HOW IT WORKS

The basis is quite simple. For each visitor who generates a popunder, or who clicks on a banner or text link on your site, you are credited with traffic back to your website. Typically, exchanges work off a 2:1 ratio, which means for every two exchange visitors you create, you get one back on the network.

A great many exchange services exist on the Web today. For this article, we will explore popup, or popunder exchanges, systems that create and deliver visitors that launch from member websites to generate millions of browser windows across the Internet with generally beneficial results.

The traffic inventory controlled by the exchange is sold back to its membership, and to outside advertisers, which supports the entire service. The larger networks generate a lot of pages and many have become dominant marketing forces on the Web. The TrafficZap Exchange, for example, has registered more than 50,000 websites generating millions of new visitors back to its members every week.

PAY ATTENTION TO NUMBERS AND DEFINITIONS

Please be aware that there are some numbers to keep in mind when shopping for an exchange service, besides just the traffic ratio or the size of the provider. Since visitors can be defined in many ways, be sure to know the exact details of what constitutes the traffic you are getting for the exchange service you are considering joining.

Raw visitors are just any and all visitors, while unique visitors are measured within a defined period of time. Popunders visitors, for example, should be unique within 4 hours or more to ensure the same person does not view your exchange traffic over and over again, effectively destroying the value of your investment in traffic from your site.

The point is a visitor's value is relative to his or her "uniqueness" - a quality that can be interpreted as a measurement of time. Some exchanges do not set time limits, which as we have just learned obviously diminishes the effectiveness of your promotion.