Dare2Click Blog

Just received the link to the latest yahoo’s “New Video”.  What’s it for?  Well, sorry I really couldn’t tell you coz you see, I didn’t even click the link.  Nope, don’t have the time to sit and write a simple email. not much hope of having me sign up, join, accept, or for that matter read any further than “check out my newest video”.

Here is my issue.  Sure videos are the newest, bestest, most wonderful way to tease folks into the fold.  But and I admit it’s old fashioned, I really don’t give a rat’s a__ what you look like.  I don’t care that you’ve put on a funny hat and are willing to look and sadly, act ridiculous, to get me to buy/read/consider/check out your latest deal.  Do you really think that the color of your hair, the way you smile or what you read off cue cards is going to make me a potential customer/member/follower/fan?  If you do, well, I am sorry to burst your bubble, folks, I just don’t work that way.

I am all for branding oneself.  I do like to get to know those I sign up under or join in a particular program, but your making a two minute video to “introduce yourself” to me is a waste of your time and money, and frankly a real big waste of my time.  And, like all, my time is important.  I have things to do too.  I own sites, I manage others sites, and if I spend all day going through my mail, watching each and every darn video I receive a link to, well, I am not going to get much else done, now am I?

You’re right, maybe I get too much mail, which would mean I have joined too many opportunities, which is right.  But, it’s not up to you what I join, just that I am willing to read an email, visit a plainly visible link, make my decision and if all are on the positive side, maybe join.  My point being, in an email, written, I can see what I need to know about a site or opportunity without sitting through a badly staged so-called spontaneous moment,  that just happened to end up on video.  nd no, just because you have a professional video, well-scripted, directed and maybe even featuring your fans and their “2cents”  I won’t be any more impressed or be any more likely to join you or your opportunity.

Send me a video of a phenomenal  performance, be it vocal, instrumental or even a well-executed car chase, and I’ll watch it.  Know I’ve been searching high and low for the performance of a particular group or a song, I’ll watch it.  Send me a video outlining ways that nefarious folks are cheating my sites, I’ll watch it, and work with you to have that method slapped off the internet.  Send me a video filled with the 19 reasons I need you, your product, or your opportunity, and sorry, you will not have me in your down line, because I’ll never see enough to know where to find the real place.

I have watched videos in the past, tried to copy down the pertinent information, then follow along as in twenty five seconds or so, you give me the why, when, what, or how of whatever you’re  promoting/endorsing/sending me.   The, let’s say for the sake of arguement that I have watched your video, and at the end of that video, you flash me a url that I’m supposed to visit.  Course, can’t go to it if I click it on the video because by the time I’ve made up my mind, the url is no longer displayed and being less than technically inclined, if I want to get it, I have to watch the darn video again!  If I’d have received it in an email, well, that is a simple matter.  If, for some reason, I’ve closed the initial email, I just have to put the name of the sender into my email search and wonders of wonders, the most recent email I’ve received from that sender is revealed.  I can now review his offer/opinion/suggestion and find the link to where I am supposed to go.  Since I normally read an email, visit the link, I would have the information I need even closer, like in my email window.  And, yes I do use the “bookmark” available with my browser, and I do go through them regularily, like once a week, if you’ve piqued my interest, I am bound to find you, through a “paper trail” albeit  digital, that I’ve created from reading your email.

So, if you’re someone that knows me, and there are those of you that will recognize my name, and you’ve sent me your latest best deal by video, sorry, you probably won’t find me joining or already have joined that opportunity.  I just don’t have the time, the inclination or the desire to sit through that video you worked hours or days on to produce.  If you can send me an email with the link to your video link, take a few minutes and send me a link to you!

Late last Thursday night, I had just about given up on setting up a Holiday Promo. Coming up with a new and unique contest had me beat!  I figured I’d go to bed and hope for a “eureka” moment.

Before going to sleep, I went to let my dog out for his final run of the day.  My dog!  He’s an adorable mutt, a cross between a Bull Mastiff and a Staffordshire Terrier. Named Barley, he likes to chase the stray cats that have set up housekeeping under my deck. It was a pretty nasty night, rainy and windy, so there were quite a few “guests” driving Barley into a frenzy.  He’s leashed and yeah, you guessed it, can just almost reach where the cats go under the deck. He’s dug holes to get at them but to no avail, those cats are just too darned fast.

After about 20 minutes of tearing around, trying to get at the cats, Barley finally gave up.  Something was different though. I guess he was disappointed at not catching a cat, so Barley brought me something that seemed about as far from something living as I’d ever seen.  Clutched in his jaws, was a scraggly, scrawny, twig!

Thinking that Barley, because of  his hunting failure, had dug something up from my much-ignored “garden” just so he was not empty-mouthed (lol).  He proudly presented me with his “find”.  And, being a proud, indulging “mommy”, patted his head and took the “plant”, praising his skill.

Ready for bed, I put my “plant” onto a shelf to dispose of when Barley was not watching.  After all, it wouldn’t have been very nice of me if I threw his offering out the door then, now would it?  I didn’t even give it a second thought, drifted off to sleep still trying to find a unique way to celebrate.  (Remember, the whole reason this started?)

