Due to the number of questions I receive about flat-rate ads, I thought I’d blog about this topic today.

First of all, flat-rate ads have a fixed price regardless of impressions, clicks, etc.  So charging someone $50 per month for an ad on your site would be an example of a flat-rate ad.

In this post I want to discuss three different ways you can host these kinds of ads.

1)  AdBrite

As you may know, AdBrite will host and manage your flat-rate ads for you.  Of course, the catch is they take a percentage of the revenue you earn from each ad.

However, the positive side is they manage the addition and removal of ads based on the start and end dates so you don’t have to remember to physically add and remove the ads.

You simply create your ad zones, set your prices, and paste the AdBrite code into your pages.  AdBrite does the rest, including processing the payments.

I’m currently using AdBrite to manage some of the ads on my left and right columns of 2 Create a Website.  You can click the “Your Ad Here” links to get a feel for how the process works.

Note: Yes, it is OK to use AdBrite’s flat rate ad system in conjunction with AdSense.  I emailed Google to verify this before signing up.

2) Ad Management Scripts

Installing an ad managment script will give you the most flexibility.  Everything is managed on your own domain name and you don’t have to share any of your revenue with a third party.

There are several free scripts available that you can install to manage your ads.  OpenX (formerly OpenAds) is probably one of the most popular, open source ad scripts around.

For a list of more options, check HotScripts.com.

You must have a domain name and shared or dedicated hosting plan to use these kinds of scripts. Installation and some configuration is usually required.

With many of these scripts, your advertisers can create accounts so they can manage their own ads, review click-thru reports, purchase new ads, etc.

Most are also compatible with billing solutions like PayPal, although in many instances you’ll need to install a plug-in or add-on.

3) The Manual Method

If you don’t want to bother with installing scripts or using ad management companies like AdBrite then you can manage your flat-rate ads manually.

In other words, you put the ads up and take them down yourself while managing the payments with a 3rd party billing provider like PayPal.

Yes, in case you didn’t know, PayPal has a subscription payment option.  So if someone wants to advertise on your site, you can simply login to your PayPal account, go to “Merchant Services” and select “Subscribe.”

This will allow you to setup a recurring billing/subscription payment for your advertisers.  PayPal will automatically bill them for the chosen amount every month.  Of course, you can cancel the payments at any time.

How Much Should You Charge?

“How much should I charge for my ads?” is a question that comes up a lot on my forum.

One way to determine this price is to look at your eCPM statistic from affiliate networks you belong to (CJ, LinkShare, etc.) or from programs like AdSense or AdBrite.

Let’s say your eCPM for AdSense is $3.00.  That means your site earns $3.00 for every 1,000 ad displays.   So if your site gets 5,000 visits per month then you would charge $15/month ($3.00 x 5) for the flat-rate ad.

Of course this is not the only way to determine your price and you may want to adjust it based on the kind of traffic you receive, ad placement, etc.  However, this is a good starting point for setting your prices.

A Note About Traffic

A lot of new Webmasters and Bloggers consider selling advertising space on their sites before they even have any traffic.  This is a big no-no.

Would you place an ad in a magazine that had no subscribers or circulation?  Of course not.  So build up your traffic first and then be prepared to provide statistics about your traffic to potential advertisers (traffic numbers and information about the type of visitor).

As I described above, your traffic levels can help you determine the price of your ads.  So if you have no traffic, how can you ensure your prices are appropriate?

Other Options

This is not an exhaustive list of methods you can use for flat-rate ads.  If you use WordPress, there are even plug-ins you can install to manage them.  So feel free to share what you use for your site or blog.

My last post on my top 7 money making programs generated some questions about AdBrite.

Some people wanted to know if it’s legal to use with AdSense. Others were curious if it pays well.

First of all, yes, it’s OK to use AdBrite in conjunction with AdSense. It does not violate Google’s Terms of Service if you want to use both programs on your site or blog.

As far as earning potential goes, you’ll get the same answer as you would for any contextual advertising system. A lot will depend on your traffic, niche, and ad targeting.

A Few Kinks

Unlike Google, AdBrite has got lots of work to do in the targeting department.

In fact, the network ads were so unrelated I had to turn off the “auto approve” feature because I had ads for cars and jewelry showing up on my site about web development. Yikes!

I guess AdBrite must realize this is a problem because they give you the option to approve the ads before they show up on your site.

This can be a pain because it requires you to login to your account and manually review each new ad. However, if showing targeted ads on your site is a priority (and it should be), then this step is a must.

As I mentioned in my last post, I didn’t join AdBrite for their CPC (cost per click) program. I personally think AdSense is the best program for that.

I use AdBrite to sell ad space to 3rd parties. So the only time the network (CPC) ads appear on my pages is when I have not sold all my flat rate ad spaces.

Their 3rd party ad management is pretty good. You have complete control over how your customer’s ads will appear. You can change the font style, text size, etc. and choose either a horizontal or vertical layout.

Is AdBrite Worth It?

That’s one of those things you’ll have to test for yourself. I certainly like them better than programs like Kontera where they underline your text and display the ad when the person hovers over the hyperlink.

I don’t know why, but I find those kinds of ads to be terribly annoying and distracting. Yet, others may say the same thing about AdSense, AdBrite and the likes. So, to each their own, right?

Even though AdBrite’s targeting needs work, they’ve certainly gotten better over the past six months. And the good thing is, it’s not going to cost you a thing to try them out.

For me, they are worth it because I like having a 3rd party manage my flat-rate ads. So if you’re looking to sell ad space from your site, you may want to look into AdBrite.

And if you’re searching for a new monetization option or perhaps you’ve been booted from AdSense and you’re looking for other CPC programs — give AdBrite a try to see how it works with your site or blog.

