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Free Blog Advertising with Entrecard

17 Feb 2008

17 Feb, 2008  Entrecard, contests, networking

entrecard.pngKieranG recently left the following comment on my blog.

“Someone needs to write a blog post about this Entrecard rubbish. I have no idea what it is, nor if it is any help with blog traffic.”

Kieran, this post is for you - and for anyone else who hasn’t already jumped on the Entrecard bandwagon.

Entrecard is an excellent networking tool that allows you to advertise your blog on other sites within the Entrecard network. Entrecard members display advertising widgets on their sites, and other members “purchase” these ad spots with Entrecard credits.

Entrecard credits can be earned in several different ways. You earn one credit when you drop your card into another blog’s widget. You earn a credit when a member drops his card into your widget. And, of course, you earn credits when someone purchases your ad space.

The price for each blog’s advertising space is equivalent to two times the average number of cards dropped on the blog per day. This ensures that for every two credits you spend, one unique visitor will be seeing your ad and clicking in its general vicinity. Purchased ads run for 24 hours, and visitors who click them are taken directly to the advertised blog.

I joined Entrecard a week ago, and I am averaging about 22 visits per day from the Entrecard website. My first ad is just now running, so I don’t yet know how many visitors to expect from ad clicks.

bannerblogginggal.jpgIf you’re looking for a free, yet effective way to promote your blog, you should sign up for Entrecard. You’ll need a 125 x 125 banner ad. Tom Ross was kind enough to create my banner. Feel free to contact him for his rates. Mike Wheeler is another good source for banners.

If you’d like to score a bunch of Entrecard credits, there are a number of blog contests that are awarding them as prizes. Here are a few to get you started.

  • BlogsWeLuv is giving away a blog review and 1,000 Entrecard credits. To get your entry, just participate in their 10 Question interview. All interviews will be posted to the site, which means free publicity for your blog! Earn an additional entry in the contest by dropping your card on their Entrecard widget. Deadline is February 29th.
  • Things By Mike is giving away 1,000 Entrecard credits. You can secure entries by subscribing to the blog’s feed, blogging about the contest, and by dropping your card into the blog’s Entrecard widget. Deadline is February 29th.
  • MeAndMyDrum is giving away 1,000 Entrecard credits. Get your entries by subscribing to the feed, posting about the contest, writing an Entrecard recommendation, and commenting on the contest post. Deadline is February 20th.
  • VikingBlogger is giving away a total of 20,000 Entrecard credits to be split between five lucky winners. First prize is 10,000 credits. Get your entries by subscribing to the feed and blogging about the contest. Deadline is March 14th.

Good luck, and happy card dropping!

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16 Responses

  1. Mike

    2008 Feb 17 1

    Thanks for the mentions, Tish =)

    Entrecard is indeed a great source of traffic and also an excellent place to find great blogs. If your blog sits in a popular category (Personal Diary for example) it won’t take long to accumulate a large number of credits which you can use to advertise on the blogs of your peers…or of course give them away in contests ;)

    One of my favorite features is their stat tracking. You can keep track of how well your ads perform on various sites. Find a few sites where you see a decent amount of clicks, and it’s usually worth it to advertise a couple more times on them. I usually tend to stay away from the higher priced sites (150 credits or more) because more often than not I’m finding I don’t see enough clicks from them to warrant the larger price tag.

    Mike’s last blog post..Diary of the Dead Short Film Contest

  2. Ben

    2008 Feb 17 2

    I have been using EntreCard for a few weeks now and it consistently delivers around 100 to 150 visitors a day. Over all I am very happy with it. Although you do have to take some time to do your own card dropping and such.
    I have also found numerous great blogs that I would not of found otherwise.

    Ben’s last blog post..Leaving the Evilness of FaceBook

  3. Mark

    2008 Feb 17 3

    Thanks for the mention, Tish. :)

    I agree with Mike about the features, one being the stats tracking. The one that tells me how many responses I get through the ads I’ve placed on other blogs is particularly helpful. It is quite addicting, too. I think of it as a cousin to StumbleUpon. The traffic I have received, while good, can be a bit deceiving in that it could be that people are just clicking to get credits. But I’m optimistic that there are some that stick around after having visited my blog. :)
    Mark’s last blog post..Rescue Your Team With Evac

  4. Zath

    2008 Feb 17 4

    I’ve not seen huge numbers of traffic for me from Entrecard, but am hopeful that will improve - but I admit I don’t spend every day dropping cards, I might have a session of dropping 10-20 and then not touch it for a few days.

    It’s all good publicity and I’m hoping new people are finding my site and returning - I know I’ve found some cool sites from using Entrecard that I now regularly visit regardless of card dropping.

    Zath’s last blog post..Zath Links - Volume 8

  5. Tom Ross

    2008 Feb 17 5

    Thanks for linking to me Tish, and the post was really helpful! I think I’m going to try it out tomorrow, and probably blog about the results. I hope that it continues to bring you traffic :)
    Tom Ross’s last blog post..Is There Any Hope of GOOD Traffic?