Friday morning found me scrambling to the doctor’s office.  My son, Brad drove me as usual since I’m not able to drive alone anymore, sigh.(not that I care, being chauffeured is much better).  And, Barley came along for the ride.  Rushing past the “plant” still on the shelf, I stole a glance and noticed just how “unlive” it really looked.  Well Brad noticed and while we waited in the office for my turn, I regaled him with the tale of its arrival.  Loving to embellish, by the time I had finished, Barley had turned into the first Lumber Jack Terrier ever heard of, single-pawingly carrying home what seemed to be a rather dismal “plant.  We laughed, heck the whole office laughed as the nurse called my name for my appointment…..
When we got back home, my first task was to  dispose of my twig.  Well sir, I walked over to the shelf and I can’t believe what I’m about to tell you!  That scraggly twig had changed!  No, not into a handsome Redwood, lol, but there was a healthier look to it.  Having already figured out that it was part of an evergreen tree, I noticed the few needles still attached were just a bit plumper, just a little pointier than when Barley brought it in.

Now, I know you’re thinking, “okay, Camille, just what kind of pills are you taking?”  But folks, I’m not kidding, it really looked as if that little “plant” was telling me to hold on, there was still hope. I am a firm believer in never rushing into things that I can’t safely back out of, so, rather than discard my plant, I picked it up and stuck it into the only container I had that would work.  An empty 600ml plastic Coca-Cola bottle.   After all, things go better with Coke, right?

I am going to admit to you all right here and now, you’re not the first to hear about this plant.  You see, after I had shared the tale with Brad, I happened to get into a chat with my friend and fellow TE owner, Toni Jonckheere, from AceBizTraffic.com.

No stranger to my dislike of anything horticulture, Toni couldn’t help but laugh, loudly as a matter of fact, at my tree-tale.  So, wanting to prove my sanity, I took a pic of my bottled branch and quickly forwarded it to Toni.  She was still giggling when the photo arrived.  We joked and traded gardening horror stories before settling down to work on the Promo planning.  As we bounced ideas off each other, we just kept coming up with the desire to find some new and exciting way to  benefit both the members of our exchanges and use, that would not break the bank.  Let’s face it, times were tough, we’d both had a rough year, health-wise and site-wise.  As time wore on, I found myself drawn into glancing over at the shelf with the bottled branch, again and again.  I WAS SHOCKED!

Instead of one sickly little branch, looking desperately worse than a “Charlie Brown Christmas Tree”, I found myself, jaw wide open, looking at a bushed out Evergreen Tree Branch.  Oh, sorry, not just one branch, but well, bear with me here, you know that branch, usually at the top of the Christmas Tree that has two slightly off-centered “toppers”?  I had that!  Sitting there, I could not speak, but thankfully I could still type.  So, hurriedly, I typed my findings to Toni.  You can imagine her reaction!  Yeah, she figured I was tripping.  But I wasn’t,  I was telling the truth.  So, I sent Toni a second picture.  She accused me of using two different branches, but folks, I kid you not, that darn branched had split into two!  I had to get this validated.  I needed to prove once again that I was not sniffing fumes or sipping Baileys while I worked.

Time went by, and I kept watch over my tree.  As a matter of fact, I was glued to the view!  I couldn’t surf, I couldn’t type, all I could do was watch that teeny, miracle Fir twig, sitting, no, standing there in my emptied Coke bottle.  Finally, as the day wound down, I was able to get back to work and since Toni had abandoned me to search the medical tomes to try and find out about any mental state that might explain what I was experiencing, I started chatting with the third member of our Promo, Ken Athas, from HitsImpossible.com.  Now, for sure, this is when this story gets even more interesting!

We all know that Ken is a pretty down-to-earth, no b.s. kind of a guy.  He shoots from the hip, tells it like it is, even if what he says sounds harsh, he is a really cool guy that takes pride in his sites.  Another Alumni from The School Of Hard Knocks, Ken also has a great wry sense of humor.  Probably why I get along with him, lol.  As my story was heard by another, miraculously my bottled branch had again split and there were now three, very live, very strong Evergreen tufts exploding from that silly little coke bottle.

I related, jokingly, how the event reminded me of that old commercial about shampoo, where a girl tells her friend about the great results she achieved using the product.  You remember, “she told one friend, who told another friend, who then told two friends, and so on and so on”, the screen filling up with ever-shrinking pictures of beautifully coiffed heads.

Then, suddenly it hit me!  These events didn’t happen just by chance.  There was a reason Barley brought me that tiny, almost-dead branch.  And I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was now ready to finalize the plans for the Holiday Promo, ready to release the specifics to all those involved…

Dear members of AceBizTraffic.com, Dare2click.com and HitsImpossible.com Welcome to the….

Holiday Re”Fir”al and Surf Promo

 Happy Holidays, Everyone!

Please return to your email for further information.

Okay, this morning I opened an email from the owner of a Traffic Exchange I use. I admit, I don’t read every email I get. I can normally discern the contents just by reading the subject. If it is a subject that pertains to me, I’ll read it right then. If not, I’ll save it for later in the day. This is not always the best method because I do sometimes miss important information, special events, ways to get extra credits, you know the information that matters to a surfer.

Right off the bat, please rest assured, this is not another tirade going on and on about receiving multiple emails from anyone. That includes the traffic exchanges, the affiliate, and the social sites that I am a member of. No, this is an attempt to say “Wake up, surfers, the owner of this exchange is human too!”

Does that sound strange? Do I really feel that the members of most exchanges don’t know that the owner of that site is not that much different than they? That is part of the problem but this one goes even deeper.

