I signed up to Kontera a while ago; they sent me the install details and code etc to install on the site a couple of days ago… If you don’t know already, Kontera is a context based advertising system.

It works like this, you install the code on your site, and based on keywords in your content, they will dynamically turn that keyword that someone has paid for into a link that pops up a little link window – see the image.

After having it running on the site for all of 3 minutes I removed it.

I’m a fan of design and useability, everything I do, I try to make easy to use and friendly on the eye.

If you can’t read the content well or there’s links and what not everywhere distracting you from trying to read something then there’s no point in having content to start with in my opinion.

After having the Kontera installed I checked out my page and their links were all over the place, which is no big deal, that’s the point, but I really didn’t like how they looked and from a reader’s point of view, it affected how I read my own content.

If I didn’t like reading my own copy with it on the site then who else would eh? So I removed it. I know other blogs have it installed but honestly I don’t read their sites, most of the time sites with good content that I want to read I find they are over monetizing it, links and ads everywhere, so I subscribe to their feed in my Outlook 2007 and I read the posts in my feed reader, never visit their site again, and no money for them.

I’ve often said less is more when it comes to advertising and that’s my case in point, in my opinion you’re better off having more readers of your site then of your feed, and then utilising your advertising space on your site more efficiently rather than saturating it with crap 90% of people won’t click on.

There’s a reason JohnChow makes the large majority of his money from affiliate sales

It’s because he recommends them in his posts etc, they don’t advertise on his site, they aren’t PPC clicks, his affiliate links are in his posts and throughout what he talks about when he shows how much he makes.

The small earners are the PPC networks he has everywhere, Google and Kontera, TZZ media and buy him a beer.

His big earners never paid for any clicks, affiliate sales, review me and text link ads.