Have You Noticed Ads Between Posts in Threads?

[dextercioby]

Have you guys noticed the ads that pop up in between the posts in a thread...??

What's with them...?

Daniel.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

What is there to know? They are what they are

 

[ZapperZ]

What is there to know? They are what they are

Since I don't see any "ads" imbedded in any threads, I'm assuming that PF contributors are sparred from such torture? :)

Zz.

 

[quantumdude]

You are correct, sir.

 

[Moonbear]

Wow, that sounds really annoying. Glad I don't have to put up with those. Hopefully they are small and not animated, or else that would seem to be too distracting and somewhat discouraging from reading through a thread. I realize the whole point of ads is to distract you enough to click on them, but I wouldn't want it to be to the detriment of retaining membership around here.

 

[chroot]

Moonbear,

I agree entirely. I'm hereby publicly announcing that, if the ads are not removed, I will be leaving the site.

- Warren

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Moonbear, the line of ads is only after the first post of a thread, and they are of the same format as the google ads below the navbar. My goal was to increase the number of contributers. I'm merely just testing and if people want to overreact then that is their business. I could have possibly given notice before I added them so people wouldn't be shocked, so if anything I am guilty of that. I am open to hear opinions on the matter, I never said they were set in stone.

 

[Moonbear]

Moonbear, the line of ads is only after the first post of a thread, and they are of the same format as the google ads below the navbar. My goal was to increase the number of contributers. I'm merely just testing and if people want to overreact then that is their business. I could have possibly given notice before I added them so people wouldn't be shocked, so if anything I am guilty of that. I am open to hear opinions on the matter, I never said they were set in stone.

Oh, just one line? That doesn't sound too bad. Have you considered sticking a link right next to the ads that says something like, "Want to get rid of these annoying ads? Become a contributor." I never found the ads at the top particularly bothersome. While having an ad-free site is a nice perk to being a contributor, it wasn't my primary motivation (in other words, if that's all it got me, I'd have stuck with the ads). I just think this is a good site and don't want to see it go away for lack of funding.

Anyway, I wasn't criticizing, I didn't even look at what the ads look like, just saw Dex's reaction and your reply, and what I pictured when I read that was something different (like an ad bar popping up between every reply ).

Do you and Chroot have to look at the ads so you know what they contain, or do you turn them off for yourselves too?

*bows down and kisses Greg's feet* My humblest thanks for keeping this place running and sincerest apologies if my comments came across as criticism. (Note to self: wash Greg's feet for him before kissing them next time. )

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Oh, just one line? That doesn't sound too bad. Have you considered sticking a link right next to the ads that says something like, "Want to get rid of these annoying ads? Become a contributor."

A link is available above the links, the purpose in mind for the ads is to help increase contributers, that is my focus.

Do you and Chroot have to look at the ads so you know what they contain, or do you turn them off for yourselves too?

Ads are turned off for contributers and staff. But if you log yourself off and browse as a guest you can see the ads.

*bows down and kisses Greg's feet* My humblest thanks for keeping this place running and sincerest apologies if my comments came across as criticism. (Note to self: wash Greg's feet for him before kissing them next time. )

I didn't take anything you said negatively, I encourage discussion on all facets of the site and always have. Everyone here has great impact on the site, no one person is responsible for it's success, we all have a role.

 

[Moonbear]

I didn't take anything you said negatively, I encourage discussion on all facets of the site and always have. Everyone here has great impact on the site, no one person is responsible for it's success, we all have a role.

Okay, just making sure. I've got a lot on my plate right now (which is of course why I'm at PF procrastinating rather than figuring out which mound of work to dig into first), and I tend to take things a little too seriously than they are intended when I'm stressed, but always better to check than to risk having offended someone and not correcting it.

 

[motai]

You know, you could put the ads after every single post.

I'm sure that will go well *hides from the impending volley of tomatoes*.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

You know, you could put the ads after every single post.

haha, I'm not that cruel. What about placing them after the 2nd or 3rd post, would that be better for everyone?

 

[motai]

haha, I'm not that cruel. What about placing them after the 2nd or 3rd post, would that be better for everyone?

*snickers even further*... what about randomly in between forums, subforums, and threads. . Or how about having a forum/subforum/thread link randomly go into an ad .

Nothing like being evil . *suits up in armor to avoid the tomato barrage, prepares to blast into space*.

 

[Kerrie]

I'm merely just testing and if people want to overreact then that is their business. I could have possibly given notice before I added them so people wouldn't be shocked, so if anything I am guilty of that. I am open to hear opinions on the matter, I never said they were set in stone.

Greg, quite honestly, I don't think you have to give notice about ads. You are the one responsible for this site ultimately. There will always be people who don't agree with your decisions, but it was your decision to start up PF and I am happy to be a part of this site.

 

[check]

haha, I'm not that cruel. What about placing them after the 2nd or 3rd post, would that be better for everyone?

I think a whole page of ads after every post would be fun to try for a little while. :p. Oh, make sure they FLASH a lot! And have audio!

 

[Sirus]

*snickers even further*... what about randomly in between forums, subforums, and threads. . Or how about having a forum/subforum/thread link randomly go into an ad .

Nothing like being evil . *suits up in armor to avoid the tomato barrage, prepares to blast into space*.

Motai you are hilarious.

The ads don't bother me too much, although they would bother me even less if they were somewhere other than in the middle of threads.

 

[dextercioby]

I wish...

I wish Warren didn't mean what he said. Honestly.The ads are still there after all...

I wish Greg had told Warren when he inserted them and Warren didn't find out by browsing through this thread...

