Review: Coffee Gambling

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Coffee Gambling is the 9th Casino Online information site I have reviewed to date. Admittedly, the more I look into these type of sites, the more I recognized how competitive this whole review portals are.

What I find to be interesting about Coffee Gambling are as follows:

• The site is primarily design for people who really wanted to play right away. The slots section has a listing of game types. Upon visit of a page, it will give you a brief description and immediately a list of sites where you can play it.
  
  This approach brings an experienced player immediately to what it wanted. For newbies though, a bit more content, screen shot, or video may help a bit more.
  

• Unlike the slot section of the site, the roulette page is more information loaded that gives the visitors an overview on how the game is played with no immediate push to any site. Screen shot or videos may be added value further.
  
  
• Although the site does not having ratings of the various online casinos featured where you can play slots, blackjack, among others, it can be assumed that the site owner have listed those that were tried and tested. It would help if this assumption gets further confirmed or manifested either at the start or bottom of the page.

There is much more about Coffee Gambling that can be mentioned here. Definitely, it is a must visit for anyone interested in playing casino online.

Review: Blackjack Stats

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Blackjack Stats is the first blackjack site that I have reviewed to date. What I like about the site includes:

• Provides practical victory guidelines and calculator resource.
  
  
• Provides Basic Blackjack Strategy that is easy to follow and presented logically. Reading it gave me more confidence to try it out next time rather than pay slots.
  
  The site also has a free Blackjack game just to get the player started and be familiar with it.
  
  
• The Blackjack strategy tables and charts is a very useful resource for players who are getting serious in playing the game. The output is used to further analyze one's odds of winning and best strategy to approach it.
  

I find it interesting to visit a site that is able to get a visitor all excited to try out the game. This is one of those rare sites.

Some suggestions for improvement:

• The Blackjack card counting statistics table can be too overwhelming at a glance. Perhaps it will be best to split them into several pages with more explanation or images.
  
  If this gets done, it will allow me to analyze the tables and charts better.
  
  
• Photos and videos, if added, can be very useful to newbies wanting to learn the game.
  

Buy & sell blog advertising through 3rd party - Blogsvertise

Blogsvertise is an interesting blog advertising platform for advertisers who wants options and assistance such as:

• Be able to post blog reviews, homepage text link, and homepage banner opportunities.
  
  
• Purchase campaigns on a fix rate of US$20 per blog. Blogsvertise will match up the requirement to bloggers and do the necessary placement.
  
  
• Advertisers who wants more control and choose where to place ads can request their account to be upgraded to power user. Cost per blog can vary from US$4 to US$50 per post.
  
  
• Advertisers can pay through credit card and Paypal.
  

Bloggers on the other hand are given 5 days to accept or decline an ad assignment. If accepted, the completed work must be given during the same period.

Payment is also given 30 days after the assignment is completed. Of all the blog advertising networks I have joined, my highest decline rate is with this one. (5 reasons why I decline blog post assignments) Despite the challenge, I still find this network very much worthy to be in.

Review: Casinos R-US

Back in 1999 to 2002, I was a regular visitor to Las Vegas checking out major trade shows happening there such as COMDEX. Visiting various hotel casinos becomes part of the routine as well although my only regret is the lack of interest to take photos at that time.

However, I plan to visit the U.S. again this year to watch the U2 360 Tour and will make sure to take photos this time. Casinos will also be a sure stop and sites like Casinos R-US can be a resource for that trip. I will likely inquire once my target date is defined and ask about junkets scheduled to happen in either Las Vegas or Atlantic City.

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Should the site undergo major update soon, I would suggest the following:

• Improve color for better readability.
  Either retain background color and just change text color or vice versa.
  
  
• Junket events happening in 2009 and its cost.
  Not all have updated information.
  
  
• Up to date reviews of various casino establishment.
  It will be interesting to read on comparative experiences and know who offers a great deal anytime soon.
  
  If a game guide can also be provided, sharing info on the various games that can be played on the floor, that will be great too.
  

My Casino Filipino Internet gaming station experience

Last April 12, I decided to start playing badminton again and realized that there is actually an online casino in our area. Since I've been doing a lot of web reviews of various casino sites, decided to visit one of these gaming station and have a feel of the game.

