Written on April 5th, 2005 at 03:04 pm by David Shawver

Scrivs on enternetusers

enternetusers Site News 6 comments

Scrivs writes this:

‘If I worked as much as Darren (damn, how many times can I link to him in one week?) or some of the others then I would have much more money, but I also think I wouldn’t be as happy with my life.’

Two responses:

1. Maybe I should start a competition - the winner of the ‘I link to enternetusers Most’ competition. I could come up with a prize for the most mentions of my blog in a week. Paul could be hard to beat - he’s at 50% of his posts on his front page (thats 3 of 6 posts). However Blogging Help could actually be giving Paul a run for his money - they link to me in 4 of their last 6 posts - sometimes more than once per post. So Scrivs you might have to up your commitment to my blog a touch. Anyone else want to join in?

2. Do I really sound like I’ve got no life as much as Scrivs makes it sound here? I party too…errr…sometimes. Well I’ve been to parties…. ok ok I know people who party….. or at least I’ve been known to blog about people who party….

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 01:04 pm by David Shawver

Is Podcasting Viral?

Podcasting 5 comments

Darren Barefoot has an interesting take on Podcasting and why he’s ‘Not Smoking the Podcasting Dope‘. He raises some good points which are similar to some of the concerns I’ve written previously. He writes that podcasting has a shorter tail than blogging and that its less accessible to podcasters than blogging is to bloggers (to paraphrase just two of his main points).

I agree (with regret) with a lot of what Darren says but still hope that with time Podcasting will take off - I especially think it does have potential to be a powerful medium in some niches and that it has some fascinating applications especially internally within businesses - but overall I think it going mainstream could be a while off (if ever).

Two of the books that come to mind when I ponder the differences between Podcasting and Blogging are The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell and the Unleashing the Idea Virus by Seth Godin. Both of these books talk about how some ideas spread like viruses whereas others do not. I wonder if some of the principles in these books might add to what Darren Barefoot has written. I guess the question I am asking today is ‘Is Podcasting Virus Like?‘

One of the reasons I think blogging has spread so prolifically over the past few years is that it is so easy to spread or sneeze for a number of reasons:

- Blogging is Easy - systems like Blogger make setting up a blog a 5 minute task. If it wasn’t I wouldn’t have started my first one.
- Blogging is Free - similarly most blog systems are free (or relatively cheap) - internet access (even dial up) is all it really takes.

Ok - as I’m typing I can hear my Podcasting friends rebutting my argument - blogging wasn’t always so free and easy - in the olden days (a few years back) it was more complicated. It took time for tools to be developed to make it free and easy. Similarly Podcasting is getting easier and will get cheaper to do which should make it more virus like in time.

I agree with this arguement but there is still one principle of the above books that I’m not convinced about with Podcasting in comparison to Blogging.

- The power of the Link - blogging is so powerful because of the hyperlink. The beauty of the blog that I don’t see in the Podcast is its amazing ability to quickly and easily create conversations between bloggers around the globe with a simple link. These links and conversations ensure a complex network of relationships that make the blogging community a dynamic and addictive one to participate in.

I think this is an element in the virus like growth we’ve seen of late in blogging but it is something I’m not seeing (so far) in PodCasting. Perhaps someone will come up with the ‘audio link’ or some new technology that brings more interactivity to podcasting - in fact I’ve no doubt that some smart cookie will come up with something that takes it into a more interActive space - but until they do I remain a little skeptical about the medium.

I’ll finish by saying these are unfinished thoughts and I put them out there not to condemn Podcasters but because I’m fascinated by the medium and am interested this conversation - share your thoughts below.

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 08:04 am by David Shawver

Interview with Chris Pirillo

Pro Blogger Interviews 3 comments

Chris Pirillo is one of those names that you hear as you interact with enternetuserss around the web but for some reason he’s someone that I’d never personally bumped into online until a few weeks ago when on a whim I posted this little post asking if anyone wanted to sponsor me to go to Gnomedex which is a conference that Chris runs. Imagine the surprise the next morning when I checked my inbox to find an email from Chris himself offering to help me out by finding someone who might be able to get me there! I was pretty stunned and of course excited and shot an email straight back.

