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Classified ads are usually regarded as less effective in producing affiliate sales than other advertising. But it is possible to make your affiliate sales grow through careful employment of classified ads.

Your first priority in creating a classified ad is to make it no more complicated than necessary. The ad is intended to promote visitors to your site and not direct sales. The best place to begin is at the beginning, with the headline of the classified ad.

The most important part of putting together the headline for your ad is to employ particular words to which your audience will respond. There are certain terms that readers will always pay attention to; use them and your site will get clicks. To get the most clicks from your ad, use words like "cheap", "free", "proven" and "shocking". Track each of your ads so that you know which ones are generating potential customers.

Use a generic URL such as yourdomain/?=trackingcode to make it easier for you to keep track of all of the advertisements you send to the same location. (Use a three- or four-digit number for the tracking code.) Record the tracking code for each of your ads somewhere, so you can tell which hits come from which ads. It is best to use random numbers with no special significance as your tracking codes. Thus, each code is different. Always use the same tracking code for its assigned ad.

The next important part of putting together your advertisement is writing the first line of the copy. According to many experts, the best way to make your ad appealing is to state a quantifiable benefit in this line. The positive effect needs to be something that convinces the reader immediately that he is on to something good. Delineating exactly how the product can help the reader is an excellent way to go about this.

Line number three should detail some especially important trait your product possesses. If the feature is unique to your product, that's even better. You need to keep the reader clicking onward to the end, where you show the physical details of the product and what you're charging for it. Don't add any extraneous material to your ad. With classified ads, the more words you use, the less likely you are to close a sale.

In fact, using a bigger, more complicated ad will only lessen your chances of success. Writing flowery, verbose prose is counter-productive.

Once you've completed your advertisement, you must get it to where people will see it. The best places to place the ad permit free classified ads and have high traffic volume. Two of the best places to post your classifieds for free are Craigslist.org and Yahoo! Classifieds.

These sites require you to put the ads in the correct topics to list the ads without payment. Do not break this rule ever. Your ads will be removed and you may be thrown off the sites unless the ads are in the proper place. And always read the terms of service before posting to these sites.

Follow these instructions, and your online sales will prosper. The results can be more effective exposure for your affiliate promotions and an increase in affiliate sales for your company. So start submitting your ads today for more clicks and profits.