I asked for a recommendation and the slot game PayDirt was suggested. Minimum playing fund is five hundred pesos (P500). Based on what I read so far, realized that:

• Playing small, like the minimum bet or line, will likely not yield you any winnings. You must go all the way, maximum possibilities for winning, to increase your chances.
  
  
• Have a good capital so that you can stay long enough and increase your chances.
  

As I resumed with my site reviews again after, admittedly, it changed the way I looked at the site and analyzed the write-ups more.

So we'll see how I'm going to perform next time.

Review: Online Casino Hero

Online Casino Hero is the 8th review site I have featured to date.

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What I like about this Online Casino are as follows:

• Default text size is large enough that encourages the visitor to read.
  
  
• Casino games feature highlights on how it is played online. It also includes strategies for each.
  
  
• It has links to other casino review sites by game. This is the first time I encountered a casino review site that links to others who may even be considered as its competition.
  
  
• Its online casino software feature contains information on which online casino sites are actually running on those platform. Contact information of each provider is also included. It is my first time to see a review site that shows that perspective.
  

For improvement suggestions, I think it will help if:

• The frequently asked questions can be broken down into several pages that contains a common topic theme rather putting them all in one page.
  
  
• The online casino news page can contain blog or industry news as picked up in article search engines.
  
  
• Quick link to home page is needed whenever in sub-pages.
  
  
• I like the effort taken by the site to include visuals especially at the online games guide. I think more photos will help that will show screen shots on some of the pages as an example.
  

Buy & sell Twitter post through 3rd party: Magpie

Last year, I made a blog post about an April Fool's Joke - PayPerTweet. Its possibility as a service was inevitable. Today, Magpie offers an opportunity for Twitter users to monetize their accounts by allowing the site to post an ad tweet.


Advertisers can sign up with Magpie and do the following:

• can create a conversational-tone campaign that gets twitted (in an automated manner) by Twitter users who are part of the network.
  
  
• based on keywords used by the advertiser, the system automatically matches the twitter users who also post based on those keyword topics.
  
  
• set a budget. By default, campaigns on a per view basis although other arrangements can be made like per sale, per lead, among others.
  

Twitter users can either automatically approve all ads or manually approve them. Fees are earned through per view, per click, per sale, per lead, among others. In my case, I prefer per view.

Once your earned fees reached 50 euros, this can now be transferred to your Paypal account. Another option is to re-purpose the credits and place ads.

When joining this service, I kept the following as setting:

• Ads only appear after the 10th post. Since I don't twit extensively, I avoid the scenario where my account displays an ad on a daily basis.
  
  
• Don't remove the prefix declaring the twit as an advertisement.
  
  
• Be relevant in one's twitter post and interact with others. Otherwise your twitter account will lose value and may even lose followers.
  

Casino review site - Gambling Review

Gambling Review is the 7th casino review site that we are featuring here as part of a series.

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What I find interesting about the site includes:

• It has a special listing of casino sites ranked according to the amount of bonuses it gives a player.
  
  
• It is the only site I have seen so far that has a good reference for UK and Euro casino site where one can play. I think this is also the reason why this site is one of the most popular gambling site in terms of its traffic as reported in Alexa.
  
  
• It has an online casino guide, poker guide, and casino games guide that is meant to provide an insight to the visitor on how sites are reviewed.
  
  
• It features a lot of classic and popular games, like Roulette, where history of the game and how it has evolved is mentioned. It also has information on how the game is played.
  
  Sometimes though I wonder if the history of a game has any relevance for the reader who is likely there just to play and find out how to do it. Although reading through it also gives a feeling of novelty as well that may make you appreciate it even more.
  
  Like the other casino sites I have seen, I wish there are photos or videos that can complement these sections so that newbies interested to learn more will be able to visualize it.

Make Facebook Fluff work for you

With Easter just around the corner, Facebook Fluff users are busy again visiting friends to look for Easter eggs. If you are an active marketer, you can take this opportunity to make your Fluff work for you.


I dressed up my Toitoi fluff to actively pitch the upcoming Social Networking & eBusiness Conference this April 23 & 24 so that those whom we get to pet, give gifts, and harvest Easter eggs from will get to see it.

