I chose Amateur Playground, one of the TrueCash sites, to be my sponsor. Not only does their site convert well, their 60% recurring partnership program lets you build long-term profits. Also, their “Banner of the Week” program allows me to effortlessly update my advertising; I install the banner code once, then they host and update the banners for me! Your choice of a sponsor will depend on the theme of your site and how well their program fits into it. As Pic Post traffic can be tricky to convert, having a sponsor that pays on text links and click-throughs might be best.
In my next installment, we’ll begin building our Pic Post
