I’ve considered on many occasions trying to find a Blog network that would allow me to post for them. On every one of those occasions, I have researched the network and decided that it just wasn’t for me. In many cases there is a minimum amount of posts per week, and sometimes per day, that you must keep. I don’t like that. Sure it makes it easy for the owners of the network to keep the content rolling, but I frequently (less frequently lately) go a couple of days without a post then “catch up” with a day like today where I will be posting this post and one that was posted earlier.
Obviously, I understand the merits of writing for a Blog network. Cumulative advertising means that a small blog with less traffic still can get the bigger name advertisers. This adds up to better revenue for the blogger. And biggest of all is the linkage. Take your average network. It has say 10 member blogs. Some have more. Some less. That’s an automatic 9 links to your blog. 10 if your network has a home site. And many do.
As Darren at Problogger.net, who is coincedentally a co-owner in b5media, pointed out today, many of these benefits can be reached without joining a network. [Read “An Argument against Blog Networks“]
… while there are definite benefits of networks that many of these benefits can actually be gained by keeping the blogs as non-networked blogs if the blogger is clever.
For example – one of the benefits of a network is that the blogs interlink and as a result build their SEO. This is a benefit that any blogger who owns more than one blog can gain from without a formal network. Another benefit of a network is the cross promotion that can take place in sending visitors from one blog to another – once again this is possible between two or more blogs that you own without spending many many hours creating a network. A further benefit of networks is that you can sell advertising as packages across sites – once again you don’t need a network to do this.
Of course, as he puts it, there are still some benefits from a network.
all I’m saying is that for some people considering the network option it might be a better use of your time and energy to put the effort into individual blogs rather than attempting to brand them as a network.
And I couldn’t agree more. I made the decision over and over in the last 6 months that a network just wasn’t for me. Maybe if I can get the money scraped together over the next few months, I will begin adding to my personal network. I do have plans for at least one more blog, but at the moment, I just can’t justify spending the money.
I also benefit from the added links from friends, Jake , Brady and Tom. Making an informal network of our blogs through blogrolls and post links has helped us all, if only a little bit for some.
So, while some may find what they are looking for in a Blog network, some may find that they have the friends and resources already available. And that’s what this thing is all about isn’t it. Making friends and contacts. Networking. And most importantly, being heard. Even if it sometimes seems like your blogging to an empty audience.
Technorati Tags: Blog, Problogger, Network, b5media
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