I first tried this out last year as Toitoi promoted my book Blogging from Home.

So if you have a Fluff, make it work for you like promoting your blog or any other project.

Review - Online Slots

This is the first online slots review site I encountered to date. OnlineSlots reviews online slot machines and gives advice to players interested about it.

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What I like about the site are the following:

• Very simple and clean interface. It is pleasing to the eyes and easy to read. The sub-pages have useful information. Hardly any selling is done at these pages. Perhaps for purposes of optimization and proper search engine indexing.
  
  
• Casino assessment guide. Although it didn't list any specific casino at this point, the information can be used when assessing the ones visited.
  
  
• Reviews various Online Slot Machines software provider and each game available in it. This includes mention whether USA-based players can play or not.
  
  
• Straight to the point information was also provided for online slot playing tips, strategy, advice, payout, bonuses, and even tournaments.

For improvement, I think it will help if the site has videos or photos especially on the part where it provided examples and tips in playing the various slot games available.

A lot of the pages also did not have any reference to any actual online slots casino site, except the home page. This might lead visitors to a dead end if they are there to look for sites where they can play.

As there are a few sites in this category, it will be useful also if it has a forums section.

Buy & sell blog reviews through 3rd party - Sponsored Reviews

Late last year, after releasing the book Blogging from Home, I often receive questions on how can blog sites be monetized. I decided to join several programs and participate actively to have enough personal experience whenever information sharing is required. One of those programs is Sponsored Reviews.


For advertisers, Sponsored Reviews uniquely allows you to:

• Place opportunity directly to bloggers or put them in the marketplace. Interested bloggers will have to bid for them giving you the chance to screen and approve.
  
  
• An advertisement is not limited to one link. You can have several and require bloggers to link them all up.

Although in the process, the only risk for advertisers in going through the bidding process is that it must recognize that not all are active participants in it. Personally, I tried posting a few bids and when none have replied, I just got contented waiting for opportunities to come to me.

For bloggers, Sponsored Reviews gives a higher payout which is 65% and releases them twice a month.

Casino review site - Gamble Craft Online Casino Guide

Gamble Craft is the sixth casino review site that we are featuring here as part of a series.

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What I like about this Online Casino site are as follows:

• First one I saw that has a slots review. It has rating and bonus information.
  
  
• First one I saw that has a software section that is meant to help increase a gambler's productivity such as poker coach, video poker calculator, computing your gambling odds.
  
  
• For those wanting to get into the online casino business, this is the first site I saw that has a review of software that can be used for such. It can give you an idea on market players such as Cryptologic, Microgaming, Playtech, and Realtime Gaming.

Although the site's Alexa ranking may be not high in comparison to other online casino review site, this one has a captive U.S. audience as it ranks 2nd of the 6th I have seen so far in terms of Compete ranking.

Some improvements that can help also includes:

• The site is a bit hard core in terms of tutorial as it talks about probability and the likes which may be too much to process for newbies. Perhaps videos or photos further illustrating the point will really help a lot.
  
  
• Since the site already has a distinction with its online casino software reviews, it may help also to create a ranking based on that.
  

Buy & sell blog reviews through 3rd party - ReviewMe

ReviewMe is the first blog review site I joined last November 2006. What makes the service unique, of all other sites offering similar services, is that ReviewMe requires a disclosure. This means all blog reviews must state one way or another that the said post is paid for.

Advertisers can place a campaign in 3 ways.

• Marketplace.
  Choose and place targeted ads on a per blog basis.
  
  
• Advertiser-offered reviews
  Offer a campaign that contains your requirements, budget, and category or theme of blogs relevant to you. Minimum amount per post is ten dollars (US$10).
  
  
• Advertorials
  Full control of the advertisement text and click tracking for performance measurement.

Half or 50% of what advertisers pay is given to bloggers.

Bloggers can earn from ReviewMe through acceptance and participation of the campaigns listed above. I also observed the following:

• The advertiser-offered reviews or campaigns area has a lot of opportunities listed in it where minimum pay-out is five dollars (US$5). One must constantly monitor it if you are eager in getting high payout opportunities.
  
