How to buy ads in other channels

Buying ads in other Telegram channels is one of the most effective ways to grow your audience quickly. This strategy involves paying channel owners to publish promotional posts about your channel, giving you direct access to their engaged subscribers. When done correctly, purchasing channel ads can deliver targeted followers at a predictable cost, but it requires careful research, negotiation, and tracking to ensure a positive return on investment.

Understanding Telegram Channel Advertising

Telegram channel advertising works differently from traditional digital advertising platforms. There is no centralized ad system managed by Telegram itself for channel-to-channel promotion — instead, you deal directly with channel owners or use intermediary platforms and agencies.

The core concept is simple: you pay a channel owner to publish a post that promotes your channel. Their subscribers see the post, and some percentage clicks through and joins your channel. The effectiveness depends on audience overlap, post quality, and the trust the promoting channel has built with its readers.

Types of Channel Ads

There are several common formats for buying ads in Telegram channels:

Standard promotional post — A text post with a link to your channel, written by you or the channel owner, published among regular content
Forward post — One of your existing posts is forwarded to the advertising channel, giving readers a preview of your content style
Native integration — The channel owner mentions your channel naturally within their regular content, making it feel like a genuine recommendation
Pinned post — Your promotional post is pinned at the top of the channel for a set period (usually 1–24 hours), ensuring maximum visibility
Story mention — Some channels with active stories can mention your channel in their Telegram Stories

How to Find Channels for Advertising

Step 1: Define Your Target Audience

Before spending any money, clearly define who you want to reach. Consider:

What topics interest your ideal subscribers?
What language do they speak?
What other channels might they already follow?
What age group and geography are you targeting?

For example, if you run a channel about personal finance in English, look for channels covering investing, entrepreneurship, productivity, or career development with an English-speaking audience.

Step 2: Research Potential Channels

Use these methods to find advertising opportunities:

Manual search — Browse Telegram's search, explore directories like tgchannel.space, and look for channels in your niche with active, engaged audiences
Ad exchanges and platforms — Services like Telega.io, TGStat, and similar platforms list channels that accept advertising, along with pricing and audience statistics
Competitor analysis — Watch where similar channels in your niche advertise. If a competitor keeps buying ads in the same channel, it likely delivers good results
Ask your existing audience — Poll your current subscribers about what other channels they follow

Step 3: Evaluate Channel Quality

Not all channels with large subscriber counts deliver good advertising results. Check these metrics before buying:

Subscriber count vs. post views — A channel with 50,000 subscribers but only 500 views per post (1% engagement) may have many inactive or bot subscribers. Healthy engagement is typically 15–40% of subscriber count
View growth pattern — Check if views accumulate gradually (organic) or spike immediately and flatline (potentially botted)
Comment activity — If the channel has comments enabled, check whether real people are engaging
Posting frequency — Channels that post 15–20 times per day dilute each post's visibility. Channels posting 1–3 times daily typically have higher per-post engagement
Ad frequency — If every other post is an ad, the audience has likely developed "ad blindness"
Audience demographics — Use analytics tools like TGStat to verify the channel's audience geography and language match your needs

Step 4: Contact the Channel Owner

Reach out to the channel admin through the contact method listed in their channel description — usually a bot, a direct message link, or an associated group chat. When contacting them:

Introduce yourself and your channel briefly
Ask for their current advertising rates and available formats
Request recent statistics (screenshots of post analytics)
Ask about their ad posting schedule and available slots
Inquire about any content restrictions they have

Step 5: Negotiate Terms and Price

Advertising prices on Telegram vary enormously based on channel size, niche, and geography. As a rough guideline:

Channel Size Typical Price Range (USD) 1,000–5,000 subscribers $5–$30 5,000–20,000 subscribers $20–$100 20,000–50,000 subscribers $80–$300 50,000–100,000 subscribers $200–$700 100,000+ subscribers $500–$3,000+

These prices vary significantly by niche. Tech and finance channels typically charge more than entertainment channels. Always negotiate — many channel owners will offer discounts for:

Multiple ad placements (buying a package of 3–5 posts)
Long-term partnerships
Mutual promotion (if your channel has a relevant audience)
Off-peak time slots

Step 6: Prepare Your Ad Creative

Your ad post must grab attention within the first two lines. Structure it effectively:

Hook — An attention-grabbing opening line or question
Value proposition — What will subscribers get from your channel? Be specific
Social proof — Mention subscriber count, notable posts, or achievements if relevant
Call to action — Clear instruction to join, with a direct link to your channel

Keep your ad post concise — 3 to 6 sentences is the sweet spot. Overly long promotional posts get scrolled past.

