Coyotes Designs

The cd_ad_sponsor plug-in was written to manage the sponsor ads that can be presented within your blogs. In the case of a WordPressµ installation, there can be a very large number of sponsor ads. I wrote this article to help you get the most out of the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in. This article is a continuation of the Sponsor Ad Management article.

Note: The cd_ad_sponsor download from WordPress in incorrectly named. The download DOES contain the correctly named cd_ad_sponsor.zip file. Please extract this file before you upload it to your plugins folder. You may also download the correctly named plug-in from here.

Change Log

Version 1.1 is now available. This User Guide reflects those changes and is noted by, [Version 1.1, 11-09-2009].

Version 1.2.1 is now available. This User Guide reflects those changes and is noted by, [Version 1.2.1, 12-07-2009].

Version 1.2.2 (01-20-2010) is now available. This upgrade reflects minor bug fixes only. No changes to the documentation is required.

Version 1.2.3 is now available. This User Guide reflects those changes and is noted by, [Version 1.2.3, 01-30-2010].

Version 1.3.0 is now available. This User Guide reflects those changes and is noted by, [Version 1.3.0, 02-20-2010].

Preface

I would like to preface this article with a few things I want you to know.

First, should you have any questions after reading this user guide, please leave your comments at the end of this article. I will do my best to assist you as soon as I am able.

Second. The cd_ad_sponsor plug-in was designed with both mainstream and adult-oriented blogs in mind. Subsequently, there may be specific data fields which are not relevant to one or the other blog type. Simply ignore the data that is not specific to your use.

Third. The cd_ad_sponsor plug-in is an initial release. This simply means that it resolves my current issues, and, that I will continue to expand the capabilities to fit additional requirements, or to incorporate feature enhancements made by you, the user, as time and funds permit.

Lastly, I want to thank you for your interest in using this plug-in. I have found that I now have much more time to write blog articles rather than managing ad placements and I hope that using this plug-in will save you time as well.

I've listed a sub-TOC here so that as you use the plug-in later you can refer to each section as needed. The plug-in is divided into the following administration menus:

• Manage Sponsors
• Manage Programs
• Manage Revenue
• Manage Zones
• Manage Banners
• Manage Schedules
• Default Options
• Excluded IPs

[Version 1.2.1, 12-07-2009]

• Banner Report

[Version 1.2.3, 01-30-2010]


• Uninstall
• Modifying Your Theme
• Miscellaneous

I've added a couple of entries, "Modifying your theme" and "Miscellaneous" to the TOC. These sections describe the changes you need to make to your theme files. These entries are not part of the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in administration menu.

Prerequisite

1. You should already have the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in installed and activated for your WordPress installation. Please refer to the installation instructions in the readme.txt file for more information.
2. You should have a working knowledge of WordPress theme structures. The cd_ad_sponsor plug-in requires that you modify some of your blog theme files in order to present your sponsor ads as desired.
3. Due to the shear number of user-defined themes available, I cannot cover all permutations. Therefore, I will use a fictional theme as an example guide throughout this article. You will need to make the necessary modifications in order to fit your particular theme style.

What do we do first?

Before you begin configuring the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in, you should consider how you sell ad spots to your sponsors. You should also consider whether you are billed for the use of a sponsor ad, such as the case of a PPC ad. The selling and buying of sponsor ads is categorized as a Revenue Type, which I explain in section Manage Revenue later in this article.

The next item for consideration is the location within your theme where you place sponsor ads. These locations are sometimes referred to as Zones. Again, I'll explain more about locations in section Manage Zones later in this article. For now, I want to demonstrate an easy method that you can use to initially define these locations. We'll be using this throughout the remainder of this article.

To define locations for ad placement in your theme, start by sketching an overall layout of the main theme page. Make sure to label each area. Our end goal is to have ads placed within each of these areas, so we'll start with the header, and work our way down.

