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I am happy to list phone numbers, addresses, and a brief description for businesses that may be of interest to tourists. There have been requests for commercial web links or other additional exposure and I am willing to comply in most cases for a nominal charge.
Advertisers are still subject to the same review as everyone else in the Visitors' Comments sections. It is my hope that this encourages deserving businesses to prosper. Comments are typically positive but often mention a downside as well. Those who advertise here tend to be well-received, as suggested by the Visitors' Comments. Becoming an advertiser on tomzap.com does not mean that your business will be "recommended" on tomzap.com. These recommendations generally come as a consensus of the readers of tomzap.com. The primary purpose of tomzap.com is to inform the readers. This includes the reporting of bad news which may negatively impact advertisers. There are further details at the bottom of the page.
The tone and focus of these pages is to be informative and candid. Advertising must be informative and truthful as well. No limit is set on the length, the number of pages, or the number of photos and graphics in an advertisement as long as it continues to be informative and reasonable. If the advertiser has another web site, a link to that site will be included in the heading of the ad. There will be no blinking text, banners, or other annoyances. Advertisements will be integrated into the existing pages with hyperlinks to and from related topics.
Can I just get a link to my web site?
No. Only advertisers can have a commercial web link. It will appear in the heading at the top of your ad.
How do I advertise on tomzap.com?
It is pretty simple. First send me a request and tell me what you want to advertise. If we both agree to proceed, then you pay for the first year, send me the text for your ad in the body of an email and send me photos for your ad. Photos may be attached to emails, about 3 per email, or uploaded by FTP. You may leave the photos at full resolution, at least 640x480 please, and I will reduce them as appropriate.
The content of your ad should include the name of the business (if you are selling or renting a home, then the home needs a name), contact information, the main features or highlights, any additional description (unlimited amount), and 2 to 10 photos.
That is all. It usually takes me 1 to 3 weeks to build the ad.
How can I increase my exposure on tomzap.com?
I would like to invite advertisers (and anyone else) to write articles for tomzap.com. Articles can be about any subject relating to the areas covered on tomzap.com. Your article will have a link to your ad on tomzap.com, thus increasing your exposure. Articles will be also linked to and from relative information. So it's a win-win situation; you create a new avenue to your ad and you provide helpful information for the readers of tomzap.com. The most prolific advertiser/writer has been Alvin Starkman of Casa Machaya.
Can I advertize more than one thing in my ad?
Maybe, but if it requires more than one listing then you need more than one ad. I will provide a second ad at reduced cost.
How do I update my ad?
Send me the updates in the body of an email. Don't copy your whole ad, just send the parts you want to change with instructions. Attach photos to emails. You can have one significant update per year at no additional cost. Minor changes like a new phone number or email address are not counted as a significant update. Please do keep your information up to date.
Can I be really picky about how my ad is laid out and linked in and bring on board some whiz kid web guy to help maximize my rankings on the search engines?
Can I triple my fee? Honestly, all those "tricks" you hear about to increase your exposure on the search engines have been duly nulled out in search engine software in order to keep those folks on the bottom of the heap where they belong. The basics still apply though and they are: popularity of the web site, size of the web site, placement of key words near the top of pages, and the number of links TO the web site from other web sites. tomzap.com has all those things and if your web guy is telling you anything different he is just using dated information to try to justify his fee. Simply placing your ad on tomzap.com connects you to the search engine benefit. As far as the layout and placement of elements, you may make suggestions but I will take care of it and insure that the information is clearly presented. If someone is viewing your ad, then they are already interested and we just need to connect them with the information you have to present.
The Listing
The listing for your business needs to be brief. I usually write this myself based on the information in your ad. You can make suggestions. The business name will be in bold type and will link to your ad. If you are providing accommodations, I will decide whether to list in the budget, moderate, or expensive category based on what you charge for a double during the high season. There is nothing wrong with being in the expensive category. That is generally where the best places are listed and they do get business. Most ads will also get an entry in the Main Index. If your ad is for property for sale, it will not appear in the main index but will be in the Real Estate Index.
Earning Money in Mexico - Keeping it Legal
In order for a foreigner to legally earn money in Mexico, he/she must have a work permit. For example, if you have a home and you rent out a room, you need to have the appropriate permits. If you are bringing a group of people to Mexico from your own country for a retreat of some kind and you collect payment in your country and conduct the retreat in Mexico, you still need permits in Mexico because the work is conducted in Mexico. The Mexican authorities do sometimes review the ads on this web site to determine if someone is in violation. If you need more information about permits, it would be best to ask someone who knows (not me). You may find some of the information in the Living in Mexico section. I understand that the rules are frequently broken and people get away with it, but if you are a foreigner conducting business in Mexico without the appropriate permits you are leaving yourself exposed, especially if you have enemies.
Using PayPal
PayPal is a company that makes it possible to send money electronically to an email address using a credit card. I can accept payment for advertising by PayPal by sending to my email address, tom@tomzap.com. The web address for PayPal is http://www.paypal.com. It is best to go directly to this web URL and not use links in emails because sometimes email links take you someplace other than PayPal in order to attempt steal your credit card information. There is no charge to the sender to use PayPal unless a currency conversion to U.S. dollars is involved.
I asked PayPal about the use of Mexican credit cards to send U.S. dollars by PayPal and here is what they said:
PayPal will work with most credit or debit cards issued in Mexico regardless of the bank of issuance. It will not work with pre-paid cards in most cases.
You can require that your Mexican customers pay in US dollars and they will have to pay the conversion fee.
PayPal uses the current wholesale rate and adds a 2.5% spread above this rate to calculate our currency conversion rate.
Our basic fees for receiving international payments are also 3.9% of the transaction plus $0.30 USD rather than 2.9% plus $0.30 USD as it is with domestic payments.
Paypal has added a service allowing customers to pay with a credit card without creating a PayPal account. They accept Visa, MasterCard, and American Express.
About Priorities
I created The Pacific Coast of Mexico in 1994 for the purpose of sharing information about the coast of Oaxaca, originally. Later the states of Jalisco and Colima were added. The purpose was not to create a venue for advertisers. That came about as a byproduct due to the popularity of tomzap.com. The advertisements do contribute to the information on tomzap.com but they are not my top priority, and frankly are not necessary for the existance of tomzap.com. During times of high workload, I may temporarily not be accepting new advertisers.
There may be times when events occur such as hurricanes, violent protests, armed uprisings, thefts, or murders. The reporting of such events may temporarily discourage tourism in the area and be harmful to some businesses, including those who advertise on tomzap.com. Nonetheless, these are important events and they will be reported on tomzap.com because the priority is to share information. This kind of candor is what has made this site stand out among travel web sites in the first place and is fundamental to its popularity which, in the long run, is what makes it attractive to advertisers.
The Pacific Coast of Mexico continues to be not-for-profit but advertisers who can accept the conditions and brave the Visitors' Comments are welcomed, especially if they can contribute to the informational focus of the site. Receipts for advertising are used to defray costs of providing these web pages about the coastal areas of Oaxaca, Jalisco and Colima. Your support is appreciated.
Tom Penick
tom@tomzap.com
This page has been visited times since January 19, 2008.
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The Pacific Coast of Mexico
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Tom Penick:
tom@tomzap.com