In the past few weeks there has been an ongoing debate online about advertising on mom/mommy blogs. The debate went even further and became more controversial while many mom bloggers were at blogher (myself not included). I got involved in the discussions on several blogs because I wanted other moms to know how I felt about the topic AND because I whole-heartedly agree with having advertising on a blog in any form that a blogger chooses. Of course I could have stood back and said nothing but I didn't and I want to take this discussion a step further here. Or atleast I want to ask a whole lotta questions ;)
Sure, this discussion has taken place all over the blogosphere as of late and a lot of you are getting tired of it but I still think you should listen.
Basically, there are two kinds of bloggers. Writers and non-writers. I'm in the second camp. I'm not a professional writer and don't ever plan on having a book published. It seems as though that the blogger/professional writers are against some types of advertising most notably pay per post since the rates are so low. However, some of these same writers believe that they should be paid to review other products which is actually unethical(IMO). How can you give your true opinion on a product for which you are getting paid? Do you feel like you have to be positive in order to get your next review job?
Furthermore, many of these same "professional" writers feel devalued when other mom bloggers take
pay per post opportunities or similar such as
payu2post reviewme Sponsored Reviews Smorty and a few more coming along I'm sure. So, tell me, what is a good rate for mom bloggers to take? Is it fair to say that all bloggers are worth the same amount? What about the mom bloggers just starting out or the bloggers who simply aren't at the level of other bloggers?
The big thing here is that every blogger will not get writing jobs or advertisements that pay well so they have to take these kinds of opportunities for whatever reason. Personally, I don’t feel devalued when other bloggers write for PPP or whatever it is that helps them make money. I don't get upset when PR companies contact me and ask me to review something. If the product doesn't fit with my site I don't do it.
Even if PPP isn't right for me I still feel like I cannot say it is not good for another person simply because I am not living their life and only they know what they need and what is right for them. This is where things like this become purely situational and it's hard to see these people being bashed for taking these opportunities.
The Internet and technology is in a constant state of change and the whole blogging/marketing aspect is so new to so many moms. A few years ago most of us wouldn't have even dreamed of having such possibilties. So why is it that so many mom bloggers feel like that deserve the million dollar ad? What makes us so special? I'd love to hear your thoughts. And, or course I agree we do deserve more than $5 or $10. My question is as a whole (all mom bloggers) do we deserve more and what do we do about those who are not included?
I wish there were better monetizing opportunities out there for mom blogs and you can be sure that when and if I find something that works for me I'll be posting it right here.
For now I recommend Google Adsense (yes, I get a monthly check-actually it's direct deposited to my bank account), AffiliateFuel.com, Fastclick, Coreg Media, Kontera, Clickbank, Shopzilla, Chitika, Offersquest, Amazon, Auction Ads & blogher ads. In the next few weeks, I'll try and do a more in depth discussion on each of these different companies to help you monetize your blog so check back.
Here are more of these discussions from around the mom blogosphere.
Thoughts On Women blogging and making moneyMom 101's amazing & popular discussionIs Adverting on Mommy blogs different? from the fabulous Phat MommyLabels: advertising, mom blogs, work at home mom
