If you’re new to Internet marketing you may not be familiar with the legend of a program called Traffic Equalizer (TE).
Essentially TE is a program that would create content websites by entering a list of keyword phrases, pushing a button and outputting an entire website consisting of up to hundreds – even thousands – of pages of content scraped from search engine results.
It was quite possible at the time to put up multiple websites per day that ranked well in the search engines and generated mass traffic.
I know people who made small fortunes playing this angle. I launched a dozen or so sites myself and had a dating website that brought in an average of $40 per day in Adsense all on its own.
Of course, this didn’t last long and those small fortunes turned into stories of destitution and foreclosed homes for a number of people I knew.
I made my own mistakes like putting TE pages on a site I’d built diligently to a PR5 through natural means – before I knew much of anything about exploiting search. Google de-indexed that site for years.
Fortunately I joined the party late enough in the game that I didn’t get fully addicted and had enough horses in other games that the eventual end of that didn’t hurt – much.
Looking back that was both the most exciting time I’ve seen in Internet marketing and probably the most instructive too. I learned a lot that I utilize to this day – some “what to dos” and some “what nots”.
1. Traffic doesn’t make money.
Everyone obsesses about mass traffic but it’s no assurance of making money. This was a powerful lesson, because until you’ve generated a mass of traffic it seems like the Holy Grail – the guaranteed cause of success. Wrong. I had pages that generated hundreds of visitors per day but made nothing. I had pages that generated only 10 visitors per day and made a lot of money (relatively speaking).
The promise of big traffic is the online equivalent of fools gold – especially when that promise also includes the word cheap.
2. Site structuring.
As a PPC marketer I got away with ignoring this for years. Today, in 2011, site structure is as important to PPC as it is to SEO.
What the hell am I talking about?
The topic is bigger than a bullet point but think of it like structuring a college term paper. You start with a specific theme and an outline. You have main points, subpoints – and you have the overarching theme. It all needs to fit together in a fairly specific way and make sense. You don’t just start with a point and keep adding random thoughts.
TE created a site structure, if used properly, that search engines loved. And they still do, as evidenced by the occasional TE site I still find in the search listings.
3. The art of illusion.
To this day I still have pages that generate search traffic from Google, no less, that were created using TE.
TE came with a set of templates that created a very basic, very ugly, very obvious page.
Early on I started playing with a mix of unique content and generated content. I set my pages up so that the search engine spiders would read the scraped content first – this was done using tables – but my visitors would see the real content as the primary content of the page.
This wasn’t cloaking or anything black hat that got others banned. It was one thing appearing to be another. (Here’s an example that I pulled up from the dead – pay per click. If you view page source you’ll see the content in the right hand column is what a search engine’s spider would read first – yet, to the reader it’s buried on the bottom right of the page, below the Adsense ads. The scraped content isn’t obvious but it’s there. )
This art of illusion, of one thing appearing to be another, is a concept I use throughout my online efforts today.
4. Anything *this easy* does not last.
I have not won many fans over the years with my message that shortcuts are the fools way. But it’s true. Anything that anyone can do, with little skill required, holds no value in the long run. Sure, there are people who can and do make a lot of money in a short period of time by exploiting the system but these gains are always short lived.
I remember my first speaking gig at the Internet Marketing Super Conference. I won’t mention the gent’s name, but it was his first speaking opportunity too. Like myself, he was just an average Joe in the crowd at previous conferences and we’d both reached a goal by doing something worthy of talking about.
He’d just produced an entire DVD set and at the end of his talk he made a killer offer to audience that generated an extreme number of orders. He killed it – he really did. When he wrapped up speaking he looked like he’d just played a sold out gig at Madison Square Garden – the guy was on top of the world and people were raving about this system anyone could do . . .
It was Adwords arbitrage. You just build a web page, post Adsense on it and then drive traffic to that page using Adwords. You spent .15 on a click and you make a $1.00 per click in return (at least, in theory).
I don’t think it was even a week after the conference – he hadn’t even had time to ship out those new DVD sets – that Google effectively killed arbitrage.
