Behind the scenes.....

[Administrator]

I was quite undecided to inform you of some of the issues of what is involved with keeping a site/forum going, but finally decided to go for it. First of all, no matter what has happened it will in no way effect the long term future of this board.

Having a site up is not too expensive but there are a few costs involved, so I got what was called an adsense account which is based on cookies within your computer. For instance, if you had been looking at spinning reels at Cabelas in the past few days, you would no doubt see an add pop up for that or at least a Cabelas ad. In the real world, this helps pay for the costs involved in running a site. The nice thing about adsense is that I get paid based on CPC (cost per click). So even if you accessed a site through one of these adds, they sent me a few cents even though you may not have purchased anything. Over time it does add up. Well, the Big G can be a little temperamental from time to time and like so many people they banned my account. 

When I started this forum, my aim was not to make a million bucks from it, but if I can make enough to pay the expenses I am happy. If I don't make enough to pay the expenses, I am still very happy I started this forum for personal reasons.

I also have an advertising account with Bass Pro and Amazon. Cabelas is a little tougher to get accepted, so hoping next spring when the traffic picks up they might accept us. These ads are all CPA ads (cost per action) which means I do not get paid unless you buy a product.

You will notice in my signature, there are several websites I have which are all Amazon affiliate sites. If you are an Amazon buyer, you can enter Amazon through these sites to buy anything you like and they throw me a small commission.

Like I said, no matter if I generate any money, this forum will survive!

[Jay Thomas]

Hi Nancy:

While I'm cognizant that running a web site incurs costs, I'm a complete neophyte when it comes to understanding anything about those costs. Consequently, I appreciated your post to let us know how any of us can help offset some of the costs by merely clicking on one or more of your associated web sites when we're looking for such a product.

Jay

[Dog]

ok... now I'm curious so I have to ask, what are your expenses to date to start and run this forum?

[Administrator]

@Dog,

The costs so far are $10 for the domain name and $117 for the hosting for a year. There are places out there where I could have gotten cheaper hosting, but selected MDD hosting because of the extra security measures they have in place for their sites and I also wanted lots of Gigabytes available in case this thing grew. Now I have added one of my other stores to the same hosts so technically the hosting costs is shared by 2 domains, making it $58.68 for the hosting for the forum. Total =$68.68 + my donated time.  I work cheap.  So it is not a huge amount.

My thought was if you order anything from Bass Pro or Amazon anyway, if you go through these links, they throw a little money my way. Everyone wins.

[600 miles north]

     Hello Nancy, so for those people who do some online shopping, especially with Christmas coming up, if we were to come to the forum then go through the amazon link at the top of the page that will help you pay the costs of maintaining this site? If I can help that easily I would be glad too! I do not understand the whole tech world and how revenue generated works, but basically going through this site creates hits that you get credit for producing?

     Thanks for the info, it was something I never realized

     Brad

[crunchie]

X2 what 600 miles north just posted.  Didn't realize how these things work.  Recently made a purchase through Amazon, if only I had known.  Maybe silly question but would Amazon Canada work for you too?

[Administrator]

@600 miles north, you are correct. Only that currently these Amazon and Bass Pro ads are based on purchases not clicks. The former ads run by Google were based on clicks. I truly appreciate you thinking of me as the Christmas season approaches.

@crunchie, I was just wondering but you asked the question before I had a chance to ask the powers, but I will get an answer for you. Thanks for keeping me in mind and will get an answer for you.

[Administrator]

I am pleased as can be. I applied to Cabelas for an affiliate program and they accepted us. They are fussy about who they want to work with, so I am more than pleased that they accepted us. I would say it was due to the influx of new members we have had lately and the increased traffic due to the coming fishing season. So if you are loading up for your fishing trip, and intend on ordering from Cabelas, purchasing through a link on this site would be very appreciated.  Thanks.

[pike mike]

Thanks for the website/internet  education as I ,ashamedly so ,admit to being completely oblivious to the workings of websites ,domains and the interent in general . If I shop online in the future  I will now keep your site in mind .