The owner I’m speaking about, just to make it simpler, let’s call him Joe Blow, has been a traffic exchange owner for quite some time. I’m not sure exactly how long and that really doesn’t matter in this story. Now, “Joe” is a really nice guy. I don’t have to say that and if I told you his real name, 90% of you would say “Oh yeah, I know Joe, he’s a great guy! “Joe” is a pretty quiet TE owner. Normally I receive a couple of emails a week from him, usually close to the weekends which is when he likes to hold his special events. “Joe” is the type of guy who if you have a problem in your exchange, will do his best to help you. I have personal experience with the too. Friends of mine were doing some back office work for me and although I knew they would be doing the work eventually, they chose to do it at a time when I was away from home and computer. They wanted to surprise me with the finished work when I got back home. Well, as luck would have it, something went wrong. My friends were frantic! What were they to do? They worked into the wee hours of the morning but could not reverse the error. Out of desperation, they opened MSN and went looking for someone, anyone who might be able to help them. “Joe” was on line and agreed to lend them a hand. Long story short, he did fix it but it took a fair bit of time to get it right. My friends thanked him profusely and even offered to pay him for his time. Of course, “Joe” turned that down, with a simple, “Hey, just glad I could help”.

“Joe” had a problem on his site a few days ago. This problem caused a glitch that sent an email he had written out more than once. Once he realized there was a problem, he immediately informed all his members in an email. Once he fixed the problem, he again informed his members, apologizing for the numerous emails. He even offered to give credits to anyone that sent him the repetitive emails. Just his way of saying ” I’m sorry”

Today his email confirmed that the booboo, a mistake he himself made, was indeed fixed and he still was offering compensation. Then he added a bit of information that actually made my heart hurt. Not that “sit in the corner”type of hurt. No, more the “What is wrong with some people” hurt. In essence, “Joe”admitted that 38 had claimed the compensation, 2 had accused him of spam, and 8 actually quit!

Am I missing the point or is there just something about this that just sounds surreal? Good grief, surfers, do you not realize that the people that own traffic exchanges are really just the same. We’re human, we make mistakes and we have feelings. What is it about this business that divides participants in the TE society as soon as a surfer becomes an owner?

And, if you don’t want emails from TE owners sent to you, how in the heck are we supposed to get important information to you? Are you willing to call each and every member when you need to tell them something? I really think it’s about time that surfers take a step back and look over the situation. Get a grip on reality, stuff happens that is sometimes unavoidable. I am not asking that you place the owner of a traffic exchange on a pedestal, I just would like it if you’d accept the fact we are real, hard-working with the same goal as many of you. And that is to build a career on line.

Thanks for reading!

Camille Thomson
Owner
Dare2click.com

I wonder, because sadly, this is the direction I see happening with Twitter.

Safelist Syndrome is a web wide affliction and yeah, okay, I made it up!  But , think about it folks.  As ardent advocators twit and tweet, is anyone still reading each and every update?  I seriously doubt it.  I know I don’t and I admit this is not the way I want to be remembered.

Joining every safelist and text ad site that pops up does win me oodles of free advertising.  I bet I have over 100 solos just waiting to be sent.  As for banner sites and impressions, so too will Twitter be something we click to either gain followers or get points to our accounts.

And speaking of followers.  I’ve heard tales of having receiving a request to add another name to the Twitter list, some people ( no names, just generic) request you to follow then never tweet you back.  Or worse, get you on their Twitter account, join yours then mysteriously begin to drop out of the less “POPULAR” Twitter accounts.  Oh sure, they’ll get you to register and follow you too but if you’re not “In the loop”, you’re soon vanquished.  One friend lamented that he had lost 114 Twitter followers, quickly and with alarming similarities.  He’s not a “guru” self-proclaimed or otherwise, he’s just a normal guy trying to break into Internet Marketing.

Don’t be a victim of Safelist Syndrome.  Don’t become another of the masses that sign up and then slip the mailings into a virtually dead  g mail account.  Take time to pick and choose where you join and what you reveal to the supposed thousands of readers you submit your information to daily.

Sure, saturation and In Your Face advertising reigns supreme on line, and I know I won’t change it.  I would just like to suggest to anyone seriously expecting these mega-contact sites to work, that they, take a moment and get with the program.  Quit sending the pre-prepared, sometimes badly composed requests and suggestions to your dare I say “subscribed followers”.  Brand yourself, build a reputation as someone who really does want to hear and stop expecting all your emails, tweets and such to be opened and clicked and start accepting that from where ever you decide to post.

Camille Thomson

When I first thought about this subject, three things went through my mind.  Do I want to approach this as an owner, a member or a joke?

As an owner, it irks me to no end that members do not bother to use text impressions, banner impressions and credits.

As a member, I am embarrassed to admit that until last night, I had never assigned a text impression .  I do set my banners up on many of my surf sites, then promptly forget where and when to go and reapply impressions.

And I started to think of a joke I could make…….”A bannerimp, textimp and 3credits were all out circulating the web one night….. ”

Eureka Moment Friends and Followers!  It was no joke.  That opening line, which I thought first to represent my lame attempt to mimic, “A Frenchman, Englishman, Irishman…..” is in essence the whole purpose of this post.

Banner impressions,  Text impressions and Credits do no good sitting on accounts.  Be you an owner or a member, if you leave them sitting, not only are you losing valuable advertising routes, but, and this really is a no-brainer, why do you bother being a member of anything if you don’t use that which you are handed?

Out of respect to myself as an owner, and my pride as an active member I have decided to take a completely unbiased look at the three items in the title of this post, remove some of the more mysterious grey areas and simply show you them all in their naked state.