  6. Mike

    2008 Feb 17 6

    Like Ben I see quite a bit of traffic each day from EC as well. Mark makes a good point that a lot of it probably card droppers, but I have seen an increase in my feed numbers since joining Entrecard, so perhaps some folks do actually stop long enough to read :D

    I’ve noticed a couple other sites now popping up that look like copycats of Entrecard. One of them is run by Adbrite. Had to figure that would happen eventually.

    Mike’s last blog post..A little link love - Week 32

  7. Blogging Gal

    2008 Feb 17 7

    Mike - You’re welcome! And you’re right - Entrecard is definitely a great way to discover new blogs. I’ve added a few to my feed reader after finding them through Entrecard. And several visitors from Entrecard have started commenting on my posts. :) The stats feature is great! I’ve been checking mine like crazy! Thanks for the feedback!

    Ben - Thanks for commenting! I’m glad I found your blog through Entrecard! :) And that’s great that you’re getting so many visitors per day. I’ll have to start dropping more cards.

    Mark - You’re welcome. :) And thanks for the feedback. It’s nice to know what kind of results everyone is having!

    Zath - I agree with you. It’s a great way of finding new and interesting blogs! Good luck with improving your Entrecard traffic. :)

    Tom - You’re welcome. I’m glad you found the post helpful. If you haven’t already, read the comments here. It’s nice to know what kind of results everyone else is getting. I look forward to your post!

  8. Tom Ross

    2008 Feb 17 8

    Yeah I did see the comments, it’s making me want to try it out asap! Take a look at their Alexa rank (entrecard.com i mean), looks like they’re doing incredibly well.

    I’ve just entered your contest over at blogsweluv by the way, what a great idea!

    Tom Ross’s last blog post..Is There Any Hope of GOOD Traffic?

  9. Colin

    2008 Feb 18 9

    I like Entrecard the only thing I can recommend is to place the widget near the bottom of your blog that way vistors have to go though your blog and maybe they will read some of it instead of just dropping a card onto you.

    Colin’s last blog post..Project Wonderful As An Alternative Advertising Revenue

  10. KieranG

    2008 Feb 18 10

    Thanks for this fantastic post Tish! :)
    I’ll be signing up soon!

    KieranG’s last blog post..Direction, direction…

  11. Mark

    2008 Feb 18 11

    @Colin
    Hmm, I’ve seen that strategy on a number of blogs and IMHO it’s not the thing to do.

    The point of Entrecard is to advertise blogs. In order for it to be successful, bloggers must find value in it for them by making others aware of their blog. So it follows the same guidelines of advertising and that is to show it where people will see it.

    It also serves blog owners if they place it above the fold because other bloggers are more likely to advertise on it. They get exposure, you get more credits — it’s a win/win. :)

    If we were to apply to advertising in magazines the same way you’re using Entrecard, then the magazine would fail. Why? Because people don’t buy the magazines for the adverts. Yes, they know they are there, but an advertiser is not going to hide their ad thinking that readers are on the hunt for it.

    Hope this helps! ;)
    Mark’s last blog post..Drummin’ Up Some Link Love #30

  12. amy

    2008 Feb 19 12

    i started entrecard myself a few days ago and so far have run several ads with up to 20 clicks into my blog from my ad. and while some of the traffic is inflated, the clicks on your ad just aren’t. they can’t be. so while a lot of the traffic i get is just people clicking to get the ad, it’s reciprocal and i’m doign the same thing just so i can get some credits. it’s part of the process. however i have had people stop by and leave comments to and even if i only get a handful of people who continue to drop by, that’s good for now. my ratings will improve and i can advertise more etc. etc. i think it’s great so far.

    amy’s last blog post..How Many Ways Can You Cook a Roast?

  13. Jasmine Shanea

    2008 Feb 20 13

    Hey Tish,

    This is a great Entrecard 101 for many. Really useful and I must say, one you start Entrecard, you just can’t stop! Take it from me the Entrecard addict. lol…

    Maybe I should really consider starting Entrecard Anonymous. :)

  14. Entrepreneur

    2008 Feb 20 14

    Excellent post to show those EC naysayers how it really works. Will they read it though? I love EC.
    Jasmine, better let me know if you do set up ECA.

  15. Andrew

    2008 Feb 22 15

    Great intro post about Entrecard, Tish. Glad you’re really getting into it a bit too. I’m not a big fan of all these “fly by night” blog widgets that promise you oodles of traffic. I’ve tried a few and for the most part they’re just glorified link trains. But entrecard I’m impressed with a bit so far and while I have gotten a bit more traffic, it’s done two things for me personally that make it worthwhile:
    1) Introduced me to a slew of new blogs I never would’ve found otherwise.
    2) Brought me a few new regular readers that actually take the time to comment on my posts, thus helping grow my community.

    Since I’m not blogging to make money, the community aspect is nice for me, and the fact that I can actually control what ads show up on my blog, makes it worthwhile. Plus, the guys and gals behind entrecard are continually asking for feedback and rolling out new functionality for it.

    Andrew’s last blog post..Mario 2600

  16. GoandCundaTen

    2008 Dec 19 16

    The good resource should be brought in bookmarks


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