I read with interest and a little more sarcastic laughter than I’d planned a post or two by people on other blogs basically scoffing and calling professionals who hold themselves to a higher earning standard hypocritical. At issue – the fact that we “bemoan” writing for too little, then post free weblogs. Oh, if only we could teach them something about marketing, eh?
Yes, this blog is free for you to read. I don’t get paid for it. If I did, would you trust a word I say? If someone (say a site devoted to raising its own search results within Google) paid me to tell you about how to earn money as a freelancer, exactly how would my advice be of any use to you? Those who tisk-tisk writers with active weblogs are missing the entire point of a weblog – a place to market your ability to write, to build an audience, and to establish a viable online presence. If you write for the Web at all, you need these very skills.
It’s also a chance to connect with clients, other writers, and a much wider audience. Keyword searches have brought readers here from as far away as Thailand and Kuala Lampur (seriously). I’ve also seen searches for keywords that have brought readers here who are looking for things like “insurance”, “assessing writing projects”, even “do you kiss your mother with that mouth?” There you are in Yuba City, in Bullhead City, in Singapore and Amman searching, finding, and making your acquaintance with yours truly.
Also, writing a free weblog is self-serving in another way – you can honestly say to your next blog client “As a matter of fact, I host my own blog. Here are my visitor stats.” Nothing says “successful marketing tool” like a proven track record that was fun to build.
Mind you, I get a whopping $5 a month from Google AdSense, which no, isn’t really worth it since I’ve yet to see an actual check. But that’s not why I do it. Instead of busting my hump writing for strangers who are paying me peanuts so they can make scads of advertising revenue, I’m marketing for myself and leaving a tidy trail of bread crumbs for clients who want to know if I can relate to an audience or build a sustainable online presence. I’ve tied this blog to social networking tools like Entrecard, which drew in about eight visitors Wednesday alone. I tweet the occasional blog post, drawing in more readers. I’ve seen the Followers numbers go from around 48 to 106, so something’s going right. What’s most important – I’m establishing a specialty and a professional presence online for all to see.
I’m not saying everyone should rush out and put up a weblog. I’m saying if you find yourself wanting a new area of marketing, if you want to branch out and flex a creative muscle beyond writing emails to your friends, try it.
So bloggers, tell these scoffers why you blog for free. Tell them what they’re missing, will you? And tell them why it’s nowhere near the same as writing volumes of untargeted content.
13 responses to “The Writing Freebie”
It's making an investment in YOURSELF, not representing a company that undervalues your skills.
I've landed some of my highest paid work via my blog. People find the blog, like what I say and how I say it, and offer me a job at a decent wage.
I look at my blog as morning coffee with friends and colleagues — a way to share a bit of MYSELF, the human being's ups and downs, not just present a polished image. I used to get criticized for writing about the downsides of the freelance life instead of only showing one side of it. Surf-bys regularly read a single post and then make a generalization judgement or try to get me to censor my work. My response? Bite me!
My blog is MY space. I will do and say whatever I want. If someone doesn't like it, they can click away and not go back.
But I won't be censored, and I'm not going to pack up my toys and go home every time someone disagrees. If you're going to put yourself out there, that's part of the gig.
I don't worry that the blog will prevent someone from hiring me. If a potential employer finds it and doesn't like what I have to say or how I say it, we probably wouldn't be a good fit anyway. I don't pretend to be someone else to fit into a corporate environment. This is who I am — accept it or let's just agree to go our separate ways.
I look at the blog as part of my job. It's built into my regular writing day. That's why people who don't regularly update their blogs because "they don't have time" make me roll my eyes. If you can't be relied on to do something as simple as take 15 minutes out of the day to post regularly, why would i trust you to on a big project? What types of excuses would you give for not getting that work done?
I've come close to accepting paid blog gigs. Most of them don't pay enough to be worth my time — unlike the writing blog, which deals with whatever is going on with me at the moment, most paid blog gigs would require research and links to tested, trustworthy resources– AND they wouldn't pay me for the time. If someone lands a well-paid blog gig, good for them, but I haven't yet found that good fit that makes me comfortable on both a financial and an ethical level.
