Indirect Profits, Business and Corporate Blogs
Business and corporate blogs are powerfully effective and make up the “other” half of the professional blogging scene. Rather than showing adsense or banner ads, business and corporate blogs generate traffic, customer loyalty, leads and PR. Business blogs use indirect methods to turn a profit.
Even if you don’t consider your blog a business, if you use your blog as a publicist and salesman then you are also what I would term a business blogger.
Directly monetized blog examples are much easier to name than business and indirect profit blogs. The steps to directly monetizing a blog are more accessible and well known. Of course, direct monetization methods are more obvious.
With indirectly monetized blogs very often you can’t see where the profit lies until you dig deeper. Many of the more successful blogs tend to monetize in the background. Just because a blog shows adsense don’t be fooled into thinking that is their only business model. Monetization does not need to be overt to be profitable!
Unlike many of the bloggers you might read, my specialism is in this type of indirectly monetized blog. As you can see, this blog does not show any advertising at all and yet I earn a living. All my income is 100% dependent on blogging. Since 2005 I left my cushy marketing agency post and have blogged full-time. Without continued blogging none of my consulting, coaching, training or writing clients would even know of me let alone hire me.
Every cheque that comes my way I credit to blogging, that’s why I can guarantee you it works!
This series will cover how you can use a blog to generate profit and opportunities. If you are an individual hoping to make better networking contacts, a small business hoping to make sales or are an employee of a larger business trying to gain a competitive advantage, this series is for you.
In the next post I will show how blogs are perfect for generating traffic, publicity, and fame.
By Chris Garrett. Posted in Blogging
Hi Chris, great post. I am looking forward to your next post to learn how it’s done
All will be revealed
Chris, I really value your posts and I’m looking
forward to your next post on today’s subject.
Thank you,
Fran
OooOOOooh. I can’t wait to learn more about how you utilize your blog to network and source for opportunities. I’m just starting to do the same myself and it’s nervewracking!
I totally see where you’re coming from Chris. In fact, I’m going to hold off putting ads on my blog for a while, just to see what develops. I find it interesting to see how others manage, and what can happen when people open themselves up to other possibilities.
Excellent post and very timely. I will use this as a reference post when I’m next in the process of explaining to a business person about making money with your blog vs making money directly from your blog.
@Fran – hope you like it
@Hsien – why nerve wracking? I find it much easier than doing it in person *shudder*
@Armen – many people are telling me their adsense income is dropping, I think indirect is where the real money is personally
@Des – Thanks, I will subscribe to your blog too
It’s nervewracking because I’m utterly clueless! I didn’t and still don’t have an idea of how much I should charge and then I read about freelancers having to hound their clients for payment. Fortunately, I’m pretty sure mine won’t try to stiff me but I’m venturing into new territory and it’s a steep learning curve.
Oh yeah, how much to charge is a tricky one. My advice is to keep putting your prices up until you don’t get any more work
It’s true though, if you win 100% of the work you go for you are not charging enough 
For making sure they pay, ask for a % up front. In my project initiation form I send out I ask for payment before I initiate any work. Doesn’t guarantee you get paid in full but at least you do get *something*.
Hsien Lee wrote: I didn’t and still don’t have an idea of how much I should charge
Who of us does know? Great advice from Chris. When I started coaching, an exec coach who used to be on my staff and is now charging corporations big bucks to coach them asked me what my rate was. When I answered he told me to double it and he expected me to increase it again within six months. I did and the people I wanted to coach had no problem. Some people baulk at paying my fees but they are not exorbitant by industry standards and I don’t want to coach people with a poverty mentality. My suggestion is to find someone in your field who is probably earning very well and knows you and ask them what would be a good rate to charge (maybe ask a few people) – my experience is that leaders like to tell you what they charge: makes them feel good
Hi Des! (and Chris
) So I accepted my first offer yesterday and was feeling quite satisfied with the rate I received until I talked to a couple of other people who said I should have charged more! Grrr.
Although I believe the what we’re paid is representative of our value, I also think there are other considerations we must take into consideration. For me, the deal is worth it because there are other non-monetary benefits that I may not have gotten if I had accepted another project. (The two companies are competitors and I would not have been able to work for both at the same time.)
The end result is, if we’re happy with a few pennies then so be it! I’m not looking to becoming a billionaire. Not yet, anyway….
Hsien, putting my wallet away and going back to work
Hsien
I’m sure you’ll always be able to find people who say you should have charged more. You were there, they weren’t. Each transaction and deal can be a learning for the next.
Thank you so much for the reassurance, Des. I was feeling pretty bummed about my cluelessness. Will revaluate in 6 months time as you suggested!
Why isn’t here a list of posts in this series? Would be great for future reference
@Hsien – as long as you and your customers are happy, that is all that counts
@Christian – watch this space