Google changes inbound link policies

All hail Lord Google! For the Almighty Lord Google of the web has cited inbound links will be changed. No more are the days of links to your website. Now you must be disavow  all inbound links, or face the wrath of the almighty Google.

Most people are scrambling to no end to deal with Google's new insane policy. I'm not worried though because Along for the Ride! will not be affected. How so, you ask?

In 2008, when I started designing the system, I spent considerable time thinking about the link a structure and where it needed to be for future reference. In my design process, I had already anticipated that Google will try to downplay all free traffic sources and would try to move towards a "pay to play" model.

I believe this move, by Google, is designed to do only one thing - push people to pay Google for traffic.  In essence Google is engaging in legalized extortion. Anybody that wants traffic to their website must pay Google for it and all free sources of traffic will be penalized. Furthermore, if you use any free sources of traffic, you will also be penalized. In my opinion, this is nothing more then Google's misogynistic insidious greed at work.

While I am NOT a fan of Microsoft but I have to agree with them on this one point, Google seems hell bent to scroogle everyone, or at least anyone who did not anticipate Google's insipidous greed.

Now for the actual details of why Along for the Ride! is immune from this latest change. Its very simple, the Along for the Ride! link structure uses nofollow for its web directory listings only and dofollow for its members with emphasis of relevancy on membership.

But the heart of Along for the Ride! has always been Its traffic sharing system, which revolves around the widget. The widget is pure java script and is immune to Google and their insane policies. The web directory was actually an afterthought to help me keep track of all of my members that ran the widget.

That's right, the web directory was an afterthought. Nonetheless, when I designed the web directory, I wanted something humans could enjoy. Even though my entire system revolved around my traffic sharing concept, I wanted something that looked nice and felt welcoming. Unlike Google, where page after page is nothing but a boring and monolithic white, with the Along for the Ride! web directory, the pages are randomly different pastel colors that are easy on the eyes and help to distinguish separate pages.  I even spend time making sure the pastel colors are very mild and soothing.

The widget though is where I really spent time thinking about design, color, and layout. While Google is so obsessed with everything above the fold, I am not. My logs and my records show clicks from the widget illustrate clearly that it performs well anywhere on the web page. As long as the widget is visible, location does not matter. Whether at the top or the bottom of the page, its performance is equally well.

I think the reason the widget performs so well because I spent so much time making its design look so appealing and different from anything else on the Internet. I believe its uniqueness is why it does so well. Again, I wanted to focus on the human readers, not web spiders.

While Google and its insane policies are irrelevant to me, I do care about the members of my traffic sharing system and web directory. While I am appreciative to those that do run the widget, its does not bother me that most people listed in the web directory will not run the widget, because the blogs listed are there for the uniqueness of their content. Furthermore, I am not bothered by the many people who decide not to run sponsored links. I'm simply appreciative that they're running the widget at all.

Google maybe out to take over the world but I am not. My goal has always been and will continue to be, to provide a free and nice traffic sharing system and web directory.

Join me and come Along for the Ride!

Sponsored Links

Sponsored links - a blessing and a curse both at once. They are great in helping pay the bills, but they just don't belong in some places.

When I was a member of EntreCard (yes, I actually was a member), they rolled out sponsored links. They way EntreCard introduced sponsored links even turned me off. My disdain for EntreCard's approach to sponsored links really drove how I implemented them in the AFTR widget.

Most importantly, for me, was the ability to turn off the sponsored links instantly. Two ways are provided:

1. Through style sheets
   .AFTR2spon { display: none; }
   
2. Adding a NoAds clause to the script line.

Here are two widgets, one with the sponsored links and one without. First, the 125 widget with sponsored links:



Now for the 125 wide widget without the sponsored links:



Now for the actual HTML. For the regular widget, with the sponsored links:

<script src="http://tsswd.net/aftr2.xjs?ID+1" type="text/javascript"></script>

And without the sponsored links:

<script src="http://tsswd.net/aftr2.xjs?ID+1+NoAds" type="text/javascript"></script>

ID is the member's site ID. The NoAds clause on the script line takes effect immediately. While I understand the need to pay the bills, I understand the importance of a blog owner not wanting sponsored links and I make sure AFTR honors that.

