The ideas and thoughts behind Momspirational, started a long time ago. Long before I really knew about blogging or the marketing behind promoting them. I never realized the hours of hard work that it really takes to lift off a blog. And I have seen a lot of blogs that I love, love, LOVED turn in to nothing more than product infomercials, sponsored posts, product reviews and giveaways.
Once you start marketing your blog for something other than your writing, you become instantly bound by rules and by targeting an ‘audience’ and worrying about being careful not to offend others, in the hopes that some company will want to work with you. Then the writing, the stories, the person, the details of the blog – the YOU, become little more than SEO on steroids and lose their earnestness and authenticity.
It’s a difficult thing to balance.
And the one thing that all of us want to know is how to make money off our blogs. I know when I first started out, it was dream to earn tons and tons of money on my blog, so that I could stop freelancing and writing for others – and write from my own heart. In fact my first writing endeavor was dubbed “write from the heart,” because that is what I attempt to do – for myself and for those that pay me to write.
I have come to the realization that while blogging can be very lucrative, I am not willing to sell my soul to the devil in order to get an advertiser to pay me $30 per month to put something up on my website.
I recently got accepted to an awesome affiliate program, but they required that I remove the caricature picture of boobs that was on one of my posts. It was clip art, not REAL boobs, and when did boobs become provocative or ‘dirty?’ Truth is any pervert looking for boobs would not have been satisfied with the textbook picture I had up on my site. I took the picture down,excited about the opportunity – but then realized that THAT was not what I wanted. (Eventually I will attach it back to the post!)
I have been writing for other people for over 5 years now. But this is a blog. When I write here, just like when you write on your blog – you are a blogger, sharing a thought, a good deed, a random story, a piece of yourself that should be honest and real. The blog should be you. And for all the grammar nazis out there that like to pick apart people’s blog posts – just shut up already. The rules are different in the blogosphere.
It hit me the other day, that what I really want – is people to read my blog. I love that I have facebook fans. I love twitter. I love that people have read my blog and offered me paying freelance gigs. I would adore advertisers. But above all else, I want people to READ what I write. I want to make someone laugh, feel less alone, smile for a moment, sympathize or empathize or feel an emotion from something they find here. When 1300 people read ‘my post The Whore List last week, I wanted to celebrate.
One thing is for sure. I have seen one of the most amazing communities of women (and some men) in the blogosphere. When it comes down to it, we are all writing for one another. Most of the people who read this blog, and who read your blog, are fellow bloggers participating in some sort of pay it forward/share/act of kindness people with the same dream as mine. To get people to read their blogs and to promote their own.
And so it seems, that us bloggers or writers, or whatever you want to call us – have a lot more power and pull than we really think. When you add up our communities of people, and our cumulative reach to the world – WE ARE THE INTERNET. And when we keep our blogs REAL and honest (and okay, well written) people will trust us.
So how do we make money off our blogs? I don’t know. How do we get more readers to come and have a cup of coffee with us and read our posts? I dont really know. Maybe we continue to work together, and realize that blogging is a little by little, step by step process that we build with our hearts.
If you have any suggestions, proven methods or ways – PLEASE SHARE. Not just with me, but with the whole community of bloggers.
I know it’s a fine line and that’s why I look to you to lead me in the right direction!!
I love this post – you absolutely hit it on the head. Blogging is about the challenge of balancing writing from the heart and a ‘professional’ voice (whatever that is), but the bottom line is WE ARE THE INTERNET! (SOOO true.) We (as a community of bloggers) do have a voice and power. What we do with that power is up to us, and this is where are own integrity shines through (cartoon boobs or not;-)
And if the gramar-nazis will leave my sentence fragments alone, I’d really appreciate it. Because I like them. For emphasis.
Sentence fragments? What are those? Lol!
Amen. I began writing a blog just under a year ago. It’s natural to think you could capitalize on your writing…and what easier way than by accepting advertising on your blog? None of the advertising requests I’ve received have felt right to me. My immediate community has been so supportive of my writing. So, I’ve decided to feature advertising for those businesses that mean something to me and my family. The yoga studio that keeps me sane. A local shop owned by a friend of our son’s. It probably won’t even cover our Friday night pizza bill. But it feels right.
How did I miss this post when I trolled your blog before??? Well put!
Same here. I may limit any financial success with my constant swearing, but right now that’s who I am and how I write.