Daniel.

 

[Sirus]

The new yellow strips that encourage becoming a contributor are much preferable. The key to ads in the middle of threads is for them to be short, vertically, so things don't get too staggered. These two-line ads are a good choice over the previous ones.

 

[honestrosewater]

The ads don't bother me either. When I finally find a job, I'll become a contributor. Promise.

 

[franznietzsche]

The ads don't bother me either. When I finally find a job, I'll become a contributor. Promise.

My problem is that my bank accounts have my parents' names on them still, thus they monitor everything i do. Otherwise i would.

 

[Moonbear]

My problem is that my bank accounts have my parents' names on them still, thus they monitor everything i do. Otherwise i would.

What's the world coming to? Now kids are sneaking around behind their parents' backs to learn physics.

 

[Knavish]

You read all the posts just as well without paying.. Hmm?

 

[Tom McCurdy]

Moonbear,

I agree entirely. I'm hereby publicly announcing that, if the ads are not removed, I will be leaving the site.

- Warren

DID YOU guys not read this...

Woah... have there been any updates in your opinion on the ads...

here is my 2 cents

The goal of the ads are to get people to become contributers. Because of the high price to become a contributer you are not going to get contributers who are just visiting and trying out PF. The contributers are going to be vetrans of the forums. The problem is by having the ads... which are very annoying, you make it less appealing for new members to stick around. I love physics forums but I hate ads, and if they were here when I started I probably would have not stuck around. I am planning on becomming a contributer in the future if I can get ennough money. However in the long term I think you may end up getting less money from contributers with the ads in place since you will be getting less people to get addicted to the site. Ok that is my conservative view
read on for a slightly more extreme view

If you really wanted to maximize your money for the forums. I would get rid of contributer all together... You are probably scratching your head right now, asking how do you make money by making it free. Here is how. People like features on a site, such as having an avatar, sig, etc. People are more likely to use the forums if they have these features. So in replacement of the member contributer you have a paypal donate feature. People are more likely to donate money to a site like this then to pay 125 dollars for a six year subscription they aren't sure they are going to use. Also if you look at the number of contributers at the site... it isn't very many. However if you allow people to donate money they can donate any amount. A person may give 5 dollars for helping them with a physics question, but they are certianly not going to give 125 dollars. Also you can reward people who do donate with a symbol like PF contributer next to their name... you could have different levels of contributers. From Like Donnor to sponsor. Current contributers could have something like PF founder under their name... showing the amount of dedication to the site. In the end I think you would make more money in a method like this instead of having few contributers.

 

[dextercioby]

DID YOU guys not read this...

Woah... have there been any updates in your opinion on the ads...

If i figured out correctly,Warren and Greg reached an agreement and we have the ads which we have now.


As for your idea,it's courageos and risky.

Daniel.

 

[Moonbear]

Okay, I took a look at what is currently displayed when not signed in as a contributor. The usual small, unobtrusive ads are at the top (compared to most sites, these are really no big deal at all). Then, after the post starting the thread, I saw the yellow banner advertising for people to become contributors with the following text:

receive: No ads, recognition graphic, set invisible, custom title, signature, avatars, profile photo, 100pm limit, whos online, user notes...

From the way people were describing it, I was expecting to see flashing advertisements for other sites in that space. This really isn't such a big deal because you scroll right past if it you're not interested and it wasn't distracting.

I would, however, recommend rearranging the order the "perks" are listed in, according to what I think will appeal to more people.

I'd word it as follows:

"Contributor benefits: avatar, signature, profile photo, ad-free viewing, increased PM limit (100), user notes, and more..."

I like Tom McCurdy's suggestion of having a mechanism for smaller contributions from those who can't afford more, or who aren't sure how much they'll use the site in the future. Perhaps this could be accomplished through 3 levels of contributorship, such as silver, gold and platinum, or bronze, silver gold, etc.

For example, with the top tier, any contribution of $25 or more per year gets you all the perks currently given to contributors (you could even raise that level a bit as long as you "grandfather" in current contributors for the remainder of their subscription term). Perhaps for anything between $10 and $25, you get ad-free viewing an avatar and signature, but none of the other perks. And for a donation between $5 and $10 you get no ads and maybe a signature but no avatar, or maybe that will just get you 6 months without ads instead of a full year.

Someone who is visiting for help for a particular course might be more certain that they'll make use of the site for the next 6 months instead of committing to a whole year, or might be more willing to donate $5 just as a thank-you even if they don't have much to spare, considering it's a whole lot cheaper than paying a tutor for help.

I guess you'd need to take into consideration how much revenue you actually get from the ads, and what donation amount would offset that revenue for a user.

 

[Monique]

I also think it's a good idea to have shorter subscription time spans, like a half year for 12.50 dollars and a trial period of a month for 2 dollars.

 

[The_Professional]

Moonbear,

I agree entirely. I'm hereby publicly announcing that, if the ads are not removed, I will be leaving the site.

- Warren

We hope not :) You still have gazillion bugs and improvements to fix now get back to work! j/k

 

[Moonbear]

We hope not :) You still have gazillion bugs and improvements to fix now get back to work! j/k

Oh, don't worry, he can't go anywhere. Greg has him chained to the computer desk, which is bolted to 6 inch concrete flooring in a room with steel-reinforced walls, only a few air holes for windows, and an armed guard standing outside the small box through which they slide food to him.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

armed guard standing outside the small box through which they slide food to him.

So why aren't you at your post!?

 

[Moonbear]

So why aren't you at your post!?

I'm on break! The Sisters of PF have rotating guard duty.