Why? Because there is *NO* value to it. It was a short-lived gimmick that anyone, with minimal skill, could play. And so was Traffic Equalizer.
Lesson: play these things because they’re fun but never count on them. And if you put all of your eggs in those baskets, without developing real skills, you’ll be done before you even know what hit you.
5. Nickels and dimes add up.
My biggest hesitation with getting into TE site building was the relatively new idea of Adsense. To me it was the height of foolishness to trade visitors for .05 a click when I was already successful with building lists and selling affiliate products. I just didn’t see the earning potential.
Although I’m still going to opt for building lists and selling products most of the time, it is possible to make some extra money with relatively little time and effort invested.
Also, I need to be completely honest with you and me here . . . at that time Adsense was just a part of my income, yet at the peak it was an $1800 per month check. $1800 per month was about what I made at my previous job, after taxes (actually a little more)! So it wasn’t insignificant money at that time.
Maybe more important is the mindset that continually building things that generate income is a key to your success. It’s the $5 per day mindset.
There’s a fine line between thinking too small, and not playing big enough . . . and thinking so big that you don’t give yourself a real chance. If you’re starting at zero, is it possible to be earning $100,000 per month one year from now?
Possible, but extremely unlikely.
What now makes more sense to me, and this is what I can see in hindsight, is that I struggled to gain traction by always swinging for the fence. It was the site that made $500 per month, plus the site that made $75 per month, plus the site that made $1800 per month, plus the site that made $285 per month . . . that began to add up to something that equated a sense of accomplishment and gave me the freedom experiment. The $50,000 months came later and they never would have happened without the $200 months, followed by the $2000 months, followed by the $4000 months, and etc.
Focus on producing some greater result every day and with enough persistence the big results become possible when you know enough. But that is a process of learning that you can only gain through experience.
I could keep on but we’re already at three full pages. If you were around in the days of Traffic Equalizer’s glory, I’d love to hear your stories.
All the best to you – X
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
X…
Great post and I concur wholeheartedly!
I wanted to add something to it that I have come to realize recently. I guess it could even be considered an “ah ha” moment!
The part you touched on about adding value in order for something to have legs is dead on. There is absolutely no value in scraped TE pages, mixing original content with scraped content is definitely a little better but nothing when compared to a site constructed by someone who is really interested in their market, knows what they are talking about and…
ADDS VALUE!
This can be done in many ways, writing incredible blog posts, creating an info product that solves a problem this market has. Or even just creating a “watering hole” where people in this market love to visit and interact with each other.
Bottom line… I agree with you 100%
There is something else I would like to add though… higher purpose.
What is your higher purpose?
Why are you building this website?
Why are you even in this “game”?
This has been the one biggest eye opener for me… why am I here and what am I trying to accomplish.
The minute you make your “purpose” higher than material things, you will not only feel better about what you are trying to accomplish but also rapidly move out of the “I want to just make money” into something much bigger, better, logical, calming and one with who you are.
So now before I ever start a new project, a new website or enter into any kind of relationship / partnership I always bounce it off these two principles:
1. Am I going to add significant value by heading in this direction?
2. Does it support my higher purpose… which is not based on material things…
It helps me to make better decisions, stay focused on what is important and ultimately stops me from chasing the “shiny dingle-berries” that everyone is pushing and launching all the time.
I hope this helps others as much as it helps me!
Matt
Matt – first, great to hear from you man.
Second, I agree with the need for defining your higher purpose. It becomes easy to lose the path and to end up a mediocre blob without that focus.
My higher purpose: To empower people to discover their potential.
I’d add on to that it’s also important to be clear what our personal strengths are. Sometimes those strengths are things we’ve oft been told are weaknesses.
For example: I’ve always been one of few words. It was hell in college for me to reach those six-page minimums on essays because I could say what needed said in two pages.
Now, that’s become a strength – something I think people value.
Thanks for taking the time to make a post.
All the best to you -
Hello John,
It’s been a while since I’ve been able to get on to the site because of some family litigation and a bereavement. I would have liked to see this important and interesting post a few weeks ago when I purchased the PLR to Traffic Equalizer promoted by Eric Holmlund and Jeff Alderson.