I hope you enjoy our interview with Chris Pirillo!

enternetusers - Chris – thanks for your time. Who is Chris Pirillo? Pretend we’re at a party, we’ve got beer in hand, peanuts (you get the picture) and we’re meeting for the first time – I ask the aged old ‘So what do you do’ question – How do you answer?

Chris - WHAT? OH, I THOUGHT YOU SAID YOU HAD YOUR HAND IN MY NUTS. I DON’T NORMALLY BRING MY NUTS TO PARTIES, BUT ONLY BECAUSE SALT MAKES ME THIRSTY AND I DON’T DRINK SUGARY SODA.

THERE’S NO EASY WAY TO DEBIBE… DESCRIBE MYSELF. SORRY, I GOTTA STOP DRINKING SO MUCH AT THESE PARTY INTERVIEWS. ANYWAY, I’M A CONDUIT MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE THESE DAYS, SHARING INFORMATION WITH OTHER PEOPLE. THROUGH LOCKERGNOME, WE SHARE INFO IN TEXT-FORMAT. THROUGH THE CHRIS PIRILLO SHOW, WE SHARE INFO IN AUDIO-FORMAT. THROUGH GNOMEDEX, WE SHARE INFO IN PEOPLE-FORMAT. THEN, THERE’S MY PERSONAL BLOG, WHICH IS KIND OF A HODGE-PODGE OF EVERYTHING.

enternetusers - Can you tell us a little about how you first got into developing websites? What was your first one – and how did you to the place you find yourself today with Lockergnome? Do you have other online projects that you’re working on?

Chris - ARE WE STILL AT THE PARTY? LET’S GO INTO THE SIDE ROOM WHERE IT’S JUST A LITTLE LESS NOISY, OKAY? I’M GOING HOARSE.

I started with HTML back when the BLINK tag was en vogue. It was long before commercialism had crept into the Internet, so my first page was a personal one. I had fun scanning photos of myself in the computer lab on campus (the University of Northern Iowa), and stealing animated GIFs from elsewhere on the Web. I understand HTML, but I’d just as soon not develop it anymore. There are far better designers with far better skills than I, and that’s obvious.

Now, if by saying “developing websites,” you meant actually the general creation of entities online, then I answered the question incorrectly. In which case, hand me another beer - even though I don’t drink.

Lockergnome started in 1996, with the idea that an email newsletter would be a great way of getting my thoughts from here to there in a relatively simple fashion. A verified email address was much more valuable to me than a random hit in the Web server log. Right now, Lockergnome rolls forward with many voices adding to its success. I’m currently busy fine tuning Gnomedex 5.0, wherein I hope to meet you face to face… I mean, face to face for real, not in some virtual beer-holding side party room.

enternetusers - What are you trying to achieve with Lockergnome? Every time I go there I discover some new section or feature – what is the vision behind it? Did you start it with making money in mind or were there other reasons? Where did you get the name Lockergnome from?

Chris - It’s my “day job,” so to speak. I’m constantly looking for new ways to evolve what we have to offer our readers, and searching for new contributors to keep our content as fresh as humanly possible. The vision? Nowhere near 20/20.

I didn’t start it to make money, per se. I started it because I didn’t want to work for anybody else or have to wear a tie every day. Mission accomplished.

Everyone expects there to be some grand story about how I got the nickname “Lockergnome,” but it isn’t terribly exciting. I’m short; in 1991, my high school senior writing teacher started calling me shorty names (midget, munchkin, dwarf, etc.). Of course, I fell in love with “gnome” almost immediately. A few days later, I was standing by my locker and just decided to put the two words together. No, I was never actually shoved into a locker, in case you were curious.

enternetusers - When and how did you first discovered blogging? What do you see as its potential? Why do you blog?