In my opinion, it doesn’t hold a candle to AdSense in terms of earnings for CPC, but depending on your niche, you may find that certain ads perform very well on your site.

I’ve noticed from reading other blogs, readers seem to enjoy learning how other sites make money.  So I’ve developed a “Top 7″ list of my top income generators based on nothing more than monthly income earned.

Note: This list is from all my sites combined.

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1. Domain and Web Hosting Reselling

This program is a great example of why you should look for affiliate or reseller programs in your niche that pay residual commissions.

If my site got wiped out today, I would still be able to live off the residual income I’ve generated since joining this program in 2002. If you have a site that targets Webmasters, reselling domains and web hosting is a great way to build a long-term income that continues to grow and grow.

As a reseller, you receive your own customizable website that allows you to set your prices and determine your profit.  The parent company handles all the customer and technical support, so all you do is promote your own reseller store.

It would be hard for any other affiliate program to bump this from the #1 spot.

2. SiteSell

I’ve been receiving checks from SiteSell’s affiliate program since 1999, but nothing like the ones I started getting when I bought Site Build It! and displayed my own success story.

(See the post about my February 2008 check)

This was my biggest lesson in the importance of knowing and actually using products you refer from your site.

SiteSell’s affiliate program pays a generous $75 per Site Build It! sale, plus residuals on all yearly renewals.  I really wish more affiliate programs would put the same amount of time and energy SiteSell does into helping affiliates.

I’ve never known another company to offer so many tools to help their affiliates make sales. From videos with your affiliate links embedded in them to over 60 audience-relevant landing pages, this program has it all.

3. Affiliate Networks (CJ.com, ShareASale.com, etc.)

I promote a variety of products that I find on some of the larger affiliate networks. From web software, web hosting, HTML editors, to anything I can find that’s useful and related to my audience.

Belonging to an affiliate network has its advantages…

1) If you’re looking for a specific product to promote, you can do a search to see if there are any relevant affiliate programs that offer the product.

2) You can join multiple programs with a few mouse clicks.

3) All of your earnings are tracked in one place, so you have one-stop reporting instead of multiple affiliate account logins.

The downside is that many companies who run their affiliate programs through large networks tend to have sub-par customer support.

There have been many occasions where I’ve sent an email to a company I’m affiliated with through CJ and never received a response. Companies that run their own in-house affiliate programs seem to have better customer support over all.

Nevertheless, large affiliate networks are definitely worth exploring, particularly if you’re looking for a specific product to promote on your site or blog.

4. AdSense

I hate using the term “easy money”, but if you have enough traffic, AdSense has got to be one of the easiest ways to generate an income from your site or blog.

AdSense performs much better on my sites not targeted to Webmasters and Bloggers – which is a big reason why you don’t see many AdSense units on this blog.

Bloggers and Webmasters tend to be immune to Google ads so they ignore them. However on my fitness site, my click-thru ratio has been much higher.

Even though my main site, 2CreateAWebSite.com targets Webmasters, it does OK with AdSense because it gets enough traffic to make displaying the ads worthwhile.

Watch a video about my record Google AdSense Earnings…

5. Thesis (DIYThemes)

This program just bumped Amazon.com off the list and beat out Clickbank and Adbrite.  So in August, 2009 I had to update this post.

I make most of my money from affiliate programs that are tied to products and services I own.  It’s so important to build credibility and trust as an affiliate, and one way to start is to buy and use what you recommend.

As soon as I learned how to use Thesis and realized the sheer power, I added a page here that illustrates how it works.  Since this site gets a lot of traffic from Bloggers, it’s a perfect fit and the earnings started coming in right away.

Thesis has a very generous affiliate program and if a person buys the Developer’s option, you can earn over $50 for one sale.

6. ClickBank

With ClickBank, you really have to feel it out and see what works for you. Even though it’s on my Top 7 list, I must admit there is a lot of garbage on ClickBank.

Many of the eBooks you can sell are a bunch of recycled facts you can find anywhere on the Web.

They are usually promoted by an over-hyped landing page with a loud sales pitch that promises you to either get rich quick, lose weight tomorrow, or get out of debt in seconds.

However, if you really comb through the ClickBank marketplace, you can find some winners. I was able to find a few good e-books to promote that convert very well on my sites.

The great thing about ClickBank is that the commissions are extremely high since product development and delivery costs are low. You could earn up to $75 on certain products in their marketplace.

7. AdBrite

Many people use AdBrite’s cost per click program (similar to AdSense).   However, I use them to manage my own flat-rate ads.

I have various advertising spots on 2CreateAWebSite.com where I charge a flat fee for the week, month, etc. and AdBrite manages the payments, ad rotation, etc.

If you’re looking to offer advertising on your site, but don’t want to deal with collecting the payments and setting up an ad rotation script, you may want to check into AdBrite.

They still have some kinks to work out (support response time, ad rotation options, better targeting for network ads, etc.) but they are getting better with time.

Note: OIO Publisher is a much better ad management program because you keep all your earnings.  However, you cannot install OIO Publisher on static/HTML websites.  It only runs on dynamic websites (blogs, forums, etc.).  I own it and used it on my forum.

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These aren’t the only programs I earn money from, but these are the highest paying by far.  The rest of my income comes from a collection of other affiliate programs.

This post was not created to encourage you to join all these programs.  Quite frankly, if your site does not target the same people and does not have the same kind of traffic, your income will be drastically less.

But hopefully this shows you what is possible if you build a website that allows you to become the “expert” in your niche, and you recommend quality products that you use and are relevant to your audience. You can apply this strategy to any niche.