Example ad copy:

"Want to learn one practical investing tip every morning before the market opens? @YourChannelName breaks down complex financial concepts into 60-second reads. Join 12,000+ subscribers who are building smarter portfolios — no jargon, no fluff."

Step 7: Track Results

After the ad is published, monitor key metrics:

New subscribers in the 24–48 hours following the ad post
Cost per subscriber (CPS) — Total cost divided by new subscribers gained
Retention rate — How many of those new subscribers are still with you after 7 days
Post views increase — Whether your overall engagement improves

Use Telegram's built-in channel analytics or third-party tools to track these numbers precisely. Create a spreadsheet to compare performance across different channels you advertise in.

Tips & Best Practices

Start small — Test with 2–3 smaller channels ($20–$50 each) before committing to expensive placements. This helps you refine your ad copy and identify which niches convert best
Time your ads strategically — Ask the channel owner to publish during peak hours for their audience (usually mornings or evenings on weekdays). Avoid weekends unless analytics suggest otherwise
Prepare your channel first — Before driving traffic, ensure your channel has at least 20–30 quality posts and a compelling description. New visitors will judge your channel within seconds
Use unique invite links — Create separate invite links (via @InviteMemberBot or Telegram's built-in feature) for each ad placement so you can track exactly how many subscribers each channel delivers
Negotiate "hold" periods — Ask the channel owner to keep your ad post visible (not deleted) for at least 24–48 hours and avoid pinning other content over it during that time
Consider posting your ad on a specific day — Many channels have higher engagement on certain days. Ask the channel owner which day typically performs best
Build relationships — If a channel delivers good results, establish an ongoing partnership. Regular advertisers often get better rates and priority placement
Diversify your public presence — Having your channel content available on the web through platforms like tgchannel.space gives potential advertisers and partners a way to preview your content quality before agreeing to collaborate

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Buying ads based solely on subscriber count
Why it's wrong: A channel with 100,000 subscribers but 2,000 views per post will likely deliver fewer results than a channel with 20,000 subscribers and 8,000 views per post. Subscriber count can be inflated through bots or giveaways.
How to avoid: Always evaluate engagement rate (views/subscribers) and request analytics screenshots before purchasing.

Mistake 2: Using the same ad copy everywhere
Why it's wrong: Different channel audiences respond to different messaging. A formal, data-driven ad works for a business channel but falls flat in a casual meme channel.
How to avoid: Tailor your ad copy to match the tone and interests of each channel's audience. Write at least 2–3 variations.

Mistake 3: Not tracking results per channel
Why it's wrong: Without tracking, you cannot identify which channels deliver profitable subscribers and which waste your budget. You end up repeating mistakes.
How to avoid: Use unique invite links for every ad placement and maintain a tracking spreadsheet with cost, subscribers gained, and retention data.

Mistake 4: Advertising before your channel is ready
Why it's wrong: Driving traffic to an empty or low-quality channel wastes money. Visitors arrive, see nothing compelling, and leave immediately.
How to avoid: Build a library of at least 20–30 strong posts, write a clear channel description, and set a recognizable avatar before running any ads.

Mistake 5: Ignoring the ad channel's posting schedule
Why it's wrong: If the channel publishes 5 posts after your ad within an hour, your post gets buried and few people see it.
How to avoid: Negotiate a guaranteed window (e.g., no other posts for 2–4 hours after your ad) and confirm the posting schedule in advance.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much should I budget for my first Telegram ad campaign?
Start with $100–$200 spread across 3–5 different channels. This gives you enough data to calculate your average cost per subscriber and identify which channel types convert best for your niche before scaling up.

Is it better to buy ads or use Telegram's official ad platform?
Both have merits. Telegram's official ads (through Telegram Ad Platform) offer broad reach and targeting by language and channel topic, but require a minimum budget of approximately €2,000,000 in crypto and provide less personal engagement. Direct channel ads are more accessible, allow precise audience targeting, and often deliver more engaged subscribers at a lower entry point.

How can I tell if a channel has fake subscribers?
Key warning signs include: view counts below 5% of subscriber count, sudden spikes in subscriber growth followed by drops, no comments or reactions on posts despite high subscriber numbers, and generic or bot-like usernames in the subscriber list. Use analytics platforms to check growth history.

Should I write the ad myself or let the channel owner write it?
Both approaches work. Writing it yourself gives you control over messaging, but the channel owner knows their audience best. A hybrid approach often works well — provide key points and let the owner adapt the text to their channel's voice and style.

How long does it take to see results from channel advertising?
Most subscriber growth happens within the first 6–12 hours after the ad is published. You should see 60–80% of total results within 24 hours. If a post is still visible, a small trickle of new subscribers may continue for 2–3 days. Always wait at least 48 hours before evaluating final performance.