A Banner is a method of advertising.  Short, sweet and to the point, their purpose is to fit in small places where a splash page will not or where copious text is frowned upon.   Their best feature is that in most cases, you don’t have to make them!  I can’t think of one site that I belong to or advertise, that does not supply me with eye-catching banners.  Their worst feature is that every site already has them and lots of them are well-known.  Sigh, it’s a catch-22.  But if you are even slightly talented, you can convert a banner into something personal.  I know, I’ve done it.  And If I can do it, just about anyone can.  I’ll even help you with my next blog by listing some of the free programs I use to create banners with almost no effort or talent necessary. Stay tuned til next week, I will do it for sure then.

One other part about banners that I get into difficulty with is actually knowing how to set one up.  It gets me confused, although, I admit, I’m getting better at it now.  You see, some sites want a total of two urls to set up a banner.  Some just want one.  Finding that information can also be a bit confusing depending on the site.  I do have a simple way that I used to learn how to set up my banners and I will try to explain it here, lol.

When you are faced with needing two urls to set up a banner, one is going to be your personal referral url and the other is going to be the url that creates the visuals of the banner.  Your personal referral url WILL always end with your referral information, be it a number or a nicname.  The second url will always end in .gif or.jpeg, something that indicates that the url is a picture.

http://www.dare2click.com/?rid=54838                                                                                  and

When I join a new site, I always copy the pertinent information and place it on a notepad page. This referral url is always on there.   I also always copy and paste my surfing url here, the url for my chosen splash page, and the url for the banner graphics of one or two of the offered site examples of banners. This way, when I am ready to post my information on another site, it’s right there handy without having to return time after time to the site I want to advertise.  Confused?  Yeah it’s a bit long, I admit, so here is what I put on my note pad that keeps me clear.

login url:…..surfing url………splash url…….referral url……….banner graphics url….

By centralizing these urls each time I start a new te, I’ve got all the info I need to set my advertising up.

A Text Ad is just an ad that uses short bursts of text, or words, to grasp the attention of as many people as you can!  Most te’s offer you the option but unlike splash pages and banners, text ads are not normally supplied.  There’s a simple reason for that, lol, and I laugh because, well, hopefully as you read the reason, you’ll laugh too.  Text ads are in essence words YOU would choose to tempt others to click on your text ad.  Chances are it was the words of the owner that made you join his/her site.  If you want the sign ups, you have to gather new members.  Now, I can hear you whining again…..”my words never sound right…”  or “I never know what to say….”.  It’s really quite easy, all you need to do is think of a few words that pop into your mind when you hear the name of your favorites surf sites. You can do that, right?  It’s a breeze,  let’s look at a few of mine and I bet you’ll get the hang of it within minutes…

RelentlessChaos:  awesome new graphics; car-crunching wolf, Gunthar; safe surfing.

ZaneyClicks:  The name alone; bonus after bonus; Hover if you want to.

Dare2Click:  Addictive Game; Bonus after each 10 pages; Fantastic admin( okay, I admit, this one’s too easy ;))

But, surely now you see it is easy to do.  The toughest part is making sure you make your ad short and sweet.  Most sites have a limit of about 30 spaces to each ad.  This is what 30 spaces looks like…..123456789101112131415161718192….. and if you try it out, you’ll see that my short but descriptive words all fit!  So in 30 spaces, or less, I’ve created a full tempting text that readers will hopefully click on .  No guarantees as it’s all in their reading.  You must pique their interest, make them want to find out what is behind your ad.

And now we come to the worst stop on this trip.  CREDITS.  That I even have to include them here is really quite painful for if you don’t know what to do with the credits you build on a te, just why in the world did you join??  Please, enlighten me.  Why do so many leave their credits sitting on their account?   Did you not join to advertise?  You know, that is what a te does!  It ADVERTISES!  And as with any other advertising, you must pay for that.  Luckily on a te it’s normally free, your “payment” is measured by your credits.  OOOHhh I hear a whine ” I have a big launch coming up, so I am building a large credit base to use then.” Ah, I see, well here’s a thought my friend.  When you advertise regularily on a te, you are in essence, branding yourself and building a trust between you and your readers, and they do the same when you view their sites in rotation.  Don’t you think it makes more sense to consistantly have your picture, sites and name out there in the public view rather than just all of a sudden bombarding them with the announcement of your new all-important launch?  I do!  I’m going to trust the suggestions of someone I’ve come to know through my surfing than some newcomer all in my face.  If you think you’ll be low on credits, earn the love of your admin, buy a few extra, they’re usually very reasonable and if an owner knows you’re involved in a large launch AND you’ve been actively showing on his te, you may be surprised at how helpful he/she can be.

Well, that’s it guys, I’ve handed you all sorts of free advertising hints and ideas in this post and have hopefully tempted you into using all those extras you’ve been avoiding.  FREE!

Camille, Owner and Surfer, Dare2Click.com

I will only say this once:  “I am sick of surfing”!  Do you hear me, fed right up.  It’s 12:28 am on Thursday, October 16, 2008 and personally I am so looking for that infamous surfpage that tells me “You have reached the end of the internet.”  If that were to show up, tonight, by gum, I’d listen.  I’d close all my surf tabs, and sign off MSN and in one final defiant click, hit “shut down”.

Alas, as  luck would have it, I’ve not seen that cheerful page yet so, I decided to take a break and talk to you.  Still out there are you?  Or have you given up tonight too?  I often wonder if the members of my site or any other traffic exchange know just how much surfing we owners do.   And, although I know many owners that surf more than I do, I’m not going to share their numbers with you because I don’t think many of you would believe me.