Chris - I started blogging before blogging was blogging, sending a personalized newsletter out to folks starting in 1996. But in 2000, I started tinkering with Blogger.com and Greymatter. Not long after MovableType sprang onto the scene, I started supporting it directly. I’m not sure if Ben and Mena Trott remember those days?

It’s potential is unseen. I blog largely because I can, not because I have to.

enternetusers - Obviously Lockergnome is a commercial site – what are the main ways that you are monetising it? Can you give us some indication of how successful its been? (feel free to be as vague or specific as you like).

Chris - AdSense, individual sponsors, and BlogAds - and yes, I’ve been successful, and I’ll leave it at that. :)

enternetusers - How do you manage the sheer size of Lockergnome?

Chris - Couldn’t do it without our contributing staff of writers, my fiancee / CEO (Ponzi), or Bob Fogarty (our editor). They make it relatively easy to manage, as I take a very laissez faire approach to things - which doesn’t always work.

enternetusers - Do you see a need for us as professional bloggers to pull together in a more formal way as some have suggested with the Professional Bloggers Association?

Chris - Certainly, it’s good to make alliances, but I’m not certain it’s a “need.” There are always exceptions to every rule, but soon enough, everyone might be eligible for such an organization - in which case, why have it?

enternetusers - You’re the guy behind Gnomedex – What’s it all about and why should readers of enternetusers go?

Chris - We’re headed into our fifth year, and there’s no other conference out there that gives you as much bang for your buck. I ask: Why call it a “technology” conference if you’re not providing reliable Wi-Fi? Why provide Wi-Fi when you don’t include a place for power in the main hall? Why try to set attendence records when the true value of a conference is in meeting other people? Why have more than one track when it only leads to frustrations in choosing which session to see? Why pay more attention to a select group of attendees when everybody should be treated like a VIP? Why find speakers who only do what they do because it’s their job? Why involve participants who haven’t done anything interesting or exciting? Why spend a thousand dollars on getting lost in the hallways? Why force your attendees to pay more for food and beverages throughout the day?

Gnomedex is truly different.

enternetusers - What are the biggest mistakes and the biggest things you’ve gotten right with your blogging?

Chris - I take risks with everything I do, and they’re not always met with open eyes; I often face criticism for making radical decisions. My biggest mistake? Not starting sooner. My biggest accomplishment? Not quitting.

enternetusers - What advice would you give a blogger just starting out who wants to make an income from blogging?

Chris - It took me ten years to get to where I’m at online. For some, it happens a lot sooner. :) Just keep that in mind as you roll forward, but for heaven’s sake - start rolling already.

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 08:04 am by David Shawver

WordPress 1.5 Review

Blogging Tools and Services 2 comments

The Blog Herald writes a good review of Word Press 1.5 for those thinking of upgrading or swapping over.

‘WP 1.5 builds on 1.2, which in itself was very good, so I’ve got no complaints. The static pages and spam handling abilities are definite positives, and the templating system is particularly useful for new bloggers or bloggers who’d rather not play with script too much. Would I recommend changing from 1.2 to 1.5, yes, but if you’re happy running 1.2 I wouldn’t rush, the new version isn’t an earth shattering change and I’ll personally only be rolling over my other blogs and those I’ve designed for a few others over the coming months, but I’ll add that I’ve got adequate spam protection on the others. If you’re running WordPress 1.2 and are having big problems with spam, make the move quickly. It won’t stop spam altogether, but the built in tools certainly go along way.’

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 05:04 am by David Shawver

Easy Bake Weblogs E-book Review

Blogging Tools and Services 0 comments

I’ve been chatting to Andy from Easy Bake Weblogs (affiliate link) for the past week or so via Skype and am really enjoying chatting with another enternetusers who knows his stuff. Andy comes at his blogging from a slightly different direction to me - he’s an experienced blogger who is making his blogging related income a little less directly than I do from blogs. Where my income is largely through advertising on the actual blogs that I run Andy has a variety of other income streams including design work, tele-seminars and an e-book.

Today I was chatting to Andy about his ebook (its information page is here) and asked what its focus of - and two seconds later he’d generously sent me a copy for my thoughts and review. I’m really glad that he did because I have really enjoyed reading it over the past hour or so.

