Comments on: Free Versus Paid? When Do You Charge?

By: Kenny

Kenny — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 22:58:23 +0000

“On this very blog, I try to provide a lot of value for free. I just like helping people. However, at the same time, I realize that every blog post I put out there is another potential attention magnet.”

Can you put it better?

That’s the main and only real argument of blogging. And especially if you are trying to make money out of it in the end.

Thanks for your Blog, David! I’ll be back.

P.S. Particularly I liked your personal touch.

By: Tara Jacobsen

Tara Jacobsen — Thu, 28 May 2009 02:57:43 +0000

I heard a while ago that you should give away your best stuff for free and then provide 100 times more than you promise. A tall order and really counter-intuitive sometimes but I have tried it lately and it has seemed to work!

By: Marketing Actuary

Marketing Actuary — Wed, 27 May 2009 03:12:55 +0000

Your post makes excellent points.

Your blog also establishes your expertise. Dr Thomas Stanley (The Millionaire Mind guy) says that talkers are hawkers and writers are experts.

“why do concerts still sell out even though you can hear most of the good songs on the radio for free?” That’s intriguing. Free can indeed lead to revenue indirectly.

Blogging hones your communication skills. Getting better pays off over time.

By: Tarron gets site targeted traffic

Tarron gets site targeted traffic — Tue, 26 May 2009 19:51:44 +0000

“Think of your blog as a lead generator. Then, you funnel those leads into your list and your offers. Now, to get people to take an interest in you, you’ve got to prove real value on your blog.”

Right on Point…. nothing more to be said!

By: Matty Byloos

Matty Byloos — Tue, 26 May 2009 17:59:23 +0000

Amen, David. Practice effective blogging and write for people — a very serious point indeed. Too many people put too much focus into writing for robots, and forget that they have to provide valuable content, not just well-packaged content.

By: Eric

Eric — Fri, 22 May 2009 13:05:19 +0000

So how are people suppose to make money if there is not traffic?

I understand quality content, and you can be targeting a keyword with any post, but not trying to rank in the se is just plain stupid. So what about your 80 other sites, huh? i’m sure those are your passionate blogs too? yeah prob not.

By: David

David — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:29:17 +0000

Eric,
I do talk SEO on this site – sometimes. I just don’t over-do it because, quite frankly, I think some bloggers make too big a deal out of it. My position is that if you apply even basic SEO skills to your blog, write good stuff for actual PEOPLE and not search engines, post often enough, you WILL rank in the search engines just fine. Just practice effective blogging and let search take care of itself.

By: Kay Rennie

Kay Rennie — Fri, 22 May 2009 10:38:19 +0000

You make a very good point. I have developed a lot of content around my special subject and I’ve been wrestling with what to do with it. Should it be an ebook, a course, a subscription site, or should I just give it away for free? I now see I can probably do all of those things in stages.

By: Eric

Eric — Thu, 21 May 2009 23:13:38 +0000

David,

Why don’t you talk more seo on this site? About your first point, Isn’t the search engines the place where people go first to find things?

By: Muzi Mohale

Muzi Mohale — Thu, 21 May 2009 21:51:34 +0000

This is exactly what I’ve always asked myself, the guys creating premium wordpress themes, some of them offer quality themes free of charge…which at times are even better than their competitors premium theme.

My question is how then do they know I’ll return and purchase a premium them when I can simple download the free theme?