As the story goes, it takes at  least 250 pages seen a day before you are likely to get a referral in any one place.  My gosh, either I’ve lost count or someone forgot to send me an update.  I surf up to 20000 pages any given day, and I can’t say whether that is right or wrong.  For human nature to be just that, natural, each and every one of us is subject to the random numbers some mathematical gooroo has sat and calculated.  Yet speaking again for myself, I gotta tell ya, if someone tells me that I will do that or see that happening, I’m going to find a way to prove them wrong!  Good ole human nature.

So, what keeps you clicking?  Is there one overriding factor that sends you day after day, into the shroud of mystery commonly called surfing?  Do you plan your surf, methodically moving from site to site after achieving some personal goal?  Or are you like me and look at my list of well, roughly 180 different sites, and say “Eenie Meenie, Minie Mo, to which sites first, shall I go?”

Do you chat while you surf?  Or multi-task and fold the laundry, clean the house, bake a cake?  I’ve done them all at one time or another.  Normally I just end up more frustrated since it’s very unlikely I’ll fold anything in less than 8 seconds or heaven forbid I miss the bonus page, applying a thin coat of icing to a wedding cake.  No, I’m not real good at the multi-tasking so, I sit and I surf.  Do you sometimes see a great looking page and wonder “hmmmm  could I build a page like that?”  If so, like me, your computer is probably full of template after template, graphics piled 6 files deep and more fonts than you ever dreamed were out there.  I, in a fit of creative passion, acquired a bundle of what ended up adding up to over 7000 different fonts.  Yeah, 7000!  Well I thought I was a genius, and would be pumping out splashpages and banners so well designed that I’d have people beating at my virtual door, begging me to make them.  Sigh, reality check folks, great graphics, tons of fonts and a gaggle of templates don’e necessarily turn out masterpieces.  I’ve come to the conclusion that besides the tools you have to have talent!  Who knew?  Oh and of those 7000+ fonts sitting on my desktop, most other computers can only read maybe 10% of them, and it’s normally a different 10% than the ones I choose.

Well, break time is over guys, I must get back to the surf, but I’d love to hear from any one of my fellow addicts, what keeps you clicking?  Is it the games, do you pick your sites by the number of clicks you get per view, or are you like me, “I surf it coz I like it”!  Share a little.

Camille

That’s right, I am here with a confession.  No I am not going to confess to anything “real juicy”.  Nor is your reading this confession going to give you “insider” information that could be used in any way beyond it’s reason.  In fact, some of you will read this and say, “ha, that’s just simple truth, not a confession”.

All day long I have been wanting to make this post and I confess, I have put it off.  Actually, I put it off long enough for today to be tomorrow, if you keep track of that sort of information.

Being Canadian, today is our Thanksgiving.   I am not certain why we Canadians found it necessary to hold Thanksgiving on a different day than the U.S., we just did!  You might even say that Canada started the holiday and the U.S. finally decided to copy us but just a little slow on the uptake. 

No matter the reason behind holding Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October of each and every year,  I have to say, I put off posting this dissertation for one reason only.   I could not, for the life of me, think of where to begin to tell you what I am thankful for.  Not because I have nothing to BE thankful for, but instead, because I have so much to BE thankful for.  I simply don’t know where to start.

Do I start by listing all the wonderful creations I thankfully enjoy every day?  Do I start by listing all the amazing happenings in my life that I am thankful for?  Or do I start by listing all the people in my life that I am thankful for?  For, in all honesty, with every breath I take,  there is no beginning for my thankfulness, just as I pray, there will never be a day that I do not find another perfectly good reason to be thankful.

I hope that by now, you can see my dilemma.  Each and every day I admit that there are too many creations, awesome happenings and way too many people who enter my world that I am thankful for.  And I am afraid if I begin to list them, I will most certainly forget that one event, the one person, the best reward responsible for my thankfulness.

Now, don’t get me wrong, there have been plenty of highs and an equal amount of lows that I have encountered during the 52 years I’ve been in this lifetime and I bet you can all say the same.  Yet each of them, highs and lows, have brought me to this spot, at this particular time and in this particular frame of mind.  A spot I am able to use to share my thoughts, my mistakes and my success.  A spot I use to help others, to make others think outside their own understandings.  A spot to vent, to rant and rave, to voice my honest opinions.

To put into words that which I am truly thankful for has proven rough, even for a chatter like me!  I think that this next piece of prose best describes it and I hope you take the time to read and join me on The Journey:

