Is Private Advertising Slowing Down?

With the “global recession” still upon us, I have seen a large number of sites switch from a private ad sales model back to an affiliate-based advertising scheme. In other words, advertisers aren’t placing as many ads on these sites, or else they are sticking with the larger brands, which cost more, but give them more exposure and have a well-defined brand.

For years, many bloggers said private ad sales were always better than simply placing affiliate links within the sidebar (whether in the form of 125×125 banners or otherwise). With enough traffic, it would have been easy to convince some of the niche-specific advertisers that your blog is worth advertising on.

Are those days over, or has a change come, where more advertisers stick with the larger sites?

A Change in the Business Model

The main reason behind this change could be a change in the global market during harder times.

1. Price Benefits – When you advertise on a smaller blog, you might be able to target a specific group of visitors, but you won’t see as many clicks, and as much of a return on your investment.
2. Strengthening a Brand – Large companies are sticking with the larger sites, as they have traditionally had larger advertising budgets. The smaller sites/companies have had to stick with just a few sites to advertise on.
3. Over-saturation – Perhaps the “private” ad sales model is dying, or just going through a refining phase?

What Bloggers are Doing

As I have said earlier, more bloggers are setting up their blogs to whether the storm, by creating more of their own products and adding affiliate banners to their site, often for programs similar to the advertisements that were previously run.

The cluttered 125×125 banner-filled sidebar may soon be over. Visitors are looking for quality, rather than seeing a site that is solely out to make money. While everyone needs to make a living, there are often better ways to do it than infesting a page with these ads.

Another main way bloggers are coping with the loss is by selling larger ads for longer period of time. Long-term banner ad sales can be more effective for advertisers, and this is why bloggers can be seen using this format.

Conclusion

What impacts have you seen from private ad sales over the past year or so? Can you say that there has been any change?