Is there any mileage left in TE? Can I make use of it? And more to the point, if I promote it, will I be deceiving my customers? Deceiving people I won’t do!
Best,
Anthony Harris
Anthony -
I hope you’re OK, and you’re family too.
Two things on your purchase (maybe three).
1. I almost purchased it myself . . . why didn’t I / haven’t I yet?
2. These things often come with problems I may, but probably cannot, solve – programming issues. Does the software still work? I don’t know?!
3. With creativity (as mentioned in my post) I absolutely think the software can work to achieve some end. The question is “What value – real, lasting value – does it have to offer?”
In the latter days of my usage of Traffic Equalizer I used it exclusively to build out the frame of the site – the structure. I then filled in the pages with real content.
One man’s junk is another man’s treasure – selling it with the promise it had in 2004/5 would be leading people astray, IMO. But if you can conceive of it in a new way, I think it does have value.
All the best to you – X
Hear a story???
I got started with TE. It got me into the “game.”
I quickly realized that it wasn’t going to last so I wrote my own software which was similar, but much more powerful.
My first month with it (TE) I made $2200 from 2 sites.
It was the get-rich-quick scheme that actually worked.
I remember specifically making $72 in a day and I was going crazy.
Then I remember having my first $500 day and saying it over and over and over again to my wife “We made $500 TODAY! We made $500 TODAY!!!” (I remember these things so vividly).
I remember my first $1000 day and my first $2000 day (I didn’t have too many of those…but it gave me a taste of what’s possible).
Of course…like all things that are easy and require zero knowledge or skill or brainpower, it died.
I learned more stuff. I evolved. I grew.
That’s when I started building real businesses.
Now life is great.
John – first off, thanks for sending out a link to your list. I really appreciate your support. Please, never hesitate to request a favor in return.
For those of you who may not be familiar with John, I love his innovative spirit. He’s one guy who continually seems to be on the cutting edge of doingness – while keeping his priorities straight in front of him. He’s another example of the possibilities of this business.
http://www.jonasblog.com/
John – thanks for sharing your TE story. I didn’t know that about you!
All the best to you -
Oh dear…the golden days.
TrafficEqualizer/RankingPower/NicheMonster/NichePortalBuilder/CloakingMaster (I wonder if I still remember these names correctly LOL)
If only I knew it was just a short window of opportunity, I would have ramped it up 100 fold
I made my first $100.000 year with AdSense game…followed by a year of ZERO earnings after my sites and AdSense account was banned. Smart me didn’t blow this income on shiny objects and allowed to keep searching for a full year until I found another way to continue printing $$$.
It was $500 a day time…beautiful
It injected the certitude of “yep, you can make lots of $$$ on the internet” into me. This means that I will now never quit working on expanding my online income revenues…simply because once you’ve tasted what’s possible, you know it’s possible and you’ll want to experience it again.
So…thank you TE and you cousins
For some the loss was a bitter pill – for others it proved you really can make money online.
I also made a little money using Duncan Carver’s Link Management Assistant that created directories.
I think you also make another good point I wanted to make in the original post – the people who tend to make a lot of money doing this type thing do it to an extreme.
I built 5 sites – they built 500.
Many fail because they don’t follow through on a plan in faith, recognizing their is a limited window of opportunity and that life rewards action more than anything else.
All the best to you – X
feel sad for you that your pr5 site is gone. fast and furious always end up where it started even faster and fiercer.
I hear you Roy. The site did eventually get re-indexed, however by that time I had lost all enthusiasm for it. It now sits as a . . . oh, wait! PR4 (Last time I checked it was a 2 or 3) I haven’t even looked at the site in at least a year. Maybe I should.
Yes, I think that´s definitely true. I´m making about 1.500-1.800 a month and it´s all from nickels and dimes. I never go for get rich quick schemes, and now I have something to lose I´m even more careful and I´m probably one of the most white hat people around.
But many people refuse to believe that and think if they aren´t making lots of money quick, it will be too late for them.
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