What is a Proxy?
The type of proxy site we are talking about is the “circumventor.” This
is a website that allows a user to browse blocked websites by passing the
blocked pages through an unblocked website first.
Why is there a Need for Proxy Sites?
Proxy sites are necessary because people will always want what they
can’t have.
For example, many schools block websites such as myspace.com and
other popular destinations for kids. If kids want to browse myspace.com
while at school, they need to go through a proxy site first.
Many companies block websites, too, so that employees cannot have any
fun at work. They feel that downloading pornography should not be
done in the office.
Even countries themselves will block websites from its citizens. Proxy
sites are used to bypass the filters.
And sometimes, people just want to keep their browsing habits
anonymous.
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The Proxy Site Scripts
There are two very popular scripts in use today for proxy sites. They are
known as PHProxy and CGI Proxy, obviously named after the language
they are programmed in.
PHProxy Official Website: whitefyre.com/poxy/
CGI Proxy Official Website: www.jmarshall.com/tools/cgiproxy/
There are a few differences between the scripts, and you should be sure
to pick out the one that is right for you. For example, PHProxy is a
cleaner script, so it does not use as many server resources.
However, PHProxy does not support myspace.com. If the capability to
browse myspace.com is important to you and your site visitors, you will
have to use CGI Proxy.
If you do not want to build the website by yourself, there is a new
website that will actually generate a proxy for you. All you have to do is
click a few buttons then download a .zip file: www.proxybuilder.com
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Picking a Domain Name
Picking a domain name for your proxy site is similar to picking a
domain name for any other site, but there are a few things to keep in
mind.
Many proxy sites have cute names like “foxyproxy” or
“unblockmyspace.” While these names help visitors understand the site,
they also make it easy places to filter your site.
Since the point is to get around filters, some people are using
inconspicuous names. They are sure to leave any words like “proxy” out
of the domain name.
You can register your domain at a registrar like GoDaddy.com.
Where to Host your Proxy
Finding a place to host your proxy site can be one of your biggest
challenges.
Most shared hosting providers do not allow proxy sites due to the load
they place on the server, so you will probably need to fork out the cash
for a dedicated server. That will run you anywhere from $60 to $120 per
month. You also need to learn how to manage your own server.
Sometimes you can start out on a shared hosting plan if your proxy does
not get too much traffic. I have heard of people successfully hosting
their proxy at Dreamhost.
Some places to look for dedicated servers are Softlayer, LayeredTech,
RackSpace, and HiVelocity.
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Getting Traffic
If you get your proxy up and running, you need to get some visitors!
The most common method of promotion is getting listed on Proxy.org.
You can submit your proxy site for free (be sure to provide a reciprocal
link,) or you can pay for an upgraded listing. Prices vary, but you can
get a bolded listing for just $20 per month.
You will also want to list your site on all of the Proxy toplists. This is
totally free and only requires that you link back to the toplist sites. You
won’t get a lot of traffic from these, but it is worth doing.
Here’s a list of proxy topsites:
http://www.listofproxies.com/
http://www.greatproxylist.com/
http://www.proxystuff.com/
http://www.pwoxy.com/
http://www.theseproxies.com/
http://www.topfreeproxy.com/
http://www.linksrating.com/
http://www.proxytopsite.net/
http://proxieslist.net/
http://www.proxystation.com/
http://www.proxytopsite.com/
http://www.24topproxy.com/
http://www.proxytoplist.com/
http://www.top-proxies.com/
http://www.topproxies.info/
http://www.bestfreeproxies.com/
http://www.topproxies.com/
http://www.proksies.com/
http://www.proxyring.com/topsites/
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Next, think about posting in some forums. There are numerous forums
where people will be looking for a proxy site to use. (A lot of these will
be in foreign countries.)
Another site that will help you out is http://goodwaiter.com/english.php.
You can email them and get them to add your site to their list of proxies.
One option that is relatively cheap is using AdEngage ads. Just go to
AdEngage.com and look for some humor sites. Sometimes you can buy
a text link for $2-3 per week, and that will get you 100 visitors. Three
cents per click is a pretty good rate, and you probably would not get that
on Google AdWords.
Finally, you can just buy links on other sites. The Digitalpoint Link
Sales forum is a good spot for this. Look for humor/entertainment sites,
myspace resource sites, and other proxy sites. You can also try to find
others sites and do link exchanges.
(Don’t forget to link to your proxy from your myspace profile.)
