Blue-Surf December 7, 2008
Posted by Secret Surfer in : Reviews , add a commentIt’s very rare these days to see a custom-built traffic exchange, but that’s exactly what programmer Scott Martin did - he built Blue-Surf from scratch.
The fact that Blue-Surf is a custom-built exchange does not, in and of itself, make it a successful business. But it does say a lot about the commitment and pride of the owner. And in today’s world of cookie-cutter traffic exchanges popping up almost every week, it’s a refreshing change to see someone being unique and original.
Since the launch of Blue-Surf, Scott has continually added new features to his exchange. For example, take his “Average Surf” promotion. To promote consistent surfing - and to reward the “average” surfer - if you surf more pages than the average pages surfed the prior day, then you will get a 15 credit bonus at the end of the day. Scott displays this “Average Surf” number in the members’ area.
Scott has also introduced some cool graphics. In the “Assign Credits” area there is a graph showing hits earned and hits delivered. A neat way to visually see your surfing efforts and the use of your credits.
Best of all, I really like how easy it is to navigate between members’ pages once logged in. Scott uses a very clean, eye-pleasing design to make it easy to find your way around the members’ area.
But at the end of the day, surfing traffic exchanges is about results. Blue-Surf is no different. Unfortunately, my surfing results are average. My results with text links tends to go in cycles – for awhile, the results are great, at other times terrible.
So what’s the bottom line for Blue-Surf? An average performing exchange bolstered by a very attentive and smart owner who is committed to growing his business. And that is a good sign for traffic exchange users.
Final Rating: 6 (out of possible 10)
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eTraffic Freedom December 5, 2008
Posted by Secret Surfer in : Reviews , add a commentI’m not generally a big fan for design makeovers if the original design was professional in appearance. But John Marks, owner of eTraffic Freedom, has significantly improved his free manual traffic exchange by doing just that. Mind you it’s been awhile since the change was made, but the results don’t lie and continue to be good.
Based on the popular LJ script, John has introduced a few unique features like bonus banner and text impressions for surfing 100 pages or more in a single day, and a site rotator. John also provides his members with a very comprehensive library of promotional material to promote eTraffic Freedom, something not all owners provide.
Having tracked my results over an extensive period of time, the surfing results for this traffic exchange is average. But the real value lies in the text links. I experience exceptional results with eTraffic Freedom’s text links.
John now provides daily email updates to his members. For some this may be a turn-off, but John keeps his emails short and to-the-point and keeps everyone informed. For someone who says he never knows what to write, he’s doing a very good job!
Liked and respected by fellow owners, Mr. Marks is quickly becoming a solid player in the traffic exchange industry. eTraffic Freedom continues to grow at a steady pace and appears to be settling in for the long haul. Keep up the good work, John!
Final Rating: 6 (out of possible 10)
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Traffic Witch December 2, 2008
Posted by Secret Surfer in : Reviews , add a commentO/K, here we go again – another traffic exchange launch. So when Traffic Witch launched with much fanfare on November 26, 2008, I did a bit of a yawn. Until I looked at it a bit deeper…
The owner is Guido Nussbaum. So what you ask? Well, he’s one of the biggest names in the JV giveaway market, a market not generally associated with traffic exchanges. Why is this important? Because he has access to a large number of Internet marketers who do not yet use traffic exchanges. So that means a lot of new and fresh eyeballs looking at your splash pages. Finally – an owner who understands the importance of bringing in a lot of new members to make your advertising efforts really pay off. And if that’s not enough…
Jon Olson and Robert Puddy personally helped Guido build Traffic Witch. Now that’s a solid team!
Traffic Witch runs on the standard LJ script, so surfers will be comfortable with its design. Features include a 10 second timer, dynamic surfing ratios (meaning the more you surf, the more traffic you will receive), a rating feature (you can rate other surfers’ splash pages) and fantastic commission rates – up to 75% commissions on member upgrades.
Although it’s a bit early to judge results from this new exchange, members have been reporting fantastic results with their banners and text links. But the surfing results I’ve received so far have been very good, an excellent, early indication of the worthiness of this new exchange.
So…will Traffic Witch stand the test of time? I think so. With over 1,000 people joining in the first 8 hours alone, and with solid backing from Jon Olson and Robert Puddy, this exchange should be able to continue to bring in new members on a consistent basis over the long run. And that, my friends, should translate into surfing results for you.
Final Rating: 7 (out of possible 10)
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Traffic Goldrush October 10, 2008
Posted by The Secret Surfer in : Reviews , add a commentY’know, there have been a lot of traffic exchanges launched this year, each with their own brand blend of hype and incentives to join early. But non have been so masterfully crafted as the launch of Paul Conway’s Traffic Goldrush.
Launch Managers Paul Kinder and Steve Ayling have managed to put Traffic Goldrush on the map in a matter of days with over 3000 members signing up in just over 1 weeks time. For a site that came out of nowhere this is downright staggering, and the resulting activity within the site has proven profitable for many members already.
I initially thought something was wrong with my tracking when I first checked my results at goldrush. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a new exchange this responsive. It’s already out performing many exchanges with twice it’s membership.
So what’s making this place so effective?
Well, aside from the huge rush of new members, I think surfers are hooked on the “Gold-Rush” feature. Periodically while surfing, you’ll see a message in the surfbar stating that the “Gold Rush is on” which means an increased surf ratio for the duration of the rush. It appears in bursts, and fairly often so it’s really hard to pull yourself away from the surfbar in anticipation of the next gold rush. The impact this has had on credit delivery is amazing and results are equally jaw dropping.
Will Traffic Gold Rush stand the test of time? My money says yes. With a team like this one I don’t expect anything less than the best. I’m willing to stake my reputation on it as I’m giving this one the highest rating I’ve ever given an exchange this young. When all is said and done, the ratings are based on results. Paul, Paul, and Steve have really struck gold with this one. Sorry about the pun… I just had to. 
Final Rating: 8 (out of possible 10)
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