Got a Blogger’s Budget? Avoid Blogger’s Debt

Critiqued by Cowboytf | March 26, 2008 .

MAIN TOPIC IS ADVERTISING

How much do you spend on advertising a year? Have you bought ads on blogs only to have poor results in the end and then find yourself in blogger’s debt? We all do it at some point or another so let’s face it head on and figure out how to avoid blogger’s debt.

A common mistake that bloggers do when looking for a place to advertise is putting their banner on a blog that they already get traffic from. This is a no-no. If you’re already seeing incoming traffic from this particular blog, then why in the world would you pay to advertise there? Was that a big ol’ DOH I just heard? Probably!

Some things to think about when looking for that perfect place to advertise on.

CREATE A BLOGGER’S BUDGET

It’s always a good idea to have a budget in any financial situation and blogging is no exception. Things to include are promotions (contests & giveaways), ebooks, courses, books, software, hosting, domains, and our main focus of this post, advertising. This can be a monthly or even yearly budget.

MAKE A LIST OF SITES IN THE SAME NICHE

Research some blogs in the same niche as you that have high subscribers and/or high traffic excluding the blogs that already send you traffic. Ideally, it would be great if you could see their stats, perhaps on their advertise page. It’s important to advertise on niches that are the same or closely relevant as yours. You are trying to attract a certain readership so if your niche is Internet Marketing, then you want to avoid your blogger friend’s travel blog.

COMPARE COSTS AND DAYS

Write down the cost for the advertising slot you are looking at so you can compare the rates for all the blogs you are considering. Put side by side to see which ones are the most cost effective for the amount of days you’ll be purchasing. Be sure to measure up stats as well if available.

STAY WITHIN YOUR BUDGET

Now that you’ve researched and compared, it’s time to choose the one(s) you want to advertise on. It’s very easy to say, “Well, that would be just $10 more dollars…I can do that.” but you must avoid temptation. Stay within your budget. If you can only afford 1 site but a great one, then just get that one for now. The more you can afford the better because you’ll be able to see which ones are worth the investment much sooner, however, remember to only spend what you can afford!!

ANALYZE THE RESULTS

I suggest you keep track of your stats from the blogs you chose regularly but if that’s too much work for you, analyze them a week before your advertising campaign is over. Figure out the CTR and see if it was worth it in the end to advertise on that blog. If you think it was, consider purchasing an additional month if it’s within your budget.

If you’re not happy with the end result, respectfully let the blogger/website owner know and move on to the next one. Keep a record of who you’ve advertised with for future reference.

FINALLY, AVOID SPONTANEOUS SPENDING

There are going to be advertising sales everywhere but try to avoid jumping the gun. Unless it’s and insane sale on a super well known blog like Andy Beard’s, then it’s important to stay within your budget limits.

You see a newly released ebook that the writer says is a must have but stop and think first. Wait a week or even two to see what others say about it or to see if the writer decides to give it away.

Final Words

It’s extremely hard to follow a budget but it’s such a necessary thing to do. Just remember to stop and think about it first and always do your research. Research and analysis are key to a successful blogging career.

DO YOU HAVE A BLOGGER’S BUDGET? OR, ARE YOU IN BLOGGING DEBT RIGHT NOW?

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4 Comments so far

Dennis Edell March 26, 2008 7:36 pm

This one is a keeper for sure. I feel as if you wrote it to me! LOL

Dennis Edell’s last blog post..New Category - Marketing Contests
Cowboytf March 26, 2008 9:06 pm

Believe me, I wrote it from experience unfortunately! I think we all go through it at some point.
Jim March 27, 2008 8:22 am

I think that making a budget is definitely important. I currently DON’T have one, and I think after reading this post it is becoming something I should have. Thanks for the tips ;)

Jim’s last blog post..All About The Net Fool
Zero and Up March 27, 2008 5:46 pm

I have to be careful about not jumping the gun - sometimes something can be so tempting to buy. Then, after thinking about it for a while, I realize that I don’t need to buy it after all… I haven’t actually come up with a specific budget yet. That’s probably something I should do!

Zero and Up’s last blog post..I’m Alpha Testing SocialSpark