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Making Money
There are a few ways to make money with proxy sites, and Google
Adsense seems to be the most popular. Adsense works well and it is
easy to set-up, but you must be careful. Google does not allow you to
put Adsense ads on the proxified pages, so restrict your Adsense ads to
the homepage. (You may want to check with the Adsense team to be
sure, because sometimes policies change.)
*Adsense Tip - Use multiple color palettes for your ads. Frequent
visitors will begin to ignore your ads, but if you change the colors every
so often, that may catch their eye.
The other popular ad provider is Adversal, who provides pop-up ads.
These could probably make a nice sum of money for you, but the ads
will surely annoy your visitors.
Some people may use Clicksor ads, but I do not know if they are good
or not.
There was also talk of BannerConnect.net, but I don’t know if they are
still accepting proxy sites.
AdEngage and AdBrite are other options for text ads.
Look around at popular proxy sites and see how they place their ads.
That should give you an idea of what works.
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Common Mistakes
Many proxy site owners make mistakes, just like all humans. But there
are a few common mistakes that you can look out for.
One mistake is not customizing your proxy script or server. It is
possible to tweak the script so it does not place a huge load on the
server, which is definitely a good idea.
Another mistake is only having one domain name. You may want to
have a few domain names pointing to your site, just in case one of the
domains gets blocked.
And one more is not having any text. Be sure to write at least a
paragraph about your proxy, and be sure to say “proxy” a few times.
Example Sites
Just in case you need to see some proxy sites for inspiration, here is a list
of some sites I found while surfing the web:
www.browsebebo.com
www.blastproxy.com
www.proxycastle.com
www.agileproxy.com
www.hidemyway.com
www.sneakspace.com
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Success Stories
“When I first signed up for Adsense I was thinking of easier ways of
making money and other ways to increase my monthly earnings and
keep them up without doing much work as most people would want to
do. So I researched and found some pretty good success with proxies.
I decided to start one up and see where I could go with it.
I would have to say that proxies are the easiest way to make any
amount of money in Adsense whatever. I have seen nothing but good
earnings and CTR since I created my site and it is one of my most
profitable sites since. I would recommend everyone to create one and
jump on the bandwagon.”
- Justin Garza (equalparts.net)
“I wanted to make some money real fast. Ya know, lots of money.
And no hard work. After failing at pyramid schemes and paid online
surveys, I moved into the proxy business. Yeah, that’s where it’s at.
OK, so I did not make any money yet, but I will!”
- Anonymous
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What to Expect
The main thing to expect is that your proxy will use a lot of bandwidth
and bog down the server. That is a given, so be sure to have reliable
hardware.
Also, there will be people using your site for illegal actions. That is just
the nature of a proxy site.
To help avoid liability, put a disclaimer on your site.
A couple examples are at http://vip-surf.in/tos.html and
http://myspacebypass.com/tos.html.
A lot of your visitors will be foreign. Be prepared to receive low perclick
payouts from Adsense.
The foreign visitors are one reason I didn’t mention YPN as a proxy
monetizing method. They don’t like international traffic, so most likely
you would be banned.
One other thing to expect is that your domain will get blocked
eventually. Since proxy sites allow access to sites that are supposed to
be blocked, people will start blocking your proxy site. Always be ready
with a backup domain name pointing to your site.
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Other Resources
Proxy.org – The authority site on proxies.
ProxyGuide.org – Some good advice on proxy sites.
http://focused.org/f-proxies/ - A forum for proxy site discussion.
ProxyBuilder.com – Good advice for running a proxy site.
AwesomeProxies.com – A list of proxies.
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Disclaimer
First of all, I don’t run a real proxy site myself, so this could all be made
up. The title is there to poke fun at all the “gurus” who write their own
money-making ebooks without actually having done anything
themselves.
This book is for informational purposes only, and I don’t claim that
anything is actually true. I wrote it after having read many things about
running a proxy site and how much money they can make.
However, I don’t make any claims that you will make money. Most
likely you will lose money. We make no guarantees about anything,
really.
I’m not a lawyer, so I suggest you look into the legal risks of owning a
proxy site.
It would be safest to do your own research and verification before
starting your own site. In other words, reading this was pointless! ;)
If you have seen InternetMarketingSucks.com, you know we are cynical
and sarcastic. If we have offended you, we are happy. If it sounds too
good to be true, it probably is.
Have a nice day.
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This Special Report Brought to You By:
Coal Hill Media Group
Internet Marketing Sucks!
The Internet Marketing Sucks Blog
Prox Diddy (The pimped-out proxy site that isn’t really a proxy site.)