I have been reading/studying silently for a few years and now ready to jump in whole heartedly. I have less than 50 domains at the moment with 1 that I really want to dig deep with due to the niche and gaining popularity.


I'd truly appreciate candid advice as I begin. This is not a "buy my domain" in disguise. I've had substantial offers. I think I'd be stupid not to monetize this one. I could be wrong.


The domain is currently semi or likely even less than semi developed - yet has had as many as 343,000 hits monthly hits, 10,000 monthly visitors with a high of 377 per hour. That is dropping fast which is why I am ready to jump high now.


I have no real monetization yet. Two adsense blocks for kicks. I originally purchased the domain a couple of years ago but now the niche is tied to a VERY popular line of TV shows. My domain name has been mentioned on the channel's blog and the twitter account I created/tied to the domain is fast growing and so far I've only seen complete supporters from the same industry.


I know it's probably not what most of the domainers on here see, but for a newbie, I am a little impressed. I have feared reaching out in the past for lack of knowledge. But after reading for a few years here, I feel a little safer knowing there are no stupid questions if you are being honest.


My original business model/OK - more like a brainstorm - is not going to work as a business. Not a fail, it was just a brainstorm and whim purchase. However it's blowing up and I see the potential of advertisers more than making my graduating child's college tuition.


My questions are:
1. Have you found prebuilt software or custom built site to be more lucrative? I've paid for the software the site uses now. I have not taken the time yet to delve deeper into what it can do. I simply put up for 'test drive' of the brainstorm.


2. Have you found better success with direct advertisers or affiliates for passing/fleeting/maybe hanging around a few years - niches?
3. Is there a standard ratio for advertising rates v/s traffic counts? Many hours of searching and I can't seem to find two that come close to matching enough to deem there is such a thing as a standard rate.


A million more questions to process......

Thanks in advance!
Nicole