You asked, We Changed

[frankie]

I have an idea go to www.facebook.com and buy flyers. Very cheap. I just did it on my specials for the 4th. The sky is the limit on who you can send this to. This would bring eyeballs for sure or at least it would be a start. I would be willing to split the cost with you for my area?? Start low and see if you get any hits from it. If you do you would know it was working. If not then don`t do it again. It cost me 120.00 to send out 60K

[SunTanning.com]

Originally Posted by frankie

I have an idea go to www.facebook.com and buy flyers. Very cheap. I just did it on my specials for the 4th. The sky is the limit on who you can send this to. This would bring eyeballs for sure or at least it would be a start. I would be willing to split the cost with you for my area?? Start low and see if you get any hits from it. If you do you would know it was working. If not then don`t do it again. It cost me 120.00 to send out 60K

We don't need traffic we have 25,000 hits a month coming in. However, I am always interested in more traffic!!

PM me.

[SunTanning.com]

Originally Posted by Editor-in-Chief

suntanning, I said this before and the message was ignored.

Content has value. Another online directory has zero value. A listing on an unknown directory has zero value.

Create a content driven website and eyeballs will come.

Advertisers go to where the eyeballs are.

You aren't bringing anything of value to the table.

Visitors is our value, the eyeballs are on our site, they come looking for salons and we have them? Do you not read our traffic and stats and just post blindly?

[Editor-in-Chief]

First, prove your stats. I don't believe you get 25,000 uniques a month.

Second, 25,000 uniques a month is crap traffic for the Internet. That averages 16 hits a day per state (if all the hits are US traffic.) Drudge got 15 million hits in the last 24 hours. Over 420 million hits in the last month. Did I mention content?

Third, hits in a directory don't translate into feet walking through the front door of a bricks and mortar location. You lose on conversions.

I'm in the phone book and millions of people use phone books. therefore lots of phone book readers should be walking in my front door. It's a false argument.

[SunTanning.com]

Originally Posted by Editor-in-Chief

First, prove your stats. I don't believe you get 25,000 uniques a month.

Second, 25,000 uniques a month is crap traffic for the Internet. That averages 16 hits a day per state (if all the hits are US traffic.) Drudge got 15 million hits in the last 24 hours. Over 420 million hits in the last month. Did I mention content?

Third, hits in a directory don't translate into feet walking through the front door of a bricks and mortar location. You lose on conversions.

I'm in the phone book and millions of people use phone books. therefore lots of phone book readers should be walking in my front door. It's a false argument.

Um you can't compare us 2 non tanning sites. We get a lot of traffic for a tanning site.

Bottom line we are a service and have a great deal to offer by putting your business infront of people looking for a tanning salon for a reasonable price and you can't deny that. Exposure is exposure. If you don't want to use the service and have nothing positive to contribute stop posting in this thread.

Thanks

[sunsally]

Originally Posted by SunTanning.com

If you don't want to use the service and have nothing positive to contribute stop posting in this thread.

Thanks

Whoa.....

You joined Tantoday less than 3 weeks ago, you've made 57 posts, all but one of which have been about using this website to promote YOUR website and now you're telling salon owners and long-time contributors to THIS site when and what they can post about???

I believe I remember reading that you aren't from the tanning industry, you are someone that buys websites that you think will be profitable for you. So you have figured out a way to make money off of us -- tanning salon owners. And we are only allowed to cheerlead for your effort, not express any objection or question anything you share??

Hmmm -- I hadn't been interested enough to read your posts in great detail yet, but based on this, I will lodge a firm "no thank you" for my own personal salon listing as well.

[Alan @ TanToday]

Yeah, the good thing is they removed the lotion diversion ads as promised. Changing their entire business model around catering to salon owners is a step in the right direction compared to how Lonn ran the site.

[Editor-in-Chief]

Originally Posted by SunTanning.com

Um you can't compare us 2 non tanning sites. We get a lot of traffic for a tanning site.

Bottom line we are a service and have a great deal to offer by putting your business infront of people looking for a tanning salon for a reasonable price and you can't deny that. Exposure is exposure. If you don't want to use the service and have nothing positive to contribute stop posting in this thread.

Thanks

So I can't compare non-directory website traffic with a tanning diriectory? Yes, I can. In fact, I did. You just don't appreciate the result.

You are an illusionist selling smoke and mirrors and the opportunity for a small business owner to boost his ego by seeing his business listed semi-exclusively in a directory.

So, perhaps you would prefer to compare against another directory? How about comparing you with the Almighty Directory Of Earth, Google. See: http://maps.google.com/maps?sourceid...e-results&cd=1

My location is, of course, #1 with a bullet. Note the coupons link, an excellent tracking device: http://maps.google.com/coupons?did=0...&sa=X&resnum=0

Free tan! Come and get it! And 30% off lotion! Insane!

So, one may wonder, how much does this extraordinary Internet exposure on the Almighty Directory Of Earth cost me?

First, let me explain that in 3 years, I don't believe I have redeemed one single coupon. Not one. So, one may conclude that extraordinary Internet exposure does not convert to bricks and mortar sales.