I’ll say up front that I’ve never been a huge fan of e-books - maybe its because I had a bad experience with the first one I ever got, or maybe I’m just tight, but my opinion of them has never been great. I’ve heard too many stories of people forking over substantial amounts of money only to get a 30 page document with large typeset with information that you could find anywhere on the net for free.

So you can imagine my suspicion as I sat down in my local cafe this morning to take a look at the Easy Bake Weblogs E-book.

I’m happy to report that my suspicions were off the mark in this case. Let me share how I found it:

For starters Andy’s book is 139 pages long (including appendix) - its well laid out - it is easy to read and its original material and not copied from someone else’s site.

Easy Bake Weblogs is an E-book about blogging that is set out into five sections.

Part 1 - A Who-Log? A Web-What? - What is a Blog? This section is a good basic introduction to blogging with a history of blogging, an introduction to the anatomy of blogs, trackback, and some of the advantages of blogging. As an experienced blogger I didn’t learn anything new here but its a chapter I wish I could carry around in my back pocket to give to some of my friends who want to know what a blog is.

Part 2 - Blogs and Business - In this section Andy begins to unpack some of the useful ways that blogs can be used by businesses and individuals wanting to be a bit more entrepreneurial with their blogs. He examines some questions of whether to have a website or a blog, an email newsletter or a blog and a discussion forum or a blog? He gives some examples of businesses and business people using blogs and gives some hints at the future of blogging. Once again it was a chapter that didn’t personally stretch what I know but a chapter that I think would be useful for newbie bloggers or pre-bloggers - especially businesses wanting to get into the medium. Its definitely something I’ll have in the back of my mind next time I do a business blog consultancy.

Part 3 - Creating and Publishing your First Weblog - This is where the useful stuff happens in the book in my mind. By ‘useful’ I’m not saying its useful for everyone reading this review - but specifically for the many readers of enternetusers who are:

• trying to work out which blogging tool to use
• thinking through how to set up their first blog
• wanting to start a fresh with a new blog

Andy’s ‘gift’ is the ability to walk new bloggers through the set up process of their first blogs using the TypePad system. He first talks you through some of the different blogging tools out there with their advantages and then chooses TypePad (with good reason) as a blogging tool that is idea for his readership. This is a good tool for those he’s aiming this blog at (those wanting an ‘Easy Bake Blog’) because its so easy to use and set up yet its versatile enough to be able to individualize.

I’ve never used TypePad (I have used its big brother MovableType) but having read these sections of Andy’s E-book I’m actually tempted to start one and feel as though even I (a complete non techie type) could do it.

Part 4 - Advanced Techniques - In this section (and the last one) Andy outlines all the basics of setting up a blog, posting, uploading pictures, and using most of TypePads features including tweaking templates, profiles, using bookmarklets and remote posting.

Part 5 - Promoting Your Blog - Lastly Andy turns to ways of getting your blog out there - finding readers for it. It is another good introduction to blog promotion looking at syndication, blogrolls, stats, pinging etc. Nothing too new for me here but I’ve been exploring this stuff for over two years now and could have done with this section when I first started!

Appendices - There are some useful things hidden away back here including a bonus chapter on an introduction to RSS feeds and News Aggregators.

My Recommendation - So the big question always is - Is this E-book worth it?

As per usual I’m going to answer with an ‘it depends’ response. I’d suggest you take a look at the title of his book before you get your credit card out and ask yourself the question - ‘do I want or need an ‘easy bake weblog’?’