I also take on pro bono clients in the form of charities about which I'm passionate — mostly animal-oriented (since I tend to prefer animals to people most of the time). That's my way of fulfilling my own personal service goal, and the clips I've gained from that work has also landed me some of my top-paying clients.
It's a completely different kettle of fish than writing for pennies for a commercial site who continues to profit from your work in a way that does not benefit "the greater good".
Like we've discussed, let those who want to write for content sites sink in their own quicksand. We will continue to land the higher profile, higher-paid work.
You have Google adsense? I don't recall ever seeing it. That's good, because it shows you care more about connecting with others then with making money from ads. Some sites blast you with ads as soon as you land on the homepage.
I like to read blogs that show a person's professional side as well as their human side. Tips and information are great, but it's nice to see an unrelated post, once in awhile, talking about something happening in your personal life. (your dog is driving you crazy or how your landlord won't stop barking)
Blogs can certainly be great marketing tools, but they're great ways to build rapport as well. You can show off your writing style, knowledge and professionalism without in your face kind of marketing.
I didn't even realize that people were scoffing the blogging for yourself idea. It seems like it should be a no-brainer.
Great post, as usual, Lori. I've gotten to know many other writers, several of whom I now call friends, because of my blog. Quite a few of them have passed on job opportunities to me over the years. Do you think Demand Studios, et al, does that?
Plus, as Devon points out, there's the fact that what you post on your blog is writing you are passionate about. I'm sure a few will claim it, but I doubt many, if any, content mill writers can say the same.
And then there are some of us who (Egads!) fancy ourselves making the writing world a better place through our blog posts. Can any content mill writer claim to be changing the writing world? For the better, not the worse, that is.
BTW, I don't see your Adsense links either. Otherwise, I'd be clicking through more often. My Adsense account brings in just about the same numbers you mention. Not even worth my time, so as soon as I actually get a check, it will be going staight to charity.
I run quite a few blogs. Some make no money, and others bring in four figures a month whether I post actively or not.
They're marketing tools — bringing in plenty of clients who like the style. They're networking tools — connecting me not only with my client base but also with colleagues. They're income sources — if I were to suddenly have a slow period client-wise I wouldn't have to worry because my blogs bring in enough that I'm not going to end up broke.
They're all that and more, and can work for quite a lot of freelance writers in whatever ways they choose to make them work for them. For me that's attracting clients, communicating with colleagues, earning ad revenue, and serving as a launch pad for my own products (even more income streams insulating against slow periods). Hell, I earn more with one of my blogs (which I no longer update) than I earn on several active contracts each month. If you want it to be lucrative, it can be. And if you don't, you still have your freedom, a useful tool, and self-respect.
Devon really hit it — if you're going to write for free or on the cheap, write for yourself. It offers far more potential benefits than writing for clients who undervalue you. To them you're only worth their time until Google changes their algorithm or slaps them for violating their content quality guidelines. And on your own blog, you're not simply replaceable.
When blogs first erupted some years ago, they seemed the height of narcissism. Of course, those were mostly personal blogs. But seeing the marketing potential, I've long been thinking of starting a blog, but still don't know the topic. Writing is well covered, and there are thousands of TV-related blogs. So maybe I'll try one on knitting and crocheting. I just need to come up with a specific focus.
Ah, glad to hear I've hidden the AdSense well! It's right up there at the top – that search bar is one. The other? Scroll down and look to the left – there's exactly one ad, and honestly I never know what company is featured or when.
Devon, you've nailed it. Exactly those reasons and more are why I do it. It's connection, community building, help for those who want/need it, an instant sample of my abilities, etc., etc. And I'm the only person I write for free for – except my immediate family. No way my sweat is going to increase someone else's profits while I get nothing in return.
