Last week I published a post about determining your blog worth. After Blogher 10 and speaking at The 2nd annual Social Media Master’s Summit I realize that this question is heavy on many people’s minds. Social Media has empowered all of us in an economic time that was making many of us feel powerless. With the communication explosion that is social media comes opportunity. Opportunity has been knocking on the door of a number of bloggers. So the big question is how do you get opportunity to come to your neighborhood? That’s exactly what we’re examining.
The first step, as I mentioned last week, is to understand who you are and what you have to offer. We do that by examining our own blogs. But since it can be hard to be objective about ourselves I encouraged you to buddy up and evaluate each other’s sites. Hopefully you have taken some time to look at your blog and other people’s as well. Was it hard? Looking within, really looking within, can be uncomfortable at first, but ultimately it’s a great lesson. The goal is to understand what you are projecting to the World and make sure that is in line with what your inner intent is. On top of that you want to make sure that your blog functionality is in place. Do you have your contact points, disclosures, pr guidelines etc… Chris Brogan has an in depth article posted this week with some great suggestions always worth reading.
Now armed with a better sense of the real estate you have to offer it’s time to talk numbers.
There are lots of ways to monetize your blog. You can be paid to publish, to tweet, to serve as an ambassador…but for the purposes of this post I want to talk about ads. Ah yes, ads. I start with those because they are the one‘s that are most closely related to print, so we can have a frame of reference with which to work with. “Reference you say Miss Lori? Why whatever are you talking about?” Well, when people ask me what they should charge for ads on their blogs I ask them what paper would they most associate their blog readership and coverage with. Are you a Pioneer Press? A Chicago Parent Magazine? A Milwaukee Journal? Or are you kicking but like the New York Times Sunday Crossword Puzzle. “But Miss Lori I am not a newspaper!” No, you are most definitely a blog. But looking at newspaper and magazine ad rates is a great way to get a sense of what brands are used to paying. It’s a unique opportunity to learn a language brands are familiar with while learning to operate in the unregulated World of social media. it gets you thinking. I recommend looking at the flat rates not the CPM’s, (cost per thousand impressions), especially if you are just developing your blog muscle. (It takes a lot of braun to back up CPM centered ad rates.)
Now that you have a head full of numbers it’s time to think more pointedly about your blog. There aren’t many articles out there that specifically look at blog ad rates, however, there is a good one from Jennifer James of Mom Bloggers Club. She details her ideas about blog ad rates quite specifically by examining three blogger archetypes. She suggests ad rates for 300 x 250 banners or widgets ranging from $15-$100 depending on a bloggers’ reach. Jennifer is very savvy. There is a great deal of useful information on her web mag beyond ad rates. Although, as she will tell you, her ad projections only scratch the surface of what is possible, but it’s a great place to start.
Before we can really identify your base rate we need to discuss what these ads should look like so you can identify “who” you should be pitching to. On YoungEntrepeneur.com there is a great article that examines the genesis of your ad world. Amongst other things they list 4 prominent factors they feel go into determining your asking rate for an ad:
- Traffic Size
- Location of the ad
- Subject of the blog
- Audience
These four points are absolutely on target. You have to know the power of your blog.
- What is your reach?
- What can an advertiser reasonably expect from moving into your blog neighborhood?
- What kind of square footage will they get for their advertising dollars?
(Yes, I am back to the real estate references. But hey, it works! We all talk about how social media is a community. A community is a part of neighborhood. And what makes up a neighborhood? Real estate!)
I also think it’s important to identify the pockets of the company you are dealing with. Business are different. I believe in never asking for something from someone that I know they can’t possibly deliver. You may, for example, have a different rate card for non-profit business versus corporations. You may have a local rate card for smaller businesses in our area. You may have a value exchange rate for ads bundled with campaigns you are posting about. It’s your real estate. You can zone it any way you like.
Now the old adage, “nobody wants you until someone else wants you” remains true, even with blog real estate. With that in mind, if you don’t yet have paying ads for your blog you should get a tenant to “ad sit” until you get a paying renter. Park an teaser ad in your ad space. Just as you would dress up your home for an open house to make potential buyers envision themselves living there, so should you do with your ad column on your blog. Let brands see what is possible.
Last but not least, remember your ads tell a story too, not just your posts. Your ads should be relevant to the content that you typically talk about. Look for ads related to products, campaigns, and brands you are passionate about. And by all means make sure that the actual ad art work is quality that raises your real estate value and doesn’t undermine it.
Stay true, stay authentic and be profitable.
These are just a few of my ideas. What’s worked for you?
SMILE On!
ML
Miss Lori can be found Musing from her Minivan at MissLori.TV , Wearetherealdeal.com , YoungChicagonista , ChicagoMomsBlog , and ChicagoMoms.com. She is the Chicago Family Entertainment Blogger for Examiner.com and a Discussion Leader for MomsLikeMeChicago. You can also see her Activating to Be Great at Miss Lori’s CAMPUS on Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
About misslori