I know for a fact that some of the readers of this blog will and should answer this question with a resounding YES and that this E-book would be a perfect starting place for them. This is a book for people who fit into one or all of these categories:

• If you don’t have much experience with blogs or websites
• If you want to test out whether blogging is for you but you want to do it well (you can always upgrade and/or convert your blog to a different or more professional system later on once you’ve tested it)
• If you want to use a system like TypePad for your blogging (which is a professional, cheap but not free option that is pretty easy to use)
• If you want to start a new blog and have never used TypePad before and are not confident in getting it right by yourself
• If you like following simple well thought out processes and instructions

I know that this blog also has a lot of readers who are enternetuserss in their own right already. One just has to look at the last poll I ran to see that some of you are earning good money from your blogging and the current poll to see that many of you already have multiple blogs with substantial experience in the medium already. I suspect that if you’re in this boat that this is probably not a book that you’ll learn too much from. It might be helpful if you want to learn how to use TypePad or if you’re looking to see how Andy explains some of the basics to others - but its not really an ‘Advanced’ users book.

Some of you will no doubt leave a comment below that goes something like this:

‘isn’t all this information already available for free on the internet?

This is a criticism that is almost always made of e-books and it is a valid one. I’m sure a lot of what Andy has written here is available out on the web for free (some of it on this website) - but what you’re paying for here is Andy’s collation of this information into a single, logical, well thought out piece of work. Andy has filtered out a lot of the rubbish that is ‘out there’ and provides a comprehensive unit of work on a topic all in one spot. If you’d rather do the research and spend hours finding it yourself I’m sure you could do that - but if you’re after an ‘easy bake’ option save yourself some time and shell over some dollars on this ebook.

If you’re interested in it you can get more details on the different packages Andy offers here.

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 01:04 am by David Shawver

Network Blogging vs Individual Blogging

Pro Blogging News 3 comments

In comments of my previous post linking to Weblogs Inc’s $100,000, one of my readers (Allie) wrote:

‘Darren can you do some comparisons on your blogging approach as a single blogger and what Weblogs Inc is doing? My suspicion is that you’ll be earning less overall but have a lot less expenses so are probably earning more than them in a sense. Would I be right in suggesting this?’

I initially posted my answer in comments but as its rather lengthy and has already generated some interest via email I thought I’d post it here also (with a few minor modifications). Here’s what I wrote earlier:

Nice question Allie - you’re asking an age old question between two approaches of blogging - individual blogger vs network blogging. Let me say right up front that I’m cool with both approaches and strongly believe that they are both valid and can be very very profitable if you work hard and give it some time.

Whilst I’ve gone the ‘individual’ approach so far I am exploring networks with a couple of friends with the Breaking News Blog Collective which is fun. Whilst it is slowly growing its not making as much as my individual blogs are at this point however (probably because I’ve been at them longer).

Anyway - to your question which seems to have two parts:

1. You say I’m probably earning less than Weblogs Inc - I would agree with that statement although am not privy to their exact earnings. The post I refer to from Jason indicates they’ve earned $100,000 in 7 months from Adsense - this is more than my own total earnings for the last 7 months from Adsense - mine are around half of that rate - its around the $50,000 mark give or take a few hundred dollars. As Jason indicates the first few months of this period earned less than the last few as things have grown most months.

2. You guess that I probably have a lot less less expenses - Again I’ll say I have no real idea of what their expenses are except for what Jason says in his post - however I can say my own expenses are close to nothing. I have some net access costs, hosting costs (I have a great deal and its very little), a laptop and a few design costs (again I have a great deal where I do work for my designer in return for services rendered). I work from home so my overheads are tiny. In comparison to Weblogs Inc’s 9 full time staff, 70+ bloggers etc I guess my expenses are pretty small. My income is almost completely profit.

So at present I’d say your suspicions might be accurate Allie but only if we just take Adsense into account. Remember Weblogs Inc have other advertisers which contribute who knows how much income into their business. Whilst I also have other income streams I suspect theirs are considerably higher.

It is also well worth saying that the individual blogger model has some limitations which largely revolve around time. 1 person blogging hard can only fit so much into each day - two can do double, three triple. There is a ceiling to the hours I can put in and the amount of blogs I can keep running - Weblogs Inc can do so many more if they keep adding bloggers. In time they should earn a lot more than i do unless I add authors too.

So which is better - network blogging better or individual blogging? - I guess it comes down to an individual’s preference and thinking about who you are in the equation, what skills you have and what you want to achieve from your blogging. Each method has its distinct advantages and disadvantages.