Let's say that we want a single ad location in the Page Header section of our theme's main page to place a sponsor ad. Label this location as shown and give this location a number. You can use any integer identifier for your location reference, but for this example, I'll keep it simple and label it as, "zone 1". You should notice that I have included the ad size. The ad sizes I use conform to the IAB Ad Unit Guidelines but you may use any banner ad size that fits within your theme style. Whatever size you use, make sure to note it on our sketch for later reference.

Next, we'll sketch another location to appear at the top of the content area. Notice that I have specified two (2) ads to be placed in this zone. This location will be zone 2. I'll explain how to get more than one ad to display in a single location later in this article. For now, I think you get the idea how to label the rest of the locations in the sketch. You are not limited to the layout I have used here. This is simply an example. Just remember that you will need whatever zone identifiers you create when you define your zones within the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in.

One final note before we get started is that this sketch actually represents four different theme files, the header, the index or main page, the sidebar, and the footer. The ad location in the header means you will need to modify the header.php file. The ad in the content area means you will need to modify your index.php file, and possibly others, such as the page.php, the single.php, etc. The sidebar location obviously is the sidebar.php file. Lastly, the footer location represents the footer.php file. It is important that you understand one, how your particular theme is constructed, and two, be familiar with reading and writing PHP code.

Getting Started

Now that we have a general sketch outlining the different ad locations for our theme, we can start entering information into the cd_ad_sponsor plug-in. First, I will explain the purpose of each of these sections and describe each of the data fields. At the end of each section I'll provide a tutorial for that section.

In the following tutorial, we will create two sponsor ads, a image-based ad that we will place in the page header zone (Zone 1 on our sketch), and a script-based ad that we will place in he sidebar (Zone 5 on our sketch). You should complete each of these sections with your specific sponsor information.

Manage Sponsors

Sponsors are your clients. You either sell ad spots to a sponsor, or subscribe to their affiliate program. Either way, you obtain ads to display on your site from your sponsors. The Manage Sponsors page displays a list of all the currently defined sponsors for your blog. If you are running WordPressµ then the sponsors you define apply across all blogs.

The cd_ad_sponsor plug-in manages specific contact information about each of your sponsors. The Manage Sponsors page lists each of your sponsors in alphabetical order. Not all data fields are used when creating a new sponsor, depending upon the type of your sponsor. You can leave a data field empty if it does not apply.

Sponsor Name

This is the name of this sponsor.

User Name

This is your user name that you use to log in to the sponsor web site.

Login Password

This is your password that you use to log in to the sponsor web site.

Affiliate ID

This is the sponsor assigned affiliate ID you received when you signed up for this sponsor program. Not all sponsors provide an affiliate ID, however. If you do not have an affiliate ID, leave this field empty.

Webmaster URL

This is the URL you use to log in to the sponsor web site.

Referral URL

This is the webmaster referral URL that other webmasters use to sign up with this sponsor under your account. Not all sponsors offer a webmaster referral program. Leave this field blank if your sponsor does not offer this benefit.

Referral Banner

This is the webmaster referral banner URL. The URL can be a sponsor hosted banner or a banner hosted by you on your server.

2257 Doc URL

This is the URL for the sponsor's legal page detailing the 2257 requirements statement. This information is specific to adult oriented web sites only.

Sponsor Support Email

This is the support e-mail address for this sponsor.

Sponsor Support ICQ

This is the support ICQ address for this sponsor.

After you are satisfied with your entries, click Save Changes. The Manage Sponsors page is displayed with your new sponsor data.

To edit sponsor data, click the sponsor name.

Tutorial: Manage Sponsors

In this tutorial, we'll be creating two sponsors. We'll create an entry for Google, and an entry for the AdCouncil.

Start by clicking the Manage Sponsors option from the Ad Sponsors administration menu.
The Manage Sponsors page is displayed. You should see an empty listing.

Click the Add Sponsor button to display the Add Sponsor form.

Review your entries. If your entries are correct, click Save Changes. The Manage Sponsors page is displayed with each of your sponsor information data listed in alphabetical order.

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