Monetizing your blog your way.
I've been chatting with a dear friend blogger over the last few days about her blog, her content, and making money from her blog.
In the last few days, a lot has happened with her and her blog, people telling her how she can make money from it.
When I say how, I don't mean 'hey, here's how you can monetize your blog', I mean 'hey, don't do it that way, do it our way.'
Telling her how she should run her blog.
This upset me.
There are ton of ways to make money from blogging these days, and some work better than others, and some are loved, some are hated, and some think just think they are better than all the others.
One such company actually says that you can do product reviews if some get sent to you, but the total value of that product cannot exceed $40.00, or we'll remove you from our program.
They also don't want you reviewing cheap-ish products.
Whoa, wait a minute.
So if some advertiser were to send her a product to review, (she does have a review blog specifically for products) that it's value were say, $50.00, they would scold her and then dump her from their program.
Um, what?
I have done reviews of products that were valued much higher than both those figures.
I recently did a review of a portrait canvas valued at $89.00.
It was a personalized portrait, my sons and my nieces were in the photo. They took my photo and blew it up and put it on a 16x24 canvas.
It was gorgeous. I sent it to my parents who absolutely love it. The week and a half I had it in my home, I looked at it daily, loved it, showed it off to every one who came over. Told them all what company did it for me.
This uppity company would have kicked me out of their program for that.
The point is, who has a right to tell you, simply because you run an adblock, what you can write about, and the value of a product to review?
Is it really any of their business how much a product cost?
I mean, if I was a member of this program and they asked me what the value of any product I reviewed was, I'd probably tell them none of your business.
That would be my polite answer.
This friend of mine is in turmoil.
She doesn't want to lose readers, and they are telling her that she will lose readers, if she continues to work for a particular company.
They want her to work for them, running these particular adblocks, not review any products whose value is more than $40.00, but also not review any product they consider cheap, and they want her to delete some posts she's made for a company where she was paid to write about a product or service.
They basically want control of her blog.
The things I have read some of the people who do work for this uppity company say over the last few days, makes me sick.
I've seen them throw insults around, not just at bloggers who write for various companies, but also those companies themselves.
Some of those companies gave out a ton of free products recently, which many of these bloggers happily took.
I mean free swag is free swag right? *eyeroll*
The companies products are good enough to accept, yet not good enough to write for apparently.
I did what any good friend would do, I talked to her every single time she contacted me, let her vent, let her discuss how all this was making her feel, then I offered her a way to run an adblock system on her blog that does not have any of those gay rules.
If you get sent a product to review that costs $5.00 or $500.00, they aren't going to tell you that you can't take it and review it.
I hope she takes me up on the offer, because I hate to see her being spoken to in the manner in which I've witnessed them do over the last couple of days.
She has a great blog and it appears that they want a cut of the potential advertising revenue stream she can generate, and they also want to dictate exactly what she can do on her blog.
That's so wrong, it's HER blog.
I myself have several more product reviews coming up, and their value is far higher than this $40.00 limit that this company imposes.
I'd rather do these reviews and get some great products while I'm at it, than work for a company who would dictate to me what I can accept, what I can review, and it's over all value, and what subjects I should talk about.
I wouldn't last 5 minutes with that company.
I'm glad I actually read the ToS they have last year when someone told me to sign up, because I would have just signed up, agreed to all that gobbledy gook, and then screwed myself out of writing for some truly amazing companies, with truly amazing products, and I have been able to earn myself return advertisers who pay me for adblock space now.
Comments
Interesting.
But do you realize how many blogs are out there?
I read an article claiming that the "blog" fad is falling off, growing weaker. At least those which try to be serious and reflect a vision or purpose.
For me, it's just fun.
Posted by: creechman | August 4, 2007 8:00 AM
I think I know exactly what you're talking about. Recently they opened up their ad program to new members and I was excited to take part. I did something I never do, though. I actually READ the TOS. It didn't take me long to get the hell off that page. I have no desire to be associated with such snotty little snobs. Never.
Posted by: Allison | August 4, 2007 8:53 AM
I think I know who and what company you're talking about, and I agree that it sucks. If anyone ever pulled that shit with me, I'd tell them to take a flying leap, and refuse to work with them.
I'm more than happy with what I'm doing now. I love the free swag, too!
Posted by: Christine | August 4, 2007 3:49 PM
I hope I'm not involved with this company! I haven't received any threatening emails from anyone, so hopefully I'm not. I'd have to tell them to take a flying leap, too.
Posted by: Devilish Southern Belle | August 4, 2007 4:04 PM
Please email me the name of this company so I know not to get involved with them. Thanks.
Posted by: Karen | August 5, 2007 5:42 PM
Wow, that' s very high price product review. Could you share us how to get that great price review?
thanks,
goonie
Posted by: BabyFirstYear | August 5, 2007 11:30 PM