Wendy, I have no dog, but I could go on about this 8-year-old goldfish who refuses to stop growing…
There have been a few posts poo-pooing blogging for "free." If it's a client, I agree. No freebies. If it's a personal marketing tool, it's yours to mold into whatever you like. I don't mind that some people look to me as someone to come to for advice. Building expertise like that is golden. Not that I'm more talented than anyone else, but I've positioned myself and my brand well. People seem to agree. That shows a potential client a number of things – you can build a following, you know your stuff, and you're reliable enough to be trusted by others. Where is it that ANY of that is bad? Posters who make sweeping comments about how "foolish" we are for doing this don't see the bigger picture.
Exactly, Kathy. I've had plenty of jobs come my way via other writers. Not their specialty, they saw it and thought of me, too busy and need help…. how much of that would've come if I'd not put the time into this? And I've paid it around, too. I've sent around job offers, asked for help, sent spill-over work to others, etc.
To your point of making the world a better place, I totally agree. I love sharing ideas and hearing new ones. We're not alone in this – we're a community of singular workers. We're our own support group. There's something very comforting in that.
Jenn, I love that you earn a lot with your one blog! Can you share how that's done? My concern has always been overload. I don't want to overwhelm the visitor with slow loads thanks to too many ads.
Paula, whatever you decide, it'll be a good read! Just let me know so I can link to you.
I've been blogging for over nine years… I guess I like to torture myself 🙂 No. Really… here's why I blog:
1. My home on the web. I pick the topics and do my best to go with the ones readers will value.
2. Fresh content on my web site, which also acts as my business card and makes search engines happy.
3. Share expertise without any expectations in return.
4. Keeps me practicing my blogging skills since I do it for clients.
I need to bottle you, Meryl. Every point was spot on!
I especially like #3. When I started this blog, it was an experiment. I had no clear intentions and no set course. It just evolved. Funny how we can set out to do nothing in particular and end up actually accomplishing something. 🙂
I blog mainly for myself. I kept journals all my life, right up until I discovered blogging. Now I just blog. :o)
Of course, there is also a secondary advantage: I get to meet other writers. So from a business perspective, I do it more for the networking than the marketing to clients.
But you're right: I also use my blogs as samples when I'm trying to get a blogging gig. The fact that I've had my blog for around four years now demonstrates that I know what I'm talking about.
I also do get about $30 a month from ad revenue, but that's mainly from my wedding and horse blogs, not my writing blog.
Hi Katharine! Good seeing you again. 🙂
I think you're right. Journaling perhaps started it for me, too.
I'm interested to hear from you guys who earn from your blogs. How much stuff do you have to put up to get that ad revenue? Does it detract from your site? What's the best mix?
I'm sorry I haven't been around much lately! I still read most of your posts, but haven't had as much time to comment lately. November was particularly busy, as you know. ;o)
My wedding blog pulls in the most ad revenue, yet I hardly update that one. I just managed to get lucky in that there are lost of searches for 1920s hairstyles and wedding information, but not much on the Internet about it. My horse blog earns some ad revenue, my writing blog the least.
In general I've found that I have good luck with header ads and the large rectangular footer ads I put on individual post pages. The image ads do seem to pull in the most clicks as well as the best payments per click, as opposed to the text-only ads (which only pay pennies and don't seem to get noticed very often).
Funny how things happen….Yesterday I put it out there (here and in one of my LinkedIn Groups) that I want to start a blog in 2010. Today there was a post from a major yarn company on a Ravelry group I belong to seeking writers for yarn blogs.
One of the types of blogs I was considering was on knitting. This one could motivate me. They let you choose from a bunch of patterns and yarns, and most projects they expect will take 3-6 weeks. They only need one post per week. They supply the yarn, etc…. (Any knitters out there can attest to the fact that yarn habits can be costly), and every six months pay you in copious amounts of yarn – your choice.
I know it's promoting their products and patterns, but it will also showcase me in a new way. As a a knitter. And if I wrote my own knitting blog I'd struggle to find an audience and I'd have to spend hundreds of dollars on the yarn.
This could be a lot of fun.