Individual Blogger - obviously the advantages for the individual blogger are that they:

- have complete control over direction, design, creative decisions, editing etc
- have less administrative expenses (not sending out cheques each month, managing authors, recruiting new authors etc)
- have less overheads (I’m guessing here but my overheads are pretty similar to what I’d be spending to live in my home and have net access)
- have 100% of earnings

It isn’t all rosy however - individual blogging has its disadvantages which include.

- having a more limited skill set (you have to be a writer, editor, vision caster, marketer, media buyer and seller, PR expert etc)
- having a more limited resource base (I sometimes wish I had the grunt power of a large network of writers and sites to point traffic to each other)
- having more limited time (as already mentioned there is only so much time in a day - its 1.21am as i write this - feel my pain)

Network Blogging on the other hand has its own advantages - which are obviously largely the opposite of the disadvantages of the individual method above including:

- more manpower hours
- larger skill set available
- larger scale

Network Blogging’s Disadvantages include:

- sharing income
- more logistics and admin
- less control

Financially I suspect a successful network will be more successful in the long term for the owners of the network than an individual blogger doing it by themselves.

Ok - its way to late for me to be writing this - apologies for my rambling, I’m off to bed friends. I’ll let you all set me straight in comments while I catch some Zs. I’ll write a little more tomorrow on the topic if this gets any interest.

Share This

Written on April 5th, 2005 at 01:04 am by David Shawver

BlogLogic Launches TurboBlogger

Pro Blogging News 2 comments

BlogLogic announce that they’ve just hired the world’s newest ‘Pro Blogger’ - Kevin Humphrey to be the chief blogger on TurboBlogger a blog about blogging with ‘Blogging news and Reviews’.

The press release announcing the news reads:

‘“Kevin will be paid two thirds of advertising revenue generated at Turboblogger.com” says Paul, who also candidly states in the ad “Hey, maybe you’ll be able to afford extra toppings on that pizza!”

The following is a snippit taken directly from an email communication between Kevin Humphrey and Bloglogic.net’s Paul Short.

Kevin Says: “In terms of pay, I have no issues there. As a ‘beginner’ pro blogger, I’m more comfortable with a performance-based arrangement for now anyways. To be honest, I’m interested in this opportunity as a means of getting my name out there more quickly as well as gleaning some knowledge off of you along the way.”

As with any fairly new weblog, advertising revenue does not roll in right away. The blog’s voice, style, reputation and readership grows over a period of time until respectable profits are earned. “I think only farmers and bloggers have the vision to see that you have to sew before you can reap,” Says Paul, “and Kevin clearly has that vision.”’

Read more at BlogLogic

Share This

Written on April 4th, 2005 at 11:04 am by David Shawver

How Much Do I Earn from Blogging?

enternetusers Site News 156 comments

This is a question that I get asked more than any other. I was brought up not to really talk about money and what you earn so I’m always hesitant to do so - but due to the large interest in the subject I’ve from time to time given some indication (it can be vague) of what kind of money blogging brings me.

Keep in mind that I have numerous blogs and these figures are not just for enternetusers (in fact this blog is one of my smaller earners). I also use a variety of income streams including AdSense, Chitika, Text Link Ads and Amazon Associates (to name just four of the main ones).

update: here are my top earning income streams from my blogging..

Here are a few of the more recent posts I’ve done on the topic:

- Earning a Six Figure Income from Blogging
- Look what Blogging Bought Me - the house that Google Bought
- Network Blogging vs Individual Blogging
- I’m a Six Figure Blogger
- Chitika eMiniMalls - How much do they Earn? - the day eMiniMalls became my number 1 earner!

I should clarify (as its a misconception that I often come across) that my earnings do NOT just come from this blog - rather I have 20 or so that I work on plus am now involved in various others through b5media which I am a co-director in.

I also earn my income via a number of courses including the Adsense program and especially Chitika’s MiniMalls.

