There are some points that have been brought to my attention since I wrote my last post entitled “Blog For Yourself Not a Network” and while people agree that the title is good, the content left a sour taste in the mouth of many people.
I have to admit that I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, so it wasn’t the most objective look at writing for a blog network, but it does bring up some important things you have to think about.
Continuing on that same thought pattern, I wanted to come back and give some of the positives of blogging for a network, and also clarify my original position some more.
The blog network I work for has given me so very much including various odds and ends, not to mention full time income for two years and growing. Could I have done it on my own? Maybe, but it would have taken me a very long time, even with my current knowledge in regards to monetization, link building and content writing.
I have also made contacts I otherwise would not have made. At one of the first conferences I went to, when I mentioned who I was, the person responded “oh, you are the guy that writes on the sites for that guy that bought them from Scrivs”. At the last conference I went to, I was called by name by a few people and I don’t think I could have gotten to that point without the platforms that Bloggy Network created for me.
This situation is not the standard though. Jacob and thus Bloggy Network gave me access to Blogging Pro, a site that was one of the first and biggest to report on WordPress and some of the general blogosphere. They also gave me access to CSS Vault, Forever Geek, and some other amazing blogs, both already established and brand new. Most networks won’t give a new blogger access to high profile established brands, and for that I am forever grateful.
If you have a chance to blog on a high profile site, either as a guest blogger or come on as part of staff. There are very few situations where that wouldn’t be good for your career.
Blog Networks like b5media, Gawker and the like can create contacts with advertising companies that can bring in massive amounts of advertising revenue, and thus actually pay their bloggers a more than fair wage right from the start, meaning you can concentrate on writing without worrying as much about making ends meet, and that is an amazing feeling.
A friend of mine, Ahmed Bilal, recently said to me, “unless your network’s goals aren’t aligned with yours, don’t blog for them. It’s that simple.”
When he said that, my brain opened up, and it was so simple and true. With all the different blogger payment models, niches, and whatnot, it comes down to being as simple as making sure your goals align with the place you work at. I believe that is true with any and all jobs, not just blogging professionally.
He also added, “on the other hand, if you have to sell your soul to make ends meet…then sell it.”
I am sure we have all been there at one point or another, and if you are thinking about joining a blog network where you goals might not line up, weigh the positives and negatives, and never forget that the people you will meet, the work that you get to do, and being able to pay the bills will really make the job enjoyable, network or no network. Blog because you enjoy it. Blog because it makes you happy. Blog for yourself, even if you are employed by a network.
Originally posted on September 18, 2007 @ 5:40 pm