I have a pr3 image host. It gets a ton of traffic but adsense is not really earning anything. It has received around 11,000 unique visits this month and no earnings through google? What would be a better way of monetizing it? Also I need a new host for it as it is growing really big. What big hosts allow image hosts to be hosted on them? I also need a big host that can host a file hosting site. Please give me your feedback asap as I need to move my stuff and need to start earning some money!
Just keep trying new things! The best advertising method is probably something someone has never tried. Try out the cpm thing for a week or two and see how it goes, then switch it up, keep logs of the results, and after a few months see what works the best.
Hate to say it, as I hate them, but Imageshack has popups. So, I'd guess that popups would produce some earnings, but I'd also be scared it would thin-out my user base. I have a small image host I'm working on, and I wonder the answer to this myself... Oh well, I'm having fun!
Monetizing an image hosting site is especially hard - I know this from back when I ran UploadFX. But, it can be done. I would also recommend using CPM ads - audio ads, pop-ups, or something like that. CPC won't earn you anything at all. Good luck.
If you have a large image host you could try paypop-up, they pay good but you may lose some traffic. I notice alot of image host use Adbrite & are making some good money, just checkout in the Sites thread in the Buy, Sell or Trade forum & look at what people are using on their image hosting sites. They even post their earning so you can get an idea of how much you can also make.
Yup, pop-unders made me a lot of money, especially once you got in ValueClick etc. Another way you can try is selling text-link to your competitors. You can charge a bomb for the targeted traffic that you could offer. Many people avoid this but meh, you see a tons of your competitor ads through Adsense all the time anyway. Finally, like Lord_Anubis mentioned, a lot of image hosts favour Adbrite for some reason. I did not try it out when I own a huge image hosting site so I can't comment much.
Alright so with that kind of traffic you might be able to make $1.00-1.35 a day with CPM ads. Another idea (I will be hated for this) is Adbrite. Many people don't think it pays well, but if Adsense isn't working for you Adbrite is the way to go. Someone is selling a Image Host that makes $800+ a month is Adbrite. Of course its more than 11k uniques a month, but its worth a try.
Well Adsense on free image host is risky. You might get banned for some nude pictures uploaded on to your service. Perhaps that's why a lot of free image host uses Adbrite instead. However, adult pictures are probably the best money maker for your website too. Oh, I forgot about this. Adultfriendfinder.com and its network earned me a lot too during my days. This is perhaps often overlooked by new image hosts. It will be great if you could join under my referral id.