Life is like a train ride. We get on. We ride. We get off. We get back on and ride some more.  There are accidents and there are delays.  At certain stops there are surprises.  Some of these will translate into great moments of joy, some will result in profound sorrow.
When we are born and we first board the train, we meet people whom we think will be with us for the entire journey.  Those people are our parents. Sadly this is far from the truth.  Our parents are with us for as long as we absolutely need them.  They too have journeys the must complete.  We live on with the memories of their love, affection, friendship, guidance and there ever presence.
There are others who board the train and who eventually become very important to us,in turn.
These people are our brothers, sisters, friends and acquaintances, whom we will learn to love and cherish.
Some people consider their journey like a jaunty tour.  They will just go merrily along.
Others, will encounter many upsets, tears, losses on their journey.
Others still, will linger on to offer a helping hand to anyone in need.
Some people on the train will leave an everlasting impression when they get off.
Some will get on and get off the train so quickly, they will scarcely leave a sign that they ever traveled along with you or ever crossed your path.
We will sometimes be upset that some passengers whom we love, will choose to sit in another compartment and leave us to travel on our own. Then again, there’s nothing that says we can’t seek them out anyway.
Nevertheless, once sought out and found, we may not even be able to sit next to them because that seat will already be taken.  That’s okay… everyone’s journey will be filled will be filled  with hopes, dreams, challenges, setbacks and goodbyes. We must strive to make the best of it …no matter what.
We must constantly strive to understand our travel companions and look for the best in everyone.  Remember that at any moment during our journey, any one of our travel companions can have a weak moment and be in need of our help. We too may vacillate or hesitate, even trip…hopefully we can count on someone being there to be supportive and understanding.
The bigger mystery of our journey is that we don’t know when our last stop will come.  Neither do we know when our travel companions will make their last stop.  Not even those sitting in  the seat next to us.
Personally, I know I’ll be sad to make my final stop…I’m sure of it!  My separation from all those friends and acquaintances I made during the train ride will be painful.  Leaving all those I’m close to will be a sad thing.  But then again, I”m certain that one day I’ll get to the main station only to meet up with everyone else.  They’ll all be carrying their baggage…most of which they didn’t have when they first got on this train.
I’ll be glad to see them again.  I’ll also be glad to have contributed to their baggage… and to have enriched their lives, just as much as they will have contributed to my baggage and enriched my life.
We’re all on this train ride together.  Above all we should all try to strive to make the ride as pleasant and memorable as we can, right up until we each make the final stop and leave the train for the last time.
All aboard!  Safe journey!! Bon Voyage!*  Author unknown.

With sincere thanks for allowing me to ramble on.

Well this one’s gonna be a bit different, readers, as rather than picking my own subject I’ve decided to do it a bit differently.

Yesterday, Sept. 11, 2008, an individual joined Dare2Click.com at approximately 6.58pm EDT.  Nothing unusual, we have at least 3 sign-ups a day, all given the same initial welcome and subsequent  credits allotted to new free members.  I won’t reveal the name of this individual as it is unimportant as well as private information.  The person will know who I’m referring to as I will be sending them a copy of this blog for their own information.

So, member x(how I will refer to the individual throughout my response) joined.  At approximately 8:35 am EDT on Sept. 12, 2008, I received the following contact request from member x:

Comments: i like you’re script but only promblem why i wouldn’t upgrade at all. you need to check out traffic splash, bootscootin,etrafficfreedom. i have all pro on them. reason traffic splash gives credit every 15 pages surfed. and on all the tme sites. you can pause everything and still surf and build the sites up for hits. plus they all have better bonus then this script you run. soon i will run my own script and give alittle more to get more in return. you need to change the script more. everyone shoudl be able to pause their sites and surf. people would stay longer casue it would be nice. second you need to give better bonus to make people upgrade their accounts on here. and also you give bonus when you surf over 100 sites like traffic splash does. if you surf 100 sites they would give you 1000 for text or banners.

My Response:

I realize that you have since closed your account at Dare2Click.com, but I really felt your earlier support contact had some issues that I would like to comment on. Don’t worry, I won’t be contacting you once this is sent.  As a matter of fact, your address will be wiped from my records immediately following this.

Oddly enough, I want to thank you for your comments.  I like to hear from all my members be they active or not, present or past, because it is through these contacts that I can gauge just how we’re doing in the eyes of our members.  As well, your comments have inspired me into a blog posting, so first off, thank you for commenting.

Your comments refer to the fact that Dare2Click.com is a nice script but you would never upgrade on it.  That is your prerogative, an option we offer to all members.  Whether they take it at the beginning, later during their membership, or never at all is included in their options.  I hold each of my members, free and paid at the same level of respect. The happiness of all my members is what is important to me, ALL MY MEMBERS.

No, you’re right, Dare2Click.com is not Traffic-Splash, BootScootinTraffic or ETrafficFreedom.  Thank you for noticing that.  As a matter of fact I am a member at all three of those fine traffic exchanges as well as approximately 150 other sites at last count.  I belong to some of the largest, some of the smallest and some of the newest.  I have never once made the claim that Dare2Click.com is the same as any other traffic exchange on line nor will I make Dare2Click.com into a copycat of any traffic exchange on line.  Unique is our tag and unique we will remain.  Our game is unlike any other on the net and I like to feel that it is it’s  random action that makes us that way.  It’s purely the member’s choice whether they take the sure thing or risk all for a larger prize.  A bonus is won every ten pages surfed, increased only if you have the nerve to spin the wheel.  As well, every 20 pages, if you’re paying attention you have the option of clicking a link for an automatic addition of 2 credits to your account.  And, when you reach the validation page, wow, answer correctly and you get 5 credits.  Miss it 10 times and your account is locked.  Hmm not so different from just about every site on line trying to keep their surfing clean for the honest attentive members.  Oh and guess what, even if you happen to miss those verify pages, all you have to do is contact admin and your account is released and available right away.  Not bad, unless of course, you’re trying to cheat the system.  Yeah, I know how can I even suggest that there are individuals who do that!