I also always like to emphasise that blogging is NOT a get rich quick thing. To balance the links above (and before you run out and quit your job to become a Pro Blogger) I also STRONGLY recommend you take a look at some of the links and information that I mention in my enternetusers Public Announcement Post.

Share This

Written on April 4th, 2005 at 07:04 am by David Shawver

Weblogs Inc Hit $100,000 from Adsense

Adsense 11 comments

Jason Calacanis has just revealed that Weblogs Inc has just passed the $100,000 earnings mark from Adsense which is pretty good for the 7 months they’ve been using it. The post is not explicit and doesn’t contain heaps of details but its got enough in it to give readers a pretty good indication of a few interesting points about Weblogs Inc. Let me play around with his figures for a few minutes:

- They’ve earned $100,000 in around 7 months from Adsense which averages out at about $14,285 per month (although Jason says their last few months have been increasing so are probably above this whilst their first few would have been less - maybe my exponential blogging theory does have some credence)

- Jason reminds us that this sounds like good money but to keep in mind that they have 75 blogs. So on average they earn $190 per month per blog. Again keep in mind that some of their blogs are much much bigger than others so we can assume that some earn many times this amount whilst others much less).

- Jason also reminds us that they have over 70 bloggers to pay each month who each earn between $200 and ‘over $1000′ per month. So lets take the base rate of $200 for all 70 bloggers - their monthly outgoing would be $14,000. Add to that those who earn more and you see that their Adsense earnings might not be covering their author/editor expenses.

- Also keep in mind that the $100,000 figure is just for Adsense which is only one of Weblogs Inc’s income streams. As I’ve mentioned before Adsense doesn’t occupy the only prime ad space on their sites so we can assume they do earn a reasonable amount from other advertising streams which would go towards their other expenses and hopefully some profits.

All in all I continue to be impressed with Weblogs Inc - for a reasonably new network (its only a year old from memory) they have definitely had some real success if these number are anything to go by. So many companies in start up mode take years to post any profits at all but the team at Weblogs Inc are really kicking some goals and should be an inspiration to enternetuserss everywhere.

enternetusers readers will be happy to know that Jason agreed a while back to do an interview with us and we hope to feature him in the upcoming weeks when he gets a chance to get to our questions (hint hint Jason) - but at the moment he may just have his hands full counting all that cash!

Share This

Written on April 4th, 2005 at 05:04 am by David Shawver

Inviting Content for Links

Pro Blogging News 4 comments

Is anyone interested in writing articles for some of my blogs in return for links back to their own blogs?

I can’t pay anyone for posts at this point but if you’ve got time on your hands and would like to submit articles to me on any topics that related to the following blogs I’d be more than happy to give you a by-line and link back to which ever blog or site that you specify.

I’ve had a number of readers doing this for me recently and one today reported that he’s had a little bit of traffic come back to him and that he’s noticed the extra backlinks being indexed by Google from my blogs (most of which have a page rank of between 5 and 7).

Posts would need to be of reasonably length (300 words minimum), of a good quality (my call), relevant to the blog (email me if you want to pitch an idea before you start writing) and original material (not posted elsewhere).

If it works out well and you’d like to become a regular contributer to the blog/s you choose to write for we can come to some arrangement for extra links on the sidebar of the blog in addition to your by-lines.

Down the track I’d like to move to a revenue sharing model - more on this in the coming months.

The blogs I’m interested in having submissions for are:

- Digital Photography Blog - Looking for digital camera reviews and digital photography tips.

- Search Engine Optimization Tips - SEO news and tips.

- Camera Phone Zone - Camera Phone News, Reviews and Tips

- Personal Finance - Especially looking for Personal Finance Tips

- Paris Hilton Watch - News and Opinion Pieces on Paris

- Content Management Watch - CMS news and Tips

- Credit Cards - Especially looking for Credit Cards Tips

- Instant Messaging - News, Tips and Reviews on anything IM related

- Laptop News - Laptop Reviews

- PDA Breaking News- PDA Reviews

Of course I write other blogs but there is a start if anyone is interested in contributing.

Share This