What Microsoft's new advertising network means for future Will new MSN advertising network succeed where so many have failed? Or will it become a bloated, relatively uncompetitive product only supported by Microsoft's vast bulk? (Not that Bill Gates has ever fathered such a bastard child.)

There's a very good reason to believe that new advertising program bears seeds of its own destruction, thanks to a typically Microsoftian act of overreaching and obliviousness to public opinion. That bad seed is same bad seed that has spoiled fruits of so many internet marketing labors: behavioral and demographic targeting, which always seems to disagree with some people's stomachs, no matter how delicately it is arranged in bowl. (Editor's note: too extended a metaphor? Well, website copywriters have egos, too, you know, just like rest of web dev. community. At least you didn't have to sit through five minutes of flash animation to read this.)

Next: MSN PPC Advertising to Incorporate Demographic & Behavioral Targeting: Killer App. or Achilles Heel?

Microsoft's press release announcing new MSN advertising program is also worth reading if you're that into this.

In order to get your visitors to convert once they arrive, you need to make sure they have a clear path to conversion from landing page. The simpler path, better--a winding road might lose some potential customers. This conversion path could be as simple as a "buy now" button or a contact form, or as complex as a multi-step shopping cart with required registration with required email confirmation to scare away those who are not truly devoted buyers.

Targeting your traffic What you show visitors who arrive at your site is only half equation. The visitors themselves are other. As with everything in life, you can't convert a sow's ear into a silk purse. In this case, sow's ear is paid traffic that is not targeted, or is coming from popunders or other forced viewing, or is just plain faked (there is software specifically designed to emulate human visitors so fraudsters can sell "traffic").

Even in best of cases, some traffic converts better than others. Generally speaking, visitors who are looking for you are likeliest to convert, so conversion rates tend to be highest from advertising on search engines. Conversion rates tend to be lower from advertising on websites (so-called "content" or "contextual" advertising).

Conversion rates are lower still on advertising on website popups, and lowest of all on so-called adware (programs that display popups on a user's computer; people who sell this advertising often label it "targeted traffic"). Sending emails that consist of nothing but your advertisement, even if you've skirted legal definition of spam, is not worth bad will and damage to your brand.

Preaching to non-converting online advertising traffic A significant percentage of visitors, maybe a majority, will never just click "buy now." How do you reach them?

Many people simply will never make a purchase without speaking to a salesperson first. For them, provide a convenient contact form, as well as a live chat option--if you can afford time and expense--your email, and a telephone number. A telephone number is especially important since there are some visitors who will never convert without hearing voice of someone on your end.

For visitors who are not ready to convert immediately, you should have informational articles, "about us" pages or FAQs ready to help them make up their minds.

For visitors who simply will not be ready to convert today, give a reason to bookmark your page. Good articles. A special offer. A newsletter to sign up for. Free advice.

Just make sure you don't place these alternative non-converting options in too prominent a position, or you'll risk distracting prospective customers. A few paragraphs up from very bottom of page is a good place to catch people who are interested in you enough to read entire page, but still haven't converted. The very bottom of page should be reserved for a conversion option for all prospective customers accustomed to scrolling to bottom of page to get a quick overview.

After all, if you want your visitors from online advertising traffic to convert into customers, shouldn't you at least make it easy for them?