  
• ReviewMe allows bloggers to accept 40 campaign offers a month. This means that those who are aggressive in monitoring and getting opportunities can earn a minimum of two hundred dollars (US$200) from it (@US$5 each). If you only get those that pay at least ten dollars (US$10), then your monthly earning potential doubles to four hundred dollars (US$400).
  
  
• Payouts are done monthly so this requires also budgeting on your part.
  

Marketplace and advertorial opportunities are a bit limited. I guess this is partly because most advertisers are in a position to contact the blogger directly if they want to negotiate the rates further.

Tough to break-in

I heard feedback from fellow bloggers on how their blogs did not qualify to join ReviewMe for several reasons. This means that one has to really work hard in building their site and get the approval desired.

This funnel process benefits advertisers knowing the bloggers they are dealing with are serious enough.

Slot review - Free Slot Machines Casino

This is my first time to review a slot machines casino site specifically. Although for online casinos in general or total, this is my 8th review to date.

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The impression I got on the objective of this site, Free Slot Machines Casino, is to encourage visitors to download the Slot Machine software. This is where users will have the option to play the games for real and put money or trying it first for free. If you can't make up your mind yet, you can also check out the screen shot preview of various games.

The site also has a link to Gambler's anonymous should players need counseling or 1 on 1 for their gambling problem.

Some suggestions I have for the site includes:

• More info on its Kahnawake Gaming Commission (KGC) license. Visited the KGC site and was not able to find Free Slot Machines Casino listed there. I assume there is a different name listed.
  
  
• Flash preview. Although the screen shot preview is helpful, it will be great also if the game can be tried online or viewed on video.
  
  
• Banking links. There are several "click here" portion in the banking links page that are not active. Also, the payment gateway service provider links are not active either.
  
  
• Forum. It will be helpful if the experience of other users can also be shared through a forum or testimonial section.
  

Facebook as the new e-mail service

I'll be teaching search engine marketing, seo copywriting, and search engine optimization 101 training for a public relations and web development firm this April 13 and 14.

This activity was made possible thanks to Facebook. I often use my status updates to alert friends of the activity I was doing or preparing for.

At that time, shared about an seo copywriting briefing I was doing then via status update. Shortly thereafter, a contact was already asking for a meeting on how this can be done for their own company. We met, exchange further e-mail via Facebook, and the training was set.


With a clear purpose in mind, a Facebook or any other social networking account can be a powerful marketing tool. Use it wisely and don't abuse it!

Casino review site - Best USA Online Casinos

As I'll be featuring more casino review sites in this blog, decided to come up with a format (and spreadsheet) to compare their features.

Best USA Online Casinos is the 5th casino review site I have blogged to date and the youngest based on its domain name age. This is the 2nd site I encountered where the information about its owner is known. Others are usually cloaked or hidden that challenges the credibility of the site.

Its style of review is direct to the point as it ranks casino, poker rooms, and online sportsbook according to its:

• bonus given
  
• payout %
• check if the casino site can be accessed by US players.
• review

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An example above is a review of Cherry Red Casino. If you noticed it looks at the following:

• Software rating.
• Trust gauge
• Bonus and VIP program

The trust gauge provided further information on the certificate issuer. This is the first time as well I've seen or noticed such information provided.

According to the featured review, Cherry Red Casino's certificate was issued in Kahnawake. If I understood correctly, this is the Quebec-based gaming commission that licenses a lot of online casinos and poker rooms.

It will be helpful if the following gets included as well in its reviews:

• Status of certificate
  Like in the Cherry Red Casino snapshot, pending full review, it seems the Kahnawake Gaming Commission website is not yet updated (since it still contains an announcement of its 2008 holiday break). It does not have Cherry Red Casino in its permit holder roster.
  
  
• Explanation of the rating score
  I'm sure players will find the insight very valuable.
  

Buy & sell banner image ads through 3rd party - Project Wonderful

As an ad buyer and seller, experimenting with various online advertising programs allowed me to offer options to clients regardless of budget and with reasonable expectations.


One site that caught my attention last year is Project Wonderful. I used the service to advertise my Blogging from Home book last year to create awareness about its launch. Advertisers are able to:

• Search for ad spaces based on size and categories you are interested in.
• Bid a rate and compete. If you win, your ad appears for one day and can let it continuously appear.
  