How much does this extraordinary Internet exposure on the Almighty Directory Of Earth cost me? Nada. Zip. Zero. Bupkus.

And, I might add, that's exactly what it is worth.

[Editor-in-Chief]

You may still think that I am not playing fair here by comparing you to the Almighty Directory Of Earth.

You are new here and don't know me. If you knew me, you would know I don't play fair. (You haven't even met my evil twin who posts here.)

Still, let me break it down for you to a level you will understand.

Minor tanning directory vs. minor tanning directory. Let's compare you with http://www.iwantafreetan.com/ , a tanning salon directory that has been in existence for about a year.

Unfortunetly for you, this directory also offers a tracking "FREE TAN" coupon that proves, once again, that Internet directory exposure does not convert traffic to bricks and mortar sales. Type in my zipcode, "21113".

No coupons have been redeemed here.

By the way, http://www.iwantafreetan.com/ is a FREE directory for tanning salons. And, I might add, that's exactly what it is worth.

I don't know what you paid Lonn for the domain name but, I suspect, it was too much. Lonn has been around the indoor tanning industry for a long time and has fairly broad experience on the Internet. If there was money to be made with the domain name, he would have been making it. Apparently the best money he could make with it was selling it to you.

Good luck. You need it.

[SunTanning.com]

Originally Posted by Editor-in-Chief

You may still think that I am not playing fair here by comparing you to the Almighty Directory Of Earth.

You are new here and don't know me. If you knew me, you would know I don't play fair. (You haven't even met my evil twin who posts here.)

Still, let me break it down for you to a level you will understand.

Minor tanning directory vs. minor tanning directory. Let's compare you with http://www.iwantafreetan.com/ , a tanning salon directory that has been in existence for about a year.

Unfortunetly for you, this directory also offers a tracking "FREE TAN" coupon that proves, once again, that Internet directory exposure does not convert traffic to bricks and mortar sales. Type in my zipcode, "21113".

No coupons have been redeemed here.

By the way, http://www.iwantafreetan.com/ is a FREE directory for tanning salons. And, I might add, that's exactly what it is worth.

I don't know what you paid Lonn for the domain name but, I suspect, it was too much. Lonn has been around the indoor tanning industry for a long time and has fairly broad experience on the Internet. If there was money to be made with the domain name, he would have been making it. Apparently the best money he could make with it was selling it to you.

Good luck. You need it.

Ok, your right, I shouldn't try to care about the industry. I'll just put the google ads back up take home my 700 a month and i'll take this tanning distributer up on their offer to let them sell lotions on my site for 50% profit.

[blondjuls]

LOL...and when the manufacturers sue you, which they've been known to do. And win upwards of 5 million in judgements. We'll resurect this post.

[blondjuls]

Just don't go there suntanning. You began this all with noble intentions. I love that you took a step in the right direction with the site.

But if you want TSO support, there is more to it than asking for it. And certainly aren't going to get it by threatening us all with diversion.

[Editor-in-Chief]

You either care or don't care. There is no try.

I don't believe for a minute that you are cashing $700 month with suntanning.com. Lonn would never have sold the domain if it was doing that.

If you get in bed with lotion whores, you will just be another John. Better wear protection. (Do a little background search on a family named Hatfield that thought that was a good idea.)

You missed the entire concept of rich content attracting traffic and legitimate advertisers. Easier to play John with the hos.

[SunTanning.com]

Originally Posted by Editor-in-Chief

You either care or don't care. There is no try.

I don't believe for a minute that you are cashing $700 month with suntanning.com. Lonn would never have sold the domain if it was doing that.

If you get in bed with lotion whores, you will just be another John. Better wear protection. (Do a little background search on a family named Hatfield that thought that was a good idea.)

You missed the entire concept of rich content attracting traffic and legitimate advertisers. Easier to play John with the hos.

Yes, it does between 650 - 800 every month for the past 2 years, we purchased the site for a years income with adsense proof. Thats how website sales go, we contacted lonn he wasn't trying to sell it. We had to convince him to sell.

[SunTanning.com]

How can you compare Iwantafreetan.com with us? The don't come up in any searches for tanning salons?

[Editor-in-Chief]

Did you read my analogy with the Almighty Directory Of Earth?

Traffic doesn't convert to bricks and mortar sales!

In this case, size doesn't matter.

The only significant difference between iwantafreetan and suntanning is you think your traffic, at whatever level you have, is worth a paid listing. It's not.

If Google is smart enough to understand that a directory listing is worth zero, you should be too. Or, at least, you could learn to understand.

[Editor-in-Chief]

No hard feelings. Have a t-shirt.
(Courtesy: Alexa)

[Din]

Now that T-Shirt i will buy......Now THAT'S appealing to me.

[Editor-in-Chief]

Here's one for the tantoday mods.

[jmtan]

Originally Posted by SunTanning.com

Ok, your right, I shouldn't try to care about the industry. I'll just put the google ads back up take home my 700 a month and i'll take this tanning distributer up on their offer to let them sell lotions on my site for 50% profit.

So Jim pretty much tells it like it is, and then you threaten everyone with putting the google ads back up. Good move