Self-isolation is a stressful time for many reasons. However, it has also given us an opportunity to pause, relax, reflect on our lives, learn something new, work on our projects, and, most importantly, spend more time with our loved ones. However, most of us aren’t in isolation with absolutely everyone we care about – some family members, friends, or even significant others can be miles away from us. This is where social media comes in, and now, more than ever, it has become an essential part of our lives.
So why not turn it into an income source while both you and other people have time to spend browsing Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Reddit…? There are a variety of ways to monetize your social media account. If you’re new to this, or if you want to diversify your income streams, we have a suggestion that is great for those that both prefer to use social media and don’t want to spend a lot of time setting up some service: direct links! It is a simple way to make extra money. We decided to choose Adsterra’s direct link program for this article: their set up process is streamlined to be as easy and quick as possible, their algorithms are effective, and their support team is great.
What is a direct link?
Direct links are one of the easiest to set up and utilize forms of digital advertising. Just like the name suggests, it’s a link that leads directly to an advertiser’s landing page. Direct links are available to everyone, even people without a website or a blog. As long as you have any kind of platform online, be it Twitter, Instagram, your personal Facebook page, or even just a forum you regularly post to, you can share your link there and earn some extra cash.
Direct links can simply be placed within some text or behind content that you have created. One of their biggest benefits is that they don’t require a banner. Otherwise, they work just like any normal ad does: carefully curating content to suit the user that has clicked on it. Adsterra’s improved and finetuned algorithm allows advertisers to be sure that their landing page is seen by users who will be inter ested in their service, while publishers can enjoy how easy, customizable, and at the same time profitable direct links are.
Direct link advantages
- Very versatile
The link can be placed by itself, or behind any kind of content: videos, CTA buttons, links, banners, etc. - just choose what fits your page best.
- Super easy to set up
The set up only takes a few minutes, and Adsterra streamlines the process so that even publishers who are new to the platform or monetizing their content in general could get their own link without any problems.
- Great cross-platform compatibility
Direct links can be used not only on a variety of different social media platforms, but also on websites, blogs, online shops, etc.
- Does not require any special content to be created
These links are not only easy to set up, but also to start using: they work really well even just placed behind content you already have, like links, CTA buttons, or videos - no need to create extra content just to attract your audience to your direct link.
- Easy to understand and access stats
Adsterra provides an intuitive statistics interface that is simple to understand for newbie publishers and yet is detailed enough to satisfy experienced users, too.
Tips for using direct links
- You can paste the link in typically high CTR places like CTA buttons, videos, links to another service
- It’s not a requirement but being creative is always a great idea. Content that will catch a user’s eye will also increase your CTR
- Try to diversify both your link placement and the platform you are using to reach the maximum amount of audience: for example, use the link not only on your primary social media account (e.g. Instagram), but also on your personal page (e.g. on Facebook)
- Adjust link placement according to the platform you’re posting it on
- Customize your direct link by excluding advertisers that you know won’t fit your traffic – find information on how to do this on Adsterra below
- This goes without saying, but make sure you comply with the rules of the platforms you are posting on
How to get the link
The only requirement to getting a direct link is having an Adsterra account – and if you don’t have one, it is very easy to sign up. Click the button below this article to get started, Once that is done, go to your Dashboard and click on the Websites tab. Choose “Add new website” (you can just enter your Adsterra login if you don’t have a website). Find your new website on the list, click on it, and then on “All codes” and “Get code”. This is your direct link. Now, all that remains is for you to decide where to place it. After that, the link will work for you, collecting clicks and ad revenue from your followers.
Adsterra offers a variety of direct link features on your Dashboard: most importantly, you can easily view all stats. To get a detailed report on how well your direct link is doing, go to the Statistics tab on your Dashboard screen, then choose your website (or login) in the Domain field. Then, you will be able to see your CTR, Impressions, CPM, Clicks, and Revenue.
Although the algorithm picks which landing page to send the user to, we advise you to exclude advertisers that you know don’t fit your traffic. To do that, go to your Adsterra dashboard Websites tab, choose the one you used to get your direct link, click “Edit”, and then “Remove campaigns with”.
Final thoughts
Direct links are a great way to monetize your traffic. Although in this guide we heavily focused on the social media applications of it, it can also be used on websites, blogs, online shopping platforms, etc. – as we’ve previously mentioned, direct links are very versatile. With Adsterra, monetization is easy and quick, and their direct links are great for beginners and experts alike.