So, I usually surf about six or seven exchanges at the same time using a tabbed browser, such as Firefox or Chrome. I try to surf at least 100 pages in each exchange, then move to a different group of additional exchanges. I tend to alternate between a selection of sites from Traffic Hoopla and some other sites that didn’t make the top 20 this week. This gives exposure to a wider audience, I think. If you are interested in trying more exchanges than those listed at Traffic Hoopla, I will be listing the sites I use on the “My TE List” page.

Start by asking yourself who is using traffic exchanges? Who are the people who will be looking at whatever web page you advertise? The answer is that they are all marketers, just like you. They are people who already have a web page to advertise and are trying to get you to buy whatever they are selling. So, what would appeal to them? Would they take notice of a page full of products for sale? Not likely. They would be drawn to something that will help them build their own business or increase their sales or increase their website traffic.

Consider this point too – what are these other people doing while they are logged in to the traffic exchanges? They are technically looking at websites, yes, but they are also trying to gain as many credits as they can, as quickly as they can. If there is nothing interesting or exciting on the pages they are looking at, they will just click away to the next site as soon as the timer runs down, without having read much of anything on the site they were just viewing. This is not the place to try to get someone to read a lengthy sales page.

As a result, the pages which generate the most response on a traffic exchange are brief and usually contain an attention-grabbing graphic or headline or both. This type of page is called a “splash page” and should also have a link (which is impossible to miss and opens in a new window) for the visitor to click for more information. This is an opportunity to be unique and creative. The more a website stands out as different from all the rest, the more attention it will grab. Just spend some time surfing around some traffic exchanges and notice what grabs your attention the most.

A “squeeze page” is similar to a splash page in that it is short and grabs attention. Instead of a link, though, a squeeze page, also called a lead capture page, will contain a very brief form for the visitor to fill out for more information. The point here is to get the viewer curious so they want to know more, and then to capture their name and email address in order to send them more details. They can request more information without disrupting their traffic exchange surfing, and you can now follow up with them over an extended period of time – until they sign up or buy or unsubscribe. Very few people buy something the first time they see it, so to be able to follow up is very important too.

So, in summary, it is much more effective to use brief, attention-grabbing pages in trafffic exchanges. Catch someone’s attention, make them curious, and they will want to know more, either by clicking through to your main page or by requesting details through a form. Try to stand out from the crowd and offer something other marketers need.

You do not need to have your own website or domain name to use a traffic exchange; you can display any link you choose, as long as it does not violate the site’s terms of service – be sure to read these to know which types of sites are allowed or not allowed. However, simply putting in an affiliate link is not the best use of traffic exchanges; I will address this topic in more detail in another post.

There are literally hundreds, if not thousands, of traffic exchange sites on the internet today. All are not created equal. There are definitely some which are a waste of time and effort, and others which are much more effective. What I mean by this is that some will always produce better response to your web pages than others. How do you know which are good and which are useless? You could test them all out for yourself by tracking every page visit and determining which site produced the best results, but think about how time consuming it would be to test every site out there – not to mention the headache of tracking all those statistics.

Fortunately, there are others out there who have already done the testing for us. They love this stuff, and devote all their time to testing advertising sites to see which are most effective. There is one site that stands out above the others as the most respected, independent testing site, and that is Traffic Hoopla. They maintain a listing of the top traffic exchanges and safelists (more on safelists later), and update their list weekly. This is not outdated information. This site would be a great place to read and learn more about traffic exchanges and how to use them effectively.

So, as I progress in this project, I will be mainly using the traffic exchanges listed in the Traffic Hoopla site. If I use any others I will mention them individually.

Hopefully this overview has been a help in understanding just what a traffic exchange is.