Apologies for the intrusive advertising in the right column.
The skyscraper banner ruins my theme, but I just haven’t got around to modifying it more to fit in better or replace it with something else.
Louis Gray wrote an article a couple of weeks back igniting a debate about advertising on blogs. Much of what he said was quite true, but in other ways the point of view he was coming from is very different to many bloggers. Take his opening few sentences for example:
It’s routinely shocking to me that so many bloggers think they should try and make a profit from their Web site.
Urged on by the success of mega blog networks like TechCrunch and spurred forward by stories from ProBlogger, or corner cases like Dooce.com, Daily Kos and others, an inordinate amount of people are hoisting ads on their blogs, from Google AdSense, from AdBrite or Federated Media, in the hope of turning their daily rantings into big dollars that could possibly change their life. It’s no surprise that blogging for many has the shiny look of a “get rich quick” scheme, when actuality is far different.
Their hopes are misguided, and for most, a serious reality adjustment is needed.
He is making the assumption that bloggers who host ads are hoping in “turning their daily rantings into big dollars that could possibly change their life”. This may apply to some new bloggers, but for the most part we know that little can be expected from advertising alone. I certainly never expected big advertising dollars, but its enough to cover the costs of blog hosting.
Viewers accept advertising as a way for many things to remain free. I disagree with advertising that is too intrusive such as “in-text” advertising and banners that fold out when you mouse over, but as a whole I can shut off to them quite easily.
Most sites are not big enough, traffic-wise, to generate significant revenue. Assuming a mid-size blog gets about 1,000 unique visitors per day, and an ad delivers 1 cent per impression, you’re only talking ten dollars a day. If you’re instead getting 25 cents for a click-through, you would need 4 percent of your visitors to click on an ad to achieve that same ten bucks. And advertising click through rates are usually in the low tenths of a percent, let alone full percents, so most numbers would actually be much less than this.
Again, Louis is speaking from the point of view of a working professional. To him $10 a day is totally insignificant, but to me $10 a day is $70 a week. And $70 a week is roughly 30% of my weekly income.
I’m only a part-time worker as I’m currently at university, and adding this sort of revenue to some freelance blogging and it provides a significant source of income for me. In fact it has meant I have been able to cut down my working hours somewhat and give me more time to study.
Advertising revenue may be insignificant for many, but for others its enough.