• Fund an account by loading it from Paypal in the amount of US$5. If you also sell ad space, revenues generated can also be used to fund your campaigns.

For blog and website owners, you can create an account and submit a site for consideration. I prefer submitting sites one at a time. Once it starts to have advertisers, I add another site and the cycle continues. This way, you won't be adding too much too soon.

Once approved, you'll be able to:

• Pick the size of ads that you want to appear in your site. Each site can have 5 ad boxes. So far, I've configured my sites with one box each.
• Set a bid rate.
• Approve or disapprove ads. In my case, ads I've previously approved will automatically appear. I also add the advertiser as a friend to auto-approve future placements. This makes the administration easy as well.

How about you? What is your Project Wonderful experience like?

Finding a safe casino online

I find online gambling similar to the world of search engine marketing. It is a game of chance that requires skill, meaningful thinking, and a touch of luck to beat your competition. If there are spam sites or blogs (often referred to as splogs), the same can be said to online casinos.

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So if you are looking for casinos accepting usa players, such as those listed in Top USA Online Casinos, or anyone else worldwide, it is important to know the following:

• Technical support.
  Can they be called and do they speak English?
  
  
• Is it secure?
  Ideally, you should use a different user id and password for casino sites. Especially when you make deposits and get payments to or from your account.
  
  
• 3rd-party auditor
  Their system should be audited for gambling payouts and transactions. Make sure that the audit firm's website is linked for further verification.
  
  
• Advertising
  Deal with firms that are highly visible who takes the effort to advertise and make themselves known. There was an online gambling site owned by a friend before and was actively supporting our events although low profile.
  
  
• What do users say about them?
  Go to well established online gambling forums and ask long-time users - of their experience about the site. They will be most likely to help if you encounter any problems.
  
  
• Contact information
  Who are the people behind the site? The more transparent they are, the more credible they become.
  
  
• Licensed
  Is the site licensed? If yes, under which jurisdiction?
  
  
• International Gaming Council (IGC) membership
  IGC membership meant that these online casinos adhere to code of ethics.

I am sure there are many other concerns to consider. Just be cautious and avoid trouble.

Deal sealed with Puto Maya at Via Mare

I was at Via Mare last February 13 to meet with two owners of a PR firm. What I like about the place is you can try popular Filipino delicacies like Puto Maya.

Like most Asian delicacies, Puto Maya is all about sticky rice and coconut milk. If you are adventurous enough, you can even make your own Puto Maya.

In addition, the deal that was discussed during that meeting was for me to do a search engine marketing, seo copywriting, and search engine optimization 101 training for their firm. It is pushing through this April 13 and 14. I look forward in blogging about it soon!

Foot spa in a movie theater experience

Last January 29, I received an e-mail from Francis Simisim of Blue Water Day Spa who asked help to broadcast their spa movie theater promo contest. Twenty (20) bloggers won and got together last February 18 to try the experience.

Whenever I feel tired, going to a spa is an option explored when schedule permits. On first visit to any spa, the foot massage experience will be my barometer if the place is good or not.

The spa movie theater concept of Blue Water Day Spa (along Ortigas Avenue, Greenhills, San Juan) is designed for special booking arrangement. It can be used for birthdays, special presentation, among others.

(thanks Ada for the photo!)

We were treated to a movie while being given a foot spa. As I was dealing with a spammer issue at that time, was online as well in the process.

If there's anything that didn't turn out right for me was the multitasking part. My tolerance to deep massage pain is usually high. But in this case, I was quick to react whenever pain is felt. I wasn't relaxing at all due to watching the movie and online anxious about the spammer issue concurrently. So the next time, I should really relax and turn that computer off.

If you want to have your own Blue Water Day Spa experience, Francis is having another promo for their Capitol Hills branch. Check it out!

Learning how to play blackjack

It is amazing the moment you learn how to play cards and interact with folks who plays them well. You just noticed that even with the way they talk, argue, or negotiate, you can immediately spot a card game style being used on you. The recent one I had was with a friend who was trying to set me up to reveal information. He was laying down assumptions and was partly waiting for me to dare and give an answer. If right or wrong, I'll be forced to reveal. I did not even dare and blurted, "you are doing a Texas Holdem Poker on me!".

With that experience, I decided to start learning another card game and this time Blackjack.