I refuse to go into a comparison of credits given as bonuses at the sites you mention.  Dare’s bonuses are not huge, but they are a bonus just the same.  The member chooses whether to take the chance of increasing their amount.  Hmmmm not very many other sites, including the three you mention have that option do they?  One other that I can think of off the top of my head does give you a chance at increasing your bonus and if I’m feeling lucky, I try.  Sometimes I lose, sometimes I don’t…. (reminds me of Dare2click.com odds)  You bring up the fact that at “the other sites you can pause everything and still surf”  Yes at Dare2Click.com you can pause the viewing of your sites as well.  Perhaps, member x, if you had stuck around long enough to add a site, surf and assign credits to that site, you would have come across the area where this action takes place.  I admit, free members have to auto-apply 75%  of their hits but you can still put the site on hold. Again I wonder how you can say the bonuses to upgrade need to be improved.  Did you even look to see what the upgrades are and what each includes?  Did you happen to notice there is a two4one upgrade special for the Pro2 upgrade?  Oh and you certainly were made aware of the special prices offered for upgrading with the OTO you saw when you joined, maybe you didn’t notice that.  Oh well, my bad. Apparently,  you wanted a “hands-on, tell me what’s best” tour.  Sorry, never got your request for that!  If you had asked, I’d have gladly taken the time to point out the benefits you were in line for by joining Dare2Click.com.  Were you aware of the “exclusive” offer available to Dare2Click.com members entitling them to a super one-time cost of $2.49 for a Lifetime Pro upgrade at one of the fastest growing text ad sites?  So exclusive that it has only been offered to the subscribers of only 30 select web owners?  No I don’t suppose you saw that, the second announcement of that offer was sent today about 5 hours AFTER you deleted your account.  I happen to know none of the sites you mention are privy to the offer.  Not their fault, and I know they offer some great perks to their members too, but not this one!

Did you happen to hear about the Looney Long Weekend Surf special we held at Dare2Click?  No, probably not, you hadn’t joined before that.  Well if you had been a member you’d know that during that surf special 30 yes 30 members were given a prize including free six month upgrades, and well over 5000 credits.  Advertised to only the members.  Those that maintain an account with Dare2Click.com.

In closing, previous, no-longer a registered member, member x, thanks for stopping by, pointing out what Dare2Click has to offer that you didn’t bother to take advantage of.  Oh and please, don’t let the door slam on your way out, folks here are concentrating… On being active, satisfied, continuing members!

Sincerely, and Proudly

Camille Thomson

Owner and member of Dare2Click.com.

ps.  any current member of Dare2Click.com that reads this post and simply leaves their member number in the comment box, heck never mind, I’m going to give every member of Dare2Click.com 100 credits.  Thank you for being my members, and so long memberx, have a great day.

What’s the reason you join a traffic exchange? Yes, we have talked about this before but I felt that perhaps it was time to re-open a dialog to make a point.

You join a traffic exchange to get traffic. Wow, what a mind blowing statement. Who would have guessed? And how do you create that traffic? How do you”fill” the “parking lot” that is your “target” for all that traffic you are creating? “” are my way of using normal words to build a picture for you, my paintbrush if you will, to “draw” a “visual” you will understand.

ENOUGH, I bet you get the drift of my paragraph above, lordy, even the person who has no idea can understand that. I am trying to ask you this folks… How do you drum up visitors to your site? Any site that requires members, visitors, buyers, human visualizers. Your business depends on that traffic doesn’t it? So, what do you do to increase traffic to your business? Well, if you use Traffic Exchanges, you surf. When you surf, you look at other like-minded peoples sites. This builds up credits for you to use to advertise your business.

Your job is to entice as many people as possible to your site. You build a list by getting those people that visit your site to become frequent visitors. With any luck, those frequent visitors will become frequent buyers. Or paying members. How many people see your site on a daily basis? You know that it is that daily or repeat basis that will better the chance that those viewing your site will visit your site.

Let’s talk about that fact, shall we? How many times does it take before a viewer becomes a visitor? Statistics say, it takes up to 7 viewings before a person will be drawn to become a visitor. Other statistics will tell you, it takes up to 250 viewings to get one visitor to become a member or a paying customer. 250! Wow, that’s a lot of viewings. How in the world can you get that many viewings? By SURFING. Regular, everyday, effective surfing. And taking those credits you build up by surfing and assigning them to your sites. Valued, rapid traffic can happen. But it takes work. Adding credits to your sites is the only way to have them seen. To keep your site in rotation( meaning in view of others) you must assign credits to it regularly. To get those credits built up, you must surf regularly. If you don’t surf regularly, you’re probably not assigning credits to your sites. Soooo it’s pretty safe to say, your sites, my friend, are not getting seen.

Dare2Click.com free members earn 1 click for every 2 sites they see. Pro2 and Pro3 members get a 1-1 ratio as well as a reduced timer. So while it is easier and faster to build up credits as a pro member, 1-2 is great. Most sites have a 3-1 rate and that can take a lot of surfing to build. Now, that tells you your rate of earning, what about the regularity factor. It is imperative to surf on a regular basis. It is in fact a rule on Dare2Click.com. If you don’t surf in seven days, well you’re going to hear about it. There is an automatic email sent to members who have not surfed in 5 days, warning them that in two more days they will be considered inactive.Sounds pretty harsh, I know. Guess what, we thought so too.

Effective immediately you now have a 14 day grace period. Surf within that time period and no warning email.

Whoo Hoo a bit of a break for those of you that were finding the one week limits an annoying limitation. The members spoke and we listened. You can thank Celson in what ever way you come up with but I can tell you the best way to do it. Hint, its really a simple as being active regularly, surf as often as you can in a two-week period. Personally, I surf every day at least 50-60 pages and I can tell you that during a multi-surf where I am viewing 5 different surf sites, it only takes me about 40 mins to meet that number. I try for twice a day and as soon as I get better organized, I will be doing that plus.