AFTR is 5 years old!

"Along for the Ride!" is five years old this month!

Where has five years gone? It seems so long, yet it seems like only yesterday that I started working on AFTR.  So much has changed, yet so little has as well.  When I started AFTR, I wanted a traffic system that was a good clean method to bring in the traffic.

While I was able to achieve that, the internet has been flooded with shams, schills, and scams.  Just the other day I registered for a web masters' forum to learn some new ways on internet marketing.  Sad to say, but I got scammed.  All I've found was ways to take people's money and how to con them into clicking on gimmicks.

I am finding the traffic market to be a joke lately.  At one time, there were dozens of good, solid ways to increase your traffic.  Within the last few years though, there are very few real genuine traffic systems that don't involve some sort of fraud.

I am happy to say AFTR is still one of the few systems out there that isn't a scam.  Now with over 100,000 blogs in the AFTR web directory, I can honestly I am proud on what AFTR has become - a truly useful way to generate traffic that won't get your blog banned from the internet.

I just don't understand why people have to lie, cheat, and steal their way through life.  I'll be the first to admit that I want to earn a decent living from the internet, but not at the expense of others...

Rapid growth

Along for the Ride!'s web directory has grown quite rapidly over the last year. The web directory now has over sixty eight thousand (68,000) blogs. That's quite stunning and surprising considering the web directory is just shy of two years old.

When I started the web directory part of AFTR, many of the leading experts told me that the market was over-saturated and it wouldn't do well. Since my primary purpose for the web directory was to provide a way to keep track of AFTR members, I wasn't concerned about any over-saturation issues. To my delight though, the web directory grew much faster than I expected or anticipated. Thankfully, I planned for growth during the initial design of the web directory.

I have also heard talk that social media is killing blogs. While I'm not so convinced it is, I do believe that social media can be a death note to a new blogger or a single owner blog. Social media takes a long of time and its stacked against the blogger.  Let's be honest, there is only so much time in a day. If a blogger is spending a huge amount of time promoting their blog through various social media programs, when do they have time to write for their own blog? While I believe social media has it place, I have seen many good blogs fall to the high costs of time and energy required to get most blogs simple scraps of traffic.

I think my biggest challenge has been showing that the widget is a viable tool to bring together all these different and unique blogs in generating traffic for the web directory and its members. Here I am still struggling. Perhaps part of my struggles in the area is people are still a little "gun-shy" due to Adgitize, CMFads, EntreCard, and AdBrite folding.  Quite frankly, I really can't blame any blogger that is as each of the programs had a very strong following.

This is an area I will continue to work on and with AFTR turning five years old in April, I think longevity will work in my favor, or at least I hope it will.

AdBrite closing

First CMFads, then Adgitize, and now a major player in the advertising world - AdBrite is closing it doors.  Ironically, AdBrite had some serious cash going into it.  As a start up, it had $1.1 million invested in them.  They were actually the closest real competitor AdSense really had.

Here's the official notice from AdBrite:

Dear adBrite Publisher,

Over the last few weeks, adBrite and its management have been evaluating the go-forward plan for the business. Given market conditions and certain financial liabilities, in working with our lenders, we have decided to cease operations on Feb 1, 2013. 

This is a difficult decision for all of us at adBrite. However, after much deliberation this seems to be the best course of action despite the impact it will have on all the employees, clients and partners who helped build this business. There will be a team in place as needed to assist with winding down. Thank you for being part of the adBrite community. 

The adBrite Team.

This actually was a bit of a surprise as I really didn't think they would fold so easily. Sheesh, I remember watching AdBrite open its doors and was one of its first publishers.  I have to admit, I will miss this advertiser as they did do a very good job and their pay-outs were quite nice.

I personally believe the economy and the over-the-top taxes have had their impact with many businesses and sadly, AdBrite is another victim of the bureaucratic stupidity rampant in Washington right now.

Along for the Ride! will be five years old this April. Nothing lasts forever I guess... I'm just glad AFTR is still doing so well.  I suppose seeing a company like AdBrite collapse and fold under has made me think about the longevity of AFTR as I've had to make the same decisions AdBrite did in closing its doors.

Its never easy throwing in the towel...  I wish the best for all of AdBrite's employees.