Foundations · Lesson 2 of 4
Getting approved: what advertisers look for
About 9 minutes · Yogender Kumar, Managing Partner
By the end of this lesson you'll be able to
- Explain the checks an advertiser runs before approving a publisher
- Write an application that answers those checks
- Spot the gaps that most often get applications declined
Why this matters
You apply to ten programmes and four say no, often with no reason given. Most declines come down to a handful of gaps you can fix. Advertisers check the same things, so you can prepare for them.
The core idea
Many advertisers approve publishers by hand, at least at the start. The reviewer wants to know who you are, who reads you, how you'll send traffic and whether you'll follow their rules. That turns into five checks:
- A real site: original content, a named person or company behind it, and a way to get in touch.
- Audience fit: readers in the countries the programme covers, interested in what the advertiser sells.
- Traffic sources: exactly how readers will reach the advertiser, such as search, email or social media.
- Disclosure: a page explaining how you earn, and affiliate content labelled as advertising.
- No warning signs: nothing suggesting brand bidding (paid search ads on the advertiser's own name), scraped codes or paid-for clicks.
Worked example
Pocket Ledger is an imaginary UK personal finance blog, so the details are illustrative. It's 18 months old, with about 25,000 visitors a month, 70% of them in the UK. It applies to a bank's current-account switching programme. Finance advertisers check applications closely, and finance links carry extra rules of their own, so read the programme's terms.
First application: declined. The description box was empty. The About page gave no name. There was no disclosure page. Under traffic sources, every box was ticked, including paid search.
To the bank, that looked like an unknown site that might buy ads on its brand name. Declining was the safe choice.
What Pocket Ledger changed:
- An About page naming the editor, with a contact email.
- A disclosure page, linked in the footer, explaining how the site earns.
- An application that answered each check in plain words.
What it wrote in the application:
- Readers: about 25,000 visitors a month, 70% in the UK, mostly people comparing bank accounts and savings.
- Where links would appear: two named comparison articles, and a monthly newsletter sent to 3,200 people who opted in.
- Traffic sources: organic search and its own newsletter. No paid search and no bidding on brand names.
It reapplied a month later, and was approved within a week.
The bank could check every claim. A short honest application beats a long vague one.
Pocket Ledger's two applications
First application: declined
Second application: approved
In practice
- Put a real name and a contact address on your About page.
- Add a disclosure page and link to it from every page.
- Keep your visitor numbers and country split ready from your analytics.
- Name the exact pages, emails or channels where the links will go.
- Tick only the traffic sources you actually use.
- If you're declined, fix the gaps, then ask the programme manager what else they need.
Common mistakes
- Leaving the description blank. The reviewer has nothing to go on except your homepage. Tell them who reads you and where the links will go.
- Ticking every traffic source. It reads as "anything goes", and paid search worries brands most. Tick only what you use.
- Applying outside your audience. A UK-only offer won't suit a site with mostly US readers. Apply where your readers can actually buy.
Try it yourself
Your site has 8,000 visitors a month: 35% in the UK and 50% in the US. You want to join a UK-only energy-switching programme that pays per lead. How many UK visitors do you have, and how would you handle the application?
Show answer
8,000 × 35% = 2,800 UK visitors a month. Say so plainly in the application, and name the UK-specific pages where the links would go. The advertiser will weigh up a site where only about a third of readers can sign up. A programme that also covers the US may suit you better, or you could build your UK readership first.
Quick check
Not scored. Pick an answer to see the explanation.
Which gap is most likely to get an application declined?
Why should you name your traffic sources exactly?
Key takeaways
- Advertisers check who you are, who reads you, how you'll send traffic and whether you'll follow the rules.
- A named person, a contact address and a disclosure page are the basics.
- Name the exact pages and channels where links will go.
- A short honest application beats a long vague one.