Will Excess Blogvertising Kill Blogs?
Will Excess Blogvertising Kill Blogs?
Do blog “sponsors” pay so little that bloggers have to clutter up their pages with a gazillion ads?
The way blogs work, the homepage is usually a long page. It usually takes a little while to load, because of the multiple blog posts it.
When you then stick on TEN ads (shoemoney) or TWELVE (Yaro, I’m looking at you!), you make the load time even longer.
Perhaps the average blog visitor doesn’t mind.
But I remember when we had to crush GIF’s (image files) before putting them on our websites because they added to the page load time.
I also remember when Infoseek, Alta Vista and others switched from search engines to “portals” and cluttered up their pages with extra junk. Where are they now? Oh yes, killed off by Google and their super-streamlined homepage.
Is it just a case of blogging not being very profitable, and sticking a dozen ads on your blog’s homepage is a case of “getting $50 per month from each advertiser sure adds up if I can put on 3, 6 or 12 ads!”
Have you noticed an increase in advertising at blogs? Does it annoy you? Do you think bloggers are killing the golden goose by cluttering up their blogs? Don’t bloggers know about relationship marketing through the strength of their writing works better than traditional “in your face” ads sponsorships?
Will excess blogvertising stop you going back to a blog you like, or are you willing to put up with it because of the strength of the blogger’s posts?
November 27th, 2008 at 10:12 am
Hey Neil,
Interesting topic.
I think a lot of the tech savy folks who are bothered by excessive advertising are using AdBlock or some variant. Personally, I use ABP but have quite a lot of exceptions – some site-based – generally the sites I revisit often that have explicitly asked visitors to turn it off – and some advertiser based: I usually view AdSense, mostly out of interest.
As for the non-techies, I think either they’ll be pushed toward finding an adblock type solution (if they know about it) or quit visiting unless the content is REALLY compelling.
You might be interested in this (part 3 of a series, but the most relevant):
http://adblockplus.org/blog/ethics-of-blocking-ads-part-3
Cheers,
Alastair.
November 27th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
Eye tracking studies show us that most web users are actually now immune to advertising – they simply don’t see it…! In order for bloggers to make money from their blog, they have to cram the page with ads in order to get a handful of clicks to make some cash. In spite of what people say, studies show us that few bloggers make serious money from advertising alone. In other words, the blog adverts are largely a waste of time for the blogger and their readers.
Techies may well use blocking software, but most Internet users are not technically minded. Instead, they just ignore the adverts.
Importantly, though, it’s patience that is the real killer. If your web page takes more than a few seconds to load – people give up before the page has loaded. So your point about streamlined pages with low numbers of graphics is well made.
I make good money from my blog – without a single advert. How? Because people buy my expertise as a consultant and my blog “shows off” my specialist knowledge, ideas and so on. That’s how to make money from blogging – not from advertising.
November 27th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
My thoughts exactly, Graham.
Neil.
November 27th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
Neil,
You hit the ‘Nail on the Head’ with one of my pet peeves, ‘Brain Dead Advertizing’.
Mind you, I’m a capitalist through and through. I have no problem with advertising that solves a problem that I have.
But not the mindless visual noise that you see on many blogs and websites screaming ‘look at me!, look at me!’
Mark Widawer, made a great blog post along these lines with an offline example of advertising that misses the mark titled, “Bad Advertising – Zappos”.
http://www.trafficandconversion.com/bad-advertising-zappos/#more-279
Here are the takeaways:
“Know your Customer”
Get into the head of the customer.
What are their worries, concerns, hope or dreams in this moment?
What is their mindset likely to be in this moment?
Talk to the customer’s worries, concerns, hope or dreams in this moment.
Do not talk about YOU the advertiser (you are unimportant) your Customer’s problem is all that matters.
Solve their problem quickly and easily.
So, back to Neil and his blog and what he has to offer.
I am an Internet newbie. When I am looking for Internet Marketing advice I tend to be very skeptical of any claims and pay attention to the information and how that is communicated.
Essentially, I am asking my self, “Can I trust this Guy (or Gal)?â€
Although I don’t know Neil well, he scores high trust points with me for the following reasons:
1. He gave away a helpful tool for free (RealLinkFinder)
2. He provides regular and thoughtful communication via blog posts and emails.
3. When he makes offers they seem relevant and have value.
Just my 2 cents.
Joel Smith
Ajijic, Mexico
http://www.CasaPreciosaAjijic.com
November 27th, 2008 at 5:22 pm
Hi Neil,
Yes, some blogs do overcook ridiculously don’t they?!
If the content’s worth reading, its worth reading despite the ads. If its not, it won’t matter how clean the layout is – IMHO
How about “paid posts” though? These worry me more – I like to understand a blogger’s motivation for writing something, and paid posts muddy those waters..
Best wishes,
Alex
November 29th, 2008 at 7:09 am
Neil,
I think you’re right on the money (no pun intended, I swear!) with this one. And I agree with the comments as well. 99% people are ignoring or blocking all those annoying ads so all bloggers are really accomplishing is annoying visitors with really long load times.
That being said, on the other end of the spectrum there are people making money with Adsense-targeted blogs. In just a few hours’ time you can have one of those blogs online and making some good money if you know how to get it done.
But when it comes to a blog like mine or yours or any other blog that’s major aim is to provide fresh, interesting and educational content, I think ad overkill is a lose-lose for everyone involved.
By the way, I’m having a lot of fun with the Real Link Finder. Very useful tool!
Sara
November 29th, 2008 at 8:28 pm
Thx for the article….i think people are immune to a degree but this is why new and interesting developments kepp the web interesting.
Nothing seems to surprise me anymore!
Grant
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http://www.moneysavingcashback.co.uk
December 7th, 2008 at 3:26 am
yes, its kinda annoying when suddenly pop ups will be in front of you while you were seriously reading posts, another is when it takes time to load… its like driving away visitors..
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Appartement Leutasch