Sunday Links: To Monetize or Not to Monetize, It's a Matter of Opinion

I'm often amazed by the many different opinions about blog monetization. Some people are fanatical about the latest trends, others implement a more traditional strategy, some decide not to monetize their blogs altogether, and some are dissatisfied with the popular income-generating techniques and are on a constant search for new ways to earn their cash. These are only a few of the many views- there must be well over a hundred different opinions on this topic, and if you're new to the idea of blogging for money, it's easy to grow confused about what is the "right" or "wrong" way of doing things.

I came across four great articles today about blog monetization, and feel that anyone who has an interest in the topic should read them. While not all of these people choose to monetize their blogs, nor do they use the same techniques (those who do monetize, that is), they all write about what is true for them, and their opinions are all worthy of consideration.

Remember, all blogs are different. While some may do well with ads pasted on the page, for others, it just isn't appropriate. Just like there is no single right or wrong way to blog, there is no single right or wrong way to monetize it (or choose not to altogether). It is ultimately up to the blogger to decide what is important to him or her, and only those who have chosen the right blogging strategy, and master it, achieve their blogging goals.

5 Features of a Winning Monetization Strategy - Small Fish Big Money
"Blog monetization is a topic which has really been misunderstood, flipped upside down, mangled, torn and put back together; this of course is a simple metaphor for me to say that people don’t understand the concept of effective blog monetization."

Does Your Blog Monetization Leave Money on the Table? - Caroline Middlebrook
"If you do intend to make money online and a blog features in that strategy then I urge you carefully consider exactly how you want to do it. There’s more to blog monetization than just slapping up some AdSense ads and hoping for the best."

Blogging for Money Displaces Your Focus - Jamie Harrop
"My advice is to lose the focus on money. Don’t even contemplate monetization. Focus on the community. Focus on your passion. You’ll build your blog far faster by losing the focus on the green paper and rekindling the focus on the people."

Blog Monetization or Sponsorship, Which Sounds Better? - MarketingProfs Daily Fix
"If there's going to be bloggers trying to monetize their efforts, why not attempt to improve the process? I think if bloggers and potential sponsors both put their heads together, there's probably a way to work together so that the blogger, the sponsor, and the readers can all benefit."

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Related articles:

• 12 Reasons Why Most Bloggers Don't Make Much Money Online
• Make More Money With Multiple Income Streams
• What Every Blogger Should Know About Making Money Online
• 5 Tricks to Earning With Google AdSense

Comments

[Jamie Harrop]

Hey Raivyn,

Thank you very much for the link love. :)

I'm glad you enjoyed my post.

Jamie

[2ThePoint]

Hi Raivyn

I decided some time ago that ads like Adsense and Adbrite weren't for me on my blog. I'm not too sure what is, but I'm going down the 'selling my own products' route for now. I also like the idea of affiliate linking as I tend to (and like) writing reviews, so I might explore that too.

take care. Will read some of the links you have up there.

[2ThePoint]

Hi Raivyn

I decided some time ago that ads like Adsense and Adbrite weren't for me on my blog. I'm not too sure what is, but I'm going down the 'selling my own products' route for now. I also like the idea of affiliate linking as I tend to (and like) writing reviews, so I might explore that too.

take care. Will read some of the links you have up there.

[Fabien from SmallFishBigMoney.Com]

Thanks for the link love Raivyn, it is greatly appreciated. I certainly agree that there's not only one way to monetize a blog, but most of the time there's a more preferable way or a way that will reap greater profits.

I find the blogs that have non intrusive ads that are highly contextual do better than the ones that have intrusive ads with less contextuality. AdSense is certainly the best for the moment.

But there are more avenues for bloggers who want to monetize their blogs which are emerging every single day. Many thanks for the post, Kind Regards, Fabien.

[jimmychen]

why not let the reader benefit too? thats a great idea. in the process, everybody wins. But i think it won't happen anytime soon. Most of the blogs these days are just MFA with content.

The better thing to say is, focus on your passion and also focus on making money with it.

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