Google Ads [LWN.net]

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 2:47 UTC (Thu) by mbcook (subscriber, #5517)
Parent article: An LWN status update

My first thought would be to sell google ad space. For example you could put one on each page
at the bottom of the left-hand bar. You could do that only on pages that are not served to
subscribers (so the anon users would help pay more than now) or even to subscribers also (I
wouldn't mind one in the place I described). I don't know how well your current ads do, so I don't
know how much this would help, but it's an idea.

As for actively courting new subscriptions, I think that's a good idea too. I love the site but you
must not have the word of mouth to grow much (not that surprised, wouldn't think that would
work well until you get BIG like Slashdot, etc).

As for the two week thing, as I remember it was the one week delay that you added that got me
to subscribe. You might want to add a "preview" so once in a while (for one day a month, maybe
random) some subscriber article is viewable to everyone (with obvious markings that it is
subscriber content and a special preview). The best thing you can do is have more original
content (you guys have had some great stuff in the past few months, including the Grumpy Editor
series) to draw more people in, but I realize that probably requires more money making things a
little tough.

As for article suggestions: I love really bleeding-edge stuff. Articles on research/bleeding edge
stuff (you do some of this with occasional KDE previews and such) are always interesting. You
could also set up a series of article (and maybe not open them, keep them pay only even if you
can get them for a one time fee of $1 or something per part) and making your linux desktop
seem more professional (nice themes, handy-dandy little utilities that display stuff on your
desktop, etc). I always saw screenshots of these nice looking Linux desktops with all sorts of cool
stuff, but I always had a hard time finding out what the various programs were and how to go
about configuring the stuff to look that way. Took me a while to find gkrellm for example.

But, keep up the good work.

to post comments

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 2:59 UTC (Thu) by corbet (editor, #1) [Link] (6 responses)

We do run Google ads - clearly they've made a big impression on you...:) The Google agreement doesn't allow talking about what you earn, so suffice to say it hasn't really changed our situation in any fundamental way.

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 3:04 UTC (Thu) by felixfix (subscriber, #242) [Link] (3 responses)

Google ads don't show unless javascript is enabled. I don't see ads on several other sites that would be useful for that reason.

As for other ideas, I personally would have no problem with a higher subscription fee.

About my only complaint about LWN is that cookies expire every month even for a one year subscription, and it always annoys me when that happens.

Cookie expiration

Posted Sep 29, 2005 3:07 UTC (Thu) by corbet (editor, #1) [Link]

Fixing the cookie thing has been on the list for a while. I don't want to put in a far-future expiration for various reasons, but occasionally updating it would have the same effect for regular readers. Fairly easy to do, just needs a bit of hacking time...

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 4:10 UTC (Thu) by kirkengaard (guest, #15022) [Link] (1 responses)

Google ads also don't show if, for example, you use AdBlock in Firefox to block Google ads universally. I'm sorry, Jon. :/ I just find them to be useless to me because I keep no Google cookies, and they guess so wrong on content relation much of the time. But I do plan on upping my subscriber amount. I love the content; it's my homepage. Practically anytime I bring up a GUI, I read LWN. :)

Thank you!

Google Ads

Posted Oct 5, 2005 11:43 UTC (Wed) by skx (subscriber, #14652) [Link]

My understanding is that the adverts that google shows are unrelated to the cookies *you* might have.

Instead they are based upon the page contents, as spidered by Google.

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 9:24 UTC (Thu) by ballombe (subscriber, #9523) [Link] (1 responses)

> The Google agreement doesn't allow talking about what you earn, so suffice to say it hasn't really changed our situation in any fundamental way.

Then start by removing them. Really. This will get you more subscribers, and
that will be one thing less your are not allowed to talk about, which is always a good thing for a reporter.

Providing a ad-free website to subscribers would also increase the number
of subscription.

Google Ads

Posted Sep 29, 2005 15:44 UTC (Thu) by smoogen (subscriber, #97) [Link]

It is doubtful that it will get more subscribers. Most people who are freeloading off of the site will free-load with our without ads. Having talked to several 'free-loaders' over the last year.. they are always going to get around to it... but never do. Ads have never been an issue with any of the 20 or so people I talked to.