Business blogging is a powerful way for a company to dialogue with its clients. If anything, it is likely that the movers and shakers among the clients are the ones most likely to take part in such dialogues. Thus a business blog is an essential part of a company’s Internet marketing program. Its effects can have a sizable effect on the bottom line.
There are many other blogs that are not so profitable. Blogging software is freely available, domains and hosting services are cheap and programs like Google AdSense can generate income without requiring any special efforts. The blogosphere is full of such blogs created solely to generate AdSense revenue. They provide little service to readers and minimal revenue to the owners.
There are shining exceptions to this, as San Francisco Chronicle Staff Writer, Sam Zuckerman, points out (tip of the hat to Techmeme). Here are some short excerpts from his article:
The economics of blogging is so strong that entrepreneurs often can self-finance, which lets them tell potential investors to take a hike. TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington said he’s walked away from venture capital deals four separate times.
“Every time we almost did a round (of financing), we grew so fast the terms didn’t make sense anymore,” he said.
The emerging business model is to start by selling advertising and build from there with events, subscriptions or product sales. And with audiences growing at double- or triple-digit rates, ad prices are soaring for top blogs.
“When we started selling advertising in this space late in 2005, it was very experimental and risky. We were able to get maybe $4 or $5” per 1,000 page views, John Battelle, owner of Federated Media Publishing, a sort of uberblog, selling advertising and carrying out business functions for a stable of 130 independent blogs said. “For the same impressions we were selling then, we are now on average $20 to $30.”
The economics of blogging is ideal with low fixed overheads and the variable cost of writers is often low. Startups do not involve massive investments with long delayed revenues. With creative ideas that appeal to the right niche market, low-cost promotional efforts can start an exponential growth in visitor traffic. All it takes is passion and persistence.
Related:
Blog Networks Bringing Home the Bacon
Blog Networks become profitable (weren’t they always?)
Hey Barry,
I totally agree with many of the points in your article. In the past year and a half, blogging for profit has become a much more viable option. I now make more off my blog than I do off advertising on my traditional website. Geez – I can almost pay my DSL bill!
I’ve been using Glyphius to increase traffic, by fine tuning my copy, making it far more findable. It’s made a big difference.
Happy holidays!