Over the last few weeks some people have been trying to leave comments containing links to commercial web sites. In the blogging world, comments thinly disguised as advertisements are called “comment spam.” I have also received criticism for configuring this blog to moderate comments and requiring the entry of a captcha. Unfortunately, when I turn off the captcha requirement the blog is inundated with automated comment attempts from Asia—I think they are written in Chinese. I was deleting 5-10 of these messages daily.
I hate to place restrictions on posting comments because I want to know what you have to say. But I have to prevent the blog from becoming an place for spam. Therefore, I will keep the moderation and captcha policies in place. I will continue to allow anonymous comments but reserve the option to disallow them if they contain inappropriate material. All comments that contains a link, reference, or a URL to a commercial-related web site will be rejected regardless of how cogent it may be.
Rather than trying to fight comment spam, I decided to accept a limited amount of advertisement. It is my intention to make the advertising visible, but not intrusive to my readers. Therefore, if you want to advertise on this blog, the terms are as follows:
Advertisement Type | Format | Costs for Six Months | Additional Information |
---|---|---|---|
Text Link | 14 point, 140 displayed characters | $25.00 | Formatting options include changing font (serif or sans-serif), changing font color, and adding a background color. Add any or all options for a flat $5 fee. |
Display Advertisement | 225 × 225 pixels | $50.00 | No annimated GIFs. Width is a fixed size. Height longer than 225 pixels but not longer than 450 pixels will be an extra $50. |
Banner Advertisement | 650 × 90 pixels | $200.00 | I will only accept one banner ad that will appear at the top of the text column. No annimated GIFs. |
My common sense conditions are as follows:
- All advertisements must be related to numismatics.
- Advertisements for bullion and related products will be accepted.
- Advertisements for multi-level marketing schemes will not be accepted.
- Advertisements will be added to the blog template and will appear on every page. As I write this there are over 560 blog entries.
- The number of readers of this blog can be found in the widget on the left column under the title “RSS Feeds.” Google’s AdSense reports 75-100 more readers than the widget. The RSS widget counts access through the RSS feed and the AdSense service counts impressions of the AdSense banner in the right column.
- All advertisements must be paid for in advance using PayPal (account information will be provided to advertisers).
- Any dispute filed with PayPal will result in immediate cancellation of your current and future advertisement. Rather, contact me first and we can discuss any issues like reasonable adults.
- Advertisements will appear for six months and are renewable.
- Advertisements may be cancelled on request of the advertiser or if multiple users complain. Don’t worry, I will discuss the complaints with you before taking action.
- There will be no refunds for early cancellations.
- I reserve the right to reject any advertisement for any reason.
- If there are content-related issues, I will request changes to make it acceptable for posting.
- Advertisement space will be limited. The limit will be based on size and my discression.
- Advertising on this site does not imply endorsement of your product or service.
If this is acceptable then please contact me via email to discuss your advertisement. Thank you.