The Explosion of Traffic Exchanges

No one who has a website is likely to turn down the chance of getting some free traffic, and that is what makes traffic exchanges so interesting and tempting for those who are new to the online marketing arena.

The idea is simple – you join the site (usually for free, although paid memberships are usually also available, giving you extra bonuses) and submit your website address for consideration. Once it is accepted you can visit the site and start surfing.

Surfing in this instance is basically visiting all the sites of everyone else who is a member. For each one you visit you will get a number of credits or partial credits, and each credit equals one single time that your own site will be viewed by someone else.

Now this describes the manual exchanges very well, but there is another phenomenon here too. Auto exchanges are those where you enter the exchange, start surfing – and then leave your computer to surf automatically on your behalf. Quite what the point of these exchanges are is anyone’s guess, since it’s logical to assume that if you are racking up the credits without viewing anyone else’s sites then they won’t be looking at yours either.

And yet traffic exchanges are still popular, and it doesn’t seem as though they are going away any time soon. While there are undoubtedly some exchanges which burst onto the scene only to disappear again just as quickly, there are others that have been around for several years and are somewhat revered in their field.

So why are they so popular? One of the reasons is that they are a good way to get extra traffic to your website, and it is almost immediate as well. As soon as you start earning credits, you gain the right to have other people visiting your site through the exchange. It’s a simple process, even if it isn’t the most effective form of website marketing you will ever get involved with.

It’s arguable that the traffic exchanges that tend to stick it out for the long term are those that target your traffic more accurately than those who don’t. You get to select the kind of websites you are interested in seeing, and everyone else does the same.

One thing that is noticeable when it comes to looking at all the new exchanges that keep popping up is that they are all essentially trying to find a new way to repackage the same thing. Different gimmicks and attractions to try and make it more interesting are all the rage, and yet if you look at the longest serving exchanges most of them don’t have any of these gimmicks at all.

It remains to be seen whether traffic exchanges last long into the internet’s future, but while there is a need for free and instant traffic – regardless of how responsive that traffic actually is – it seems fairly certain that they will be here to stay. Or at least, some of them will.

Web Profits specialises in search engine optimization, online marketing & web design, helping businesses generate profits from the Internet. For a free report on 'The Secrets of Online Marketing for Offline Businesses' visit Search Engine Optimization.