Types of network plans

Most networks will give you 50% of the banner money. However, some will give you a fixed rate. UGO does that. They'll give you a fixed CPM whether you run a paid banner or a house banner. When a network runs out of paid banners, they have to sub in a house banner. House banner normally promote the network or sites within the network.

House banners don't paid anything unless you have a fixed CPM deal like UGO has. The advantage of this is you get pay for all your impressions, not just the one with the paid banners. The disadvantage is the amount you make is fixed. An example should explain this.

Say your tech site does 1 million hits a month. UGO offers you $3 CPM. That means you'll make $3,000 a month. If UGO has a really bad sales month and shows nothing but house banners all month long, you still make $3,000. If UGO has a great month and sell those 1 million banners for $30 CPM, UGO makes $27,000, you still make $3,000.

Now look at it with a network that does revenue split. Maximum PC offers a 50/50 revenue split. If Maximum PC does nothing but house banners for the whole month, you make zero. If they have a great month and sells out your site for $30 CPM, Maximum PC makes $15,000 and you make $15,000 (assuming 1 million impressions).

Another thing to look for is the number of sites within the network. Personally I like a network with a few high quality sites instead of a network with 100's of sites. This was the reason I didn't go with a bigger network like UGO. I felt I would just get lost in the maze of tech sites they have. However, UGO will host your site and getting a fixed CPM means you won't have to worry about house banners or lean advertising months. It's interesting to note that different type of sites has different value. UGO will pay a higher CPM for a tech site than a game site. Also they will give you a higher CPM if you host yourself.  

Some networks do a mix of fixed CPM and revenue sharing. IGN will give you 50% of the banner money or $2.75 CPM, whichever is higher (please don't quote me on this as this info was supplied to me by an IGN affiliate and not IGN). However, IGN doesn't offer hosting. Confused yet? :)

A good network should send you lots of traffic. If your number one referral site isn't your network, then I would question the value of the network. The Tech Zone would not be the size it is now if it was not part of the Maximum PC Network. Since The Tech Zone is part of the Maximum PC Network, I guess I should tell you how to join it. 

Maximum PC Network  is among the harder networks to join. Unlike other networks that will take you if you have decent traffic, Maximum PC will not. Quality of content, traffic and frequency of updates are looked at. If you're interested in joining, they will monitor your site for one month. After that period, they will review your contents and download your server logs to see what kind of people visit your site. At this time they will tell you if you're in or out. Maximum PC does not do hosting so be prepare to budget and move to a dedicated server when you get big enough. 

The producer of Maximum PC Network, Tom Ocampo, receives over 20 request per day for network affiliation and there are still only 14 Maximum PC affiliates. So your site better really stand out if you want to get Tom's attention.

Well, I'm sure this article created just as many questions as it answered and I'm sure this will not be the last time I update it. If you have any questions or comments, please email me. 

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