(A blackjack or natural is when you hit the score 21 in two cards.
This is an ace and a face or ten card)

Blackjack is a game of skill where a player has to make a well-thought decision. The objective is to hold a hand that adds more, versus your competition, but will not exceed 21. The skill comes in knowing when to:

• take more cards (hit)
• stop taking cards (stand)
• double your bet and take only one more card (double down)
• make two separate hands out of the original cards dealt (split)
• when to bet more

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As I don't get to play cards with people that often, there are sites like Casino Reviews, that teaches you Online Blackjack, success tips, game play strategy, and refer sites where you can also put your skill to the test.

The game play strategy, from basic to advance, is very important and one must take time to practice before visiting a real casino or play with actual money online.

Casino Reviews has a list of casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. The online casino sites featured are categorized from editor rate, player rated, most reviewed, and USA friendly or those that accepts US-based players.

Dining for one at a Japanese restaurant - Teriyaki Boy

Being a freelancer, I sometimes find myself alone after a workshop or class. Before, I would call a friend or sister and invite one for dinner especially on the last day. But during my blogging workshop series last February, got tied up over chat about the search engine marketing seminar in Urdaneta City University and decided to dine alone after.

There is something about a Japanese restaurant that makes it an attractive hang-out to dine alone. At that time, the nearest one, that was also quiet, was Teriyaki Boy (Paseo de Roxas corner Legaspi St., beside Starbucks, Makati City).

My typical dining for one food choices would include any of the following:

• Mixed sashimi (if none available, tuna or salmon will do)
• Japanese fried rice
• Gyoza
• House tea
• Plum wine (only get to try this abroad. Rarely available in local ones.)
• Fruit shakes

When I was at Teriyaki Boy, had gyoza, Japanese fried rice, and avocado shake. I actually ordered for tuna sashimi also but it wasn't processed. Good thing it was't included in my billing either. That saved me on a diet and money perspective. I usually keep quiet when a food ordered was not served and check if it gets included in the bill after I'm done. lol!

I must admit though that the sashimis served in local Japanese restaurants no longer excite me, even at the more expensive spots. Whenever in Australia, I get my Japanese food fix at Cherry Blossom. This is a small eatery oftentimes found outside a supermarket and really enjoy their servings.

My 1st Plurkfiesta Experience & Mini Cooper glimpse

Last February 21, I got my first taste of Plurkfiesta at Tranquilo Bar & Grill. A Plurkfiesta is simply an eyeball event that can be organized by anyone. Read about it a few days before through Tiffy and expressed my interest.

I had a great time catching up with fellow Plurk users that night as we talked about blogging developments, politics, old Pinoy movies, among others.

Tranquilo Bar & Grill (103 Eagle Street Bgy. Ugong Pasig across c-5.) is actually inside a car maintenance shop. But don't let the look of the place deceive you. It serves one of the best meals in town at very reasonable cost. If I recall correctly, we ate like 5 to 6 various food that night and paid only 250 pesos each, inclusive of drinks. It was one of the best food deals I ever had.

Later that evening, I also saw a Mini Cooper, that car used in the movie "The Italian Job". Glad the owner allowed me to take a photo of it. I was even offered to be taken a photo inside the car but don't want to abuse the hospitality of the car owner. Although the day after, I regret not doing it. lol!

Until the next Plurkfiesta!

Buy & sell text link ads through 3rd party - AdHocAds

Nowadays, site owners and advertisers buy text link ads and consider it as an attractive low-cost investment as keywords can be used as the primary text of the ad. As this gets crawled by search engines, it can help in pushing a product or service identity be associated to the keyword defined.


Some bloggers accept images or text link ads to make their site income-generating. These are often placed on the sidebar of a blog. One way of getting this done is by joining sites that sell text link advertisements such as AdHocAds. This is where you:

• Join (which is free).
  
  
• Add your site, select the category you are in, and set the rate.
  If you have several blogs, I suggest getting your blogs identified in distinct categories. Check out also the listing to see how others have priced their blogs.
  
  
• Wait for ads notice.

Some 3rd party advertising networks requires you to put a code in your site to start letting visitors know that you sell text link ads. I noticed that AdHocAds doesn't have one which members may find convenient.