Being a former therapist, I figured I'd talk about the elephant in the room. Yes, I've monetized my blog.
That webinar I was so eager to attend was about using the Internet to "generate income streams." I've been listening to James L. Paris of christianmoney.com guest interview on Point of View for three years now, but since I listen at work, I only hear snatches between phone calls. This was the first time he offered a free webinar session where he discussed four easy ways to make money on the web that don't involve surveys or bulk selling or whatever weird schemes people dream up in The Search for More Money (and I don't mean the Spaceballs sequel).
First two ways: Adsense by Google and Amazon Associates. Both of those are available through blogspot. I figured, why not?
I've been told it's a bit hokey to put ads on my blog. Well, I did it anyway.
Where I really want to put them is on my website, but I haven't figured out how to do that yet. Or where I will put them. Or what they would be for. My website is about my books, after all. I don't have any published yet, so what would the ads be about? I don't know. I've been kicking around the idea of selling a downloadable version of Elementals instead. Or an audio chapter of Star of Justice. I do a great Merritt.
I must also admit, I'm extremely curious about how contextual ads work. Supposedly, they search for key words in my posts and put up ads related to the topic. Should be quite interesting, considering some of my topics.
I also thought for those occasions I do enjoy or recommend a book or product, it's just as easy to have it right there to look at and buy if you want it. Some of the stuff I talk about is pretty obscure. I'm running on a 20 year time-lag, after all.
So, this is all I'll say about the ads. Ignore them as you wish. Keep in mind, I didn't create them. If they get too offensive, I'll remove them and chalk it up to experience.
One thing I'm finding annoying: since I added the Amazon links, my "new post" screen has changed and I've lost my spell check function. Let me know if you find typos. I can't see them anymore.
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Oh you greedy capitalist! ;)
ReplyDeleteMy wife has a lot of links set up throughout her websites through Amazon Associates, and while it's not a huge source of income, it does provide a nice bit of bonus money every month, especially around the holidays.
Google ads can be a bit odd and potentially offensive sometimes, it will be interesting to see how they work here. :)
I am a capitalist! I support a free market! And since your book is one I'm shilling, I appreciate your support ;).
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