There is some recent hoopla over social traffic exchanges.

What I mean about that is that Jon Olson and several other owners have completely embraced the social side of the internet. They have brought a lot of these aspects into their traffic exchanges and Jon has even published a free report about the importance of social traffic exchanges.

But not every one is convinced that social traffic exchanges are the way to go. In a recent post Bill Carr from Traffic Hoopla stated that the more social a traffic exchange becomes, the less effective it becomes as a hit exchange.

Now there has been some controversy around how hoopla does in fact gain their stats in the past, and I am not going to pretend I know how they get their stats, but I do know their reports for upgraded members do provide lots of information and numbers. I also know that when hoopla comes to town they bring a lot of referrals with them. ( their milkshake brings the boys to the yard )

But I do see one issue with the comments that they posted, this weeks results rate Startxchange and I love Hits in the top  20 sites.  They also mention Sweeva ( which is the ultimate as far as social traffic exchanges go ) as an up and coming exchange.

So The Stats Support Social Traffic Exchanges ?

Well  by hoopla’s stats it looks like they do, even though their post says different. According to Jon though in his response to the above  post, stats do not matter.

Social Traffic Exchanges are about building relationships making friends and connections with like minded members, and you can’t put a number on that.

My Views On Social Traffic Exchanges .

If you know me you a know I am a pretty moderate person, which is funny since when I was growing up moderation was not a word I was familiar with.

My views on this are pretty moderate as well. I do think that traffic exchanges should be just what they are meant to do. Exchange traffic , you look at my site and I will look at yours. Anything that distracts from that diminishes results and takes away from the fundamental principle behind a traffic exchange.

I do how ever see how powerful social traffic exchanges can and will be.

I see social traffic exchanges as a big step into the future for traffic exchanges but I dont see it as the end all be all solution.

I work online I make a living and support my family with the income I make online. If I spend my day socializing and building relationships, I may have more friends be a happier person , and those friends would be more willing to look at a recommendation I have made and possible purchase from me.

To build up that many relationships and network to the level I could support a family of four , would take a long long time.

On the flip side,

If all I did was stay locked away, working on new projects, creating products and so on and not building any relationships, I would be much grumpier, and no one would buy them any way since no one knows who I am.

So I personally think moderation is the key.

Social traffic exchanges can and do serve a purpose but I see them more as a niche within the overall traffic exchange community.  You should be getting your face out there branding yourself and your name, getting to know people, and getting people to know you.

But stats still matter, you need stats, you need information, so you grow your business.  You need to know what is working and what isn’t or if you have holes in your system,  relationships don’t pay the bills.

Balance Your Social Traffic Exchanges

So there you have the two sides on social traffic exchanges, those that think they are not good for business, and those that think they are the new way to do business.  I present you with a third view, my moderate view.

That social traffic exchanges, and traditional traffic exchanges are two separate sub niches living under a larger more general niche. For years we have been talking about how the way forward for traffic exchanges is to see more niche type exchanges coming out, and thats what is happening now. Traffic exchanges are expanding at a huge rate, there are now several different niches with in, the paid to surf ones, the tradition ones, and now the social traffic exchanges.

No one way is better than the other, though some will always argue that their way is the best way, which is natural since people follow their passions.

I am a strong believer that there is no right or wrong only what works for you. So try them out and see for yourself what works best for you. Some one will tell you that your wrong no matter what you do, so just do what feels right for you, use your own stats, since only you can measure  how successful you truly are.

Why I Love Traffic Exchanges!

So why do I love traffic exchanges? I mean I have been working online now for several years and traffic exchanges have been a big part of how I generate traffic.

For many TE’s are kind of like pot, a gateway drug if you will. People try them and either dont like them and get out or really like them and it leads to doing more things.

There is plenty of campaigns that preach “just say no” to using traffic exchanges, but here I am an advid user of them, and perhaps I do have an addiction to them.

Like others, traffic exchanges have been a gateway for me.

They have opened up a lot of opportunity, I have met some great people along the way, and they are largely responsible for me to be able to work from home.

Like I mentioend I have moved on to other ways of driving traffic, have been studying and implementing new ideas so some may ask is it time for me to move on?

And to them I say No!

I see hundreds of new members coming into the exchanges daily they are like I was at one time, lost and trying to make sense of it all.

I get to see the hope and excitment as they learn how to get visitors to their sites and then watch as they learn how to improve their results, yes some turn away and say its not for them, but many come back and give it one more shot.

No matter what it is you are into wether its MLM or affiliate sales or trying to get new people to hear your music , traffic exchanges are a very easy way to get that traffic started.

I watch many move on and become successful in their own ways, but we always have that bond that we started out exactly the same, lost in a world of information overload, finding comfort in the simplicity of clicking for traffic while we learned and developed our knowledge. These something calming that makes it all a bit easier to take in, while you are clicking and thinking and watching what others are doing.

As someone new coming into traffic exchanges, they are more than just a gateway, they are a learning experience, and now as a more seasoned marketer they are a breeding ground for new marketers looking to make sense of it all.

So there is no way I could just move on, I hope that I can be the one that all these new members can look to for guidance such as Jon Olson and Tony Tezak were there to help guide me through the gate way.

If they had just moved on then I wouldn’t be where I am today, and if I just move on then there may  be some one that just surfed their first page today that I can help and I owe it to them to try.

So thats why I love traffic exchanges, I love what they can do, the hope it gives to others, the simplicity of it all, and the possibilities they give me to help others along the way.

Wow, I am sitting here in the SWAT conference room with 24 other members right now and getting some great advice.

What I think is funny though is that there are only 24 other members, well actually only 23 since one is Jon Olson who host’s the weekly conference.

There are over 11,000 members of SWAT Traffic and only 25 people have come to get some great advice on how to better build their business.

There is a catch, in order to get the link for the weekly conference you have to be an upgraded member, and I don’t know what Jon’s numbers are but I am sure that there are a couple of hundred upgraded members in SWAT Traffic.

So, out of those hundreds that paid for the privilege of getting these meetings, only a fraction is attending them.

It just blows my mind that there are people paying hundreds or even thousands to attend events and get the kind of advice that is given away in these weekly conferences, yet there are people paying only $20 for this same advice and not even logging in to get it.