You see, I’ve also found another little helper, that while it does not surf for me, nor do I pay for credits, but through reading and learning to optimize I am increasing the benefits of my surf time. The URL that will take you to my saving site is below with my usual.

Later Folks

Camille

http://www.surfingforsuccess.com/members.php

http://www.dare2click.com/?rid=54838

It’s official, we have advanced into the season of Spring. The weathermen and women in my end of the world almost whispered its arrival so as not to alarm us! Or to have their audiences choking on laughter as we shoveled snow again.

I don’t care, (stomping my feet defiantly). My shorts are under a tiny layer of t-shirts and ready to be worn. Okay, truth is, I wear em all winter too. But let that be our little secret.

Spring is a season of growth and growth is what I am here to talk about today. Not just the growth of plants, baby birds and tiny bunnies but the growth of my stomping grounds, Dare2Click. com. Yes, it’s my blog, and I can brag if I wanna, but it is also personally satisfying too.

We have grown in numbers, how many I haven’t figured out yet. You see that’s one of those mathematical computations I leave to Celson. He’s much better at that than I am. I flit here and there, chatting and typing, surfing and inviting. A nice job if you can get it. And…I got it, so nananabooboo.

So, in my own way of welcoming spring, I’ve decided to bring every one and any one who happens to read this blog, up to date on the new perks floating around Dare2Click.com.

Have you signed in to Dare2Click lately? I hope so, as there’s been goood things added folks. You won’t necessarily be hit by the changes dead on, but (here’s where I come in) with a hint or two you will be able to head right over to the goods and reap the harvest.

Let’s hit the opening page first. Now, you all have seen the menu, and it’s pretty much the same since January. Of course, we now have the link to the blog and forum right there so there is no excuse not to see them both. I understand if you haven’t had a chance to visit either but trust me, you’ll benefit from the forum. Not only do you get a little credit present for joining, you’ll meet the nicest of folks. No pushy sales pitches, no blatant opinions, just folks yapping and swapping hint, stories, suggestions. Worth the 5 minutes it takes to register.

The blog. Again a trip outside the site. But, and I mean this, I want everyone to feel comfortable with this. Blogging, and forums are just the initial extensions of social networking. We all know how rapidly that fad is taking off. Seems a new one launches weekly. All have their own flair but ultimately, they are places for people to network, make connections, learn new ways and share good “stuff”. That’s my idea behind the blog in a nutshell. Sure, I pick my topics, no orders from anyone and even though I tend to stick to connecting them to Dare2Click.com, most of what I discuss will work everywhere.Maybe some would feel more at ease leaving an anonymous remark or question. Well we can do that here on the blog or the forum. You need not sign your name. If you want feedback all I need is an address (which stays in admin, no one else has access) or a username. Better yet, send me a pm, I’ll answer, promise.

Now, you’re up-to-date 0n the first page, lets move on. Are you a pro member at Dare2Click? If not, my dears, now is the time. Celson has added a special section just for pro members. It’s a private area which will be full of special offers, gifts, and such for those who decide to become upgraded. Now, you all know that upgraded members get commissions from your down lines, cash, banners, credits, whatever. You earn that by being a Pro2 or Pro3. Now on board, the quintessential guide to forum life. Through a special arrangement between Cindy Battye (author and WM of trafficbunnies.com) Pro’s can download a copy of Cindy’s “Forum Traffic Gold”! I am not going to ruin the surprise but this book will take you from newbie to pro in 10 easy steps and can be applied to any forum around. I am a member of three forums with Cindy, and the girl is HOT! So much fun, interactive events, contests, helpful threads, I’ve never been bored. And thanks to Celson, you can get a pass into this welcoming place just for being a pro at Dare2Click.com. $7.99 a month for Pro2 and you’re in. With all the gravy from being a pro at D2C too! You don’t have to join Trafficbunnies to belong but what the hay, it’s a really fun place to surf too. You never know who you’ll find. And it is never stagnant. Ever evolving, revolving around the best ways to attract visitors, Trafficbunnies is worth a visit.

Find that your credits run out quickly? Not able to surf as much for whatever the reason? Well why not buy a few extra to tide you over? Celson has devised a price list with a plethora of credits for nary a sou! You can spend $1.00 and get 1000 text link impressions. $2.00 will get you 100 credits. Nothing to sneeze at now, is it? I’m the first to admit that I sometimes fall a little short of my desire to surf 100 pages a day. Now, for less than a cup of coffee (remember I live in the boonies), I keep my sites in view, right where I want them to be.

In closing today, I’d like to take a moment to tell you a bit about my involvement with Dare2Click.com. In January, Celson was interested in having a couple of members come into the admin, to help him with the everyday running of the site. Guys, I knew nothing about the backdoor operation of a Traffic Exchange but I had a feeling this was pre-destined to be. I had the honour of becoming friends with a couple of super WM’s who helped me without hesitation and came to realize that this is the way to go. I don’t know any more than most, I don’t get anything handed to me. I work, I surf, I now blog and I have joined forums that normally I’d have avoided like the plague. I tried to get involved with another TE but something held me back. I firmly believe I was waiting for this. I am still learning and as some of you who I have tried to help can attest to, I still call on the big guy, Celson, for the finishing touches. If you have questions, ask. If you can’t find something, ask. If there is a site you feel deserves our attention, ask. And for heaven’s sake, find ME the consummate NEWBIE. Together we’ll take the world by storm. I’m ready to help, easy to find, and even easier to ask because chances are I’ve had the same question.

Til Next Time

Camille Thomson