Geotargeted Advertising
I'd love to see the option to insert ads in various locations. Geotargeted advertising (ad placements can dynamically change based on the user’s location) would be icing on the cake. Sites that don't sell memberships or paywall content need to have the ability to generate revenue.
Ross FCA is working on an ad manager. Maybe he could implement this as well, however, not sure how that would work. Would you not need a lot of traffic, and how would know what users are looking for if you had their location? Maybe you can describe better. Retargetting maybe?
David Scurlock I was thinking about possible targeting via the space topic such that an person could run an add toward their target audience (space) in a given location. The benefit would be we could sell advertising to many different people in one space by selling location slots. Maybe I'm missing something but that is the gist. So, rather than run say a "parts company" ad in a engine rebuild space for one company geotargeting would allow us to run a "parts company" ad in 50 different states for example, thus 50x the ad selling opportunity per space.
Thomas ok, I understand. I did ask Ross about sponsored ads, but i never got a response from that question. I would like to setup my own ads but if others want to buy ads, then that would be fine also. But im lost on 50 different states, which would work on Craigslist which can target cities and states, so im not sure how that work work.
I do agree with you. Not every FC offers courses, so we need a way to monetize FC, even if it is from ad revenue, so we could certainly use some sort of advanced ad manager.
David Scurlock I have successfully implemented WP AdCenter (free for now) plugin with Ross FCA Widget plugin using shortcode. So, all we are lacking is the option to add shortcode to other places in the fluentcommunity template such as the header, etc.
Additionally, WP AdCenter Pro FAQ says,
"Can I embed ads using PHP shortcodes or code directly in my theme?
Yes, if you are an advanced user, and understand shortcodes and PHP code, you can place ads in your template or theme using shortcodes or PHP code."
And, Can I show ads to targeted geo-locations?
Yes, WP AdCenter ad plugin allows you to show ads based on the geo location of your visitors. The plugin integrates with MaxMind to identify the geo location of your visitors.
So, problem solved if we can get more places to insert shortcode.
Thomas it does look interesting and would mean that Ross would not have to build anything from the ground up, but i do not think that fc has any geo capabilities. I do like the fact that you can rotate ads and has a built in payment system. I would like to know what Ross thinks about this. And I do dislike paying $50 year for yet another plugin.
David Scurlock I agree. Also, the sidebar placement works on PC but disappears for mobile so this isn't ideal for ads but it's a start.
Thomas I dont really care for a sidebar which can be distracting.
UPDATE: I reached out to the ad plugin developer (WP AdCenter Pro) to inquire about testing and they replied, "I want to mention that this plugin is not currently under active development or regular testing, we cannot guarantee full compatibility with the latest WordPress and PHP versions and versions going forward."
Unfortunately, it looks like that plugin will be deprecated.
I've tested AdRotate & Advanced Ads. Their shortcodes work. Advanced Ads does not include statistics with the free version and the statitstics in AdRotate isn't as good. (WP AdCenter can generate reports). Ad Inserter is popular but is cumbersome and has a terrible UI. My favorite is still WP AdCenter for the ease of use and fit for this application without being overkill. I doubt Shahjahan Jewel will add this to fluentcommunity anytime soon as I suppose there isn't a huge demand. Most people probably use FC to sell access to content. If Ross FCA could design something like WP AdCenter Pro that would be nice but then again we would still be back to the issue of dependence on a third-party plugin. There's simply not a dominate player in the ad space that feels modern which just blows my mind. Ad Inserter literally feels like something from the 90's
Thomas wp adcenter looks very comprehensive and I dont see fluent getting involved and maybe to big for Ross to handle, this just is not a little bitty plugin.
David Scurlock Fluent themselves have no plans to create an ad manager. As with all my addons, any solution I make will start with minimal features but will mature along with the rest of the suite.
Thomas there is a reason that wp adcenter is a failed project and I would say an insufficient number of site owners running ads. I do not run across many ad sites, but i do see sites that use adsense from time to time. Let's face it, ads were popular years ago, yes, im that old, but not so popular today. You are asking Ross FCA to create a comprehensive ad management system that only a few members may or may not use anyways.
David Scurlock Do you have any ideas of how to generate revenue to support a free to use site that doesn't sell content?
David Scurlock I would just like to see either Ross or FC allow shortcodes. It would be nice to add things to pages. Also, creating a page and even using a shortcode for the FC would be nice.
There's still a huge gap between custom pages wrapped in the FC interface and actually customizing FC.
I digress. The main issue is trying to build and support a mission-based project (free to use) without other means of revenue than selling content. I would definitely like to hear more ideas from people who have done this. Seems like most people that use FC are selling courses and such. I suspect, to your point, this is why other options haven't been developed yet.
Thomas no I dont as to why I was looking into ad management myself. The only portion of my site that wont be monetized right now is FC...
I've heard back from the WPAdCenter support teams in regards to why clicks were not being tracked. Their response is as follows. It's beyond my ability to figure out a work around. Maybe Ross FCA or Shahjahan Jewel can shed some light on this. I'm sure it applies to multiple types of plugins:
--START--
Thank you for your patience. We’ve identified why click tracking does not work on FluentCommunity pages, our click-tracking script is not being loaded on those pages, and below is a brief explanation of why this happens.
FluentCommunity renders its community pages in a “headless mode,” where the standard WordPress functions wp_head() and wp_footer() are not executed. Because of this, WordPress’s normal script-loading process (wp_enqueue_scripts) never runs on these pages. As a result, any plugin that relies on standard WordPress enqueue methods, including WPAdCenter, will not load its frontend scripts on FluentCommunity pages. This is a FluentCommunity architectural limitation, not an issue specific to WPAdCenter.
For your reference, you can review FluentCommunity’s page template logic in their portal page file ( ' fluent-community / app / views / portal_page.php ' ) , where wp_head( ) and wp_footer( ) are conditionally executed based on a headless flag:
Code:
\<?php if (!$isHeadless) : wp_head(); else: ?>
\<?php !$isHeadless && wp_footer(); ?>
On community pages, this isHeadless flag is always set to true, which means both wp_head() and wp_footer() are skipped entirely. As a result, the standard WordPress script-loading lifecycle never runs on these pages.\
FluentCommunity does provide a custom action hook (fluent_community/portal_footer) that runs even in headless mode. You can explore this hook as a possible integration point, as it allows script tags to be added directly on community pages.\
We recommend reaching out to the FluentCommunity team to discuss this limitation and work with them to identify the correct solution or supported approach for enabling third-party plugin scripts on their community pages.
--END--
David Scurlock I reached out to WP AdCenter again in regards to active development or a future replacement. They replied:
"At the moment, the plugin is in maintenance mode. This means we’re not actively adding new features or enhancements, but if any critical issues or errors are reported, we will certainly look into them and fix them as needed.
There isn’t a replacement planned right now, as the plugin continues to work well for many users in its current form. If that changes in the future, we’ll be sure to communicate it clearly.
Please feel free to reach out if you run into any issues—we’re always happy to help where we can."
Their support has been fantastic for anyone wondering.