I've been contacted by an advertiser that wants me to place a specific post on my index page with two text links back to their site for $500. They want me to leave it up for 6 months. I'd already decided that I would charge $200 a month for ads, and because of that this seems rather low. The problem is that it isn't even directly related to my content. With that said, $500 is hard to say no to. What would you guys do? Would this damage my search rankings to accept the offer?
lol I wouldn't make it no follow. That's a bit harsh. 6 months is a long time. Try and get something shorter.
Considering it would normally be $600 for 3 months..I would offer him 3 months for $500. If he doesn't accept I might go for 4 months, but not 5... It won't hurt your rankings in the SERPS..although they may not get too many clicks if it isn't related at all.
Rightly said It depends on what you are looking for from your website If you are at SERP rankings then you can negotiate a bit and get a better deal and go ahead with the link placement even if it is not related, as the link nature is hardly going to matter to SERPs But if it is PR that you are looking at increasing (i dunno what is the benefit, other than future link sales, even though that is not a good business proposition) then you need to negotiate better since you will be bleeding PR
Mostly it depends on whether you need the income. I'd offer him several options, including advertising space to start with. I don't think I'd give him an unrelated post. If it was related to the content it would be more workable.
If it's not related to your content, then it could negatively affect you in Google. You'll have to decide for yourself if that's worth it.
Its not directly related to my content. So I should make it nofollow links to preserve my Google SERPS?
The only reason he wanted to pay for those links is for the follow juice, so if you intend to nofollow it, you should really let him know. The way i look at it is - IF the site is not something that will harm you, aka porn, drugs etc, you should be fine. A disclaimer at the end of the post *The above post is sponsored by who & who will do your readers good. and $500 for 6 months is real good money! Just write another post fast after 1 - 2 days and push the old post away, no one will even notice! Heh, if you want, you can PM more info, i take a look : )) *curious!
6 months is a dumb investment on there part they should be able to get results and see if your site is worthwhile i n 3 months no longer. do it but just for 3 months
It depends if your website is content targeted with a loyal readership base. If that's the case then don't do it. Say no, keep your standards and go look for someone appropriate to sell them your ad space. Readership, advertiser and yourself will all benefit from this. If your website is mainly based on Google juice and/or is about making money then by all means do it and make some cash.
If it's not related to your content, then personally, I have a hard time recommending you publish it.
6 month its a long time and not worth it.. offer them 600 for 2-3 month.. maybe a good way to generate money from your web