Can Blogging For Money Weather The Recession?

If you watch the news, you’d think the sky was falling. Big investment banks are filing for bankruptcy and, worse, the federal government is stepping in for takeover. This is not good news. Instability in the economy mixed with a knee-jerk reaction to bigger government and you have a very bad mix. This country has made this mistake before I can only hope it doesn’t repeat.

These issues do affect our world on the Internet. Seesmic is having to lay off some of their employees. It is suspected that Ebay could lay off around 10% of their workforce. But, it is also affecting bloggers. Network bloggers for Gawker, B5 Media, Federated Media and others are also feeling the pressure.

The big question is how advertising revenue will be impacted. The big blog networks are like any other media entity - they depend on volume of traffic and their ability to serve high-paying advertising to that traffic. On the expense side of things, they have to pay their writers. Blog readership has really skyrocketed in the last year, but the economy has tightened at the same time and that means cuts in expenses. A story over at Blog Herald reports that B5 Media is feeling the pinch and is currently re-evaluating how it pays bloggers. They talked to CEO Jeremy Wright about it:

One major challenge is paying bloggers fairly while keeping operating costs as low as possible. “Our biggest priority is to take care of our bloggers, but we also have to be a business and sometimes those two things collide,” says Wright.

It is really a shame that companies usually knee-jerk react into cutting advertising in tough times. In my view, they should do the exact opposite. When stats are on the decline, you should advertise MORE. That is what will bring in business. But, as long as companies react by cutting advertising, it is inevitable that network bloggers are going to feel a pinch sooner or later.

For bloggers who write for a company, the worry would be job security. And in my view, there isn’t much a network blogger can do about the situation other than really produce and do all they can to add value to the company they work for. Some bloggers might lose jobs, however others are likely to do quite well because the company simply can’t live without them.

What About Independent Bloggers?

I am a professional blogger, but I own my own company. I don’t blog for a network. So, for me, its all about keeping on top of things and being nimble. I don’t have to answer to anybody and that means I am free to make any adjustments that are needed.

The big worry, even for independent bloggers, would be cuts in advertising. But, my suggestion is to do all you can to create income streams for your blog which are not advertising based. The need for information isn’t going anywhere. People will still buy things. And the beauty of the Internet is that you have access to a global marketplace. There are plenty of opportunities to make money with a blog outside of advertising.

Blogs Are Well Positioned

This business is bound to feel the pinch of an economic downturn, however I think that this business is perhaps better positioned than most others to weather it out and even do very well.

Our overhead is pretty low. Speaking for myself, I have web hosting, internet access and one employee and that makes up the bulk of my business expenses. I have no outside office space to pay for. My utility bills are the same as my house because I work from my home. So, compared to many other businesses, expenses are low.

On the income side of things, the need for the Internet isn’t going to subside in a down economy. In fact, it would probably increase. If people aren’t traveling as much, or are looking for deals, or are looking to learn and discover their next opportunity - they are going to turn to the Internet. And if you provide value to that demand, you’re going to win.

As one last note, this job can also be performed pretty much anywhere. If you needed to move for some reason, you can still work. All you need is a computer and an Internet connection.

So, yes, I actually think this business is ideal for weathering an economic storm. It might not be easy, but done correctly it would work out pretty well.

Be Nimble, Be Quick

Things can change. The younger generation often thinks things will always be just as they are right now. The older generation mostly knows that is wrong because they’ve seen the good times and the bad.

I’m only 30 years old and the United States has enjoyed a prolonged period of prosperity for pretty much my entire life. But, I’m up on my history. Things have been much worse and, yes, it can all happen again. In fact, the one thing certain in life is change.

The key, as I see it, is to remain constantly plugged in with what’s happening and be able to react quickly. I intend to keep my business lean and mean. I intend to be flexible. My business will evolve as needed. And what’s more, I intend for my business to grow. If that means I change the way I do things or that I need to shift focus, then so be it.

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