The Everyday Blogger

Sometimes Life Is Like One Big Blog Post

After three years of blogging, I kinda see life as one big bag of content that unfolds on blogs. I know. It's a bit nutzoid perhaps but whatev, a hint of crazy is good for traffic.

I'm constantly finding myself saying, "Oh that would be a great blog post, or this would make my next post funny." I carry my Nikon and Flip in my purse wherever I go because I always see something that would be blog worthy. And indeed, I do have the blog lady big purse.

I enjoy reading blogs mainly because it's a peek into someone's soul and heart. I feel honored to be a part of that intimacy and rawness that a blogger will share on his/her blog. I love to experience the expression of the blogger which is why I tend to gravitate more towards the lifestyle blogs because it's like making an impromptu visit on friends and strangers, and seeing what they're up to.

Blogging for a living sure beats a day at a regular office which here in Silicon Valley means being a cubicle gofer. What's way cool is that as a lifestyle blogger it is "my job" to see what people are doing in their day-to-day lives. It's cool to say that I "have to" spend time hanging out and socializing on Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and other social sites. Sometimes I feel like a sociologist or anthropologist. I'm telling you, 1000 years from now when the historians are trying to figure out how we lived, they'll be reading lifestyle blogs. Blogs are like the modern day Egyptian hieroglyphics.

Now on the flip side, I can find myself in periods of spending too much time online and not enough in the physical world. I have to be conscious about making dates to go out with my friends and family, and to make an effort to make new friends...in my physical locale.

Oh, I have made friends all over the world through blogging and socializing, but I can't ring up and say, "Hey meet me at the Starbucks in 5, or I'm making pot roast, come on over for dinner." When you're a blogger you could literally spend a week in your cave, and never leave, and even that would make for an interesting blog post. See, there I go.

Have you been blogging so long that almost everything reminds you of potential content for a blog post, or am I the only one :)

Quote on Discovery

 

How I Got My First TV Spot on CNBC and What I Think of The Advice Their Experts Gave Me

Over at Back in Skinny Jeans, I shared the back story of my "success story" and that I landed my first TV spot. Woo-hoo! Yes, I was a featured success story on CNBC's "On the Money Show" with Carmen Wong Ulrich about becoming one of the top healthy living bloggers in the world.

Indeed, for a blogger, getting TV love is a huge deal mainly because it helps to punt you into a new level and it is fabulous for building your brand and influence on and off line. I find it really wonderful that my first TV spot is on a show about money and finance when I'm a healthy living/lifestyle blogger. I haven't even (yet) been on a show about health, wellness, or lifestyles; my niche. But that's cool. Not complaining. I'm very grateful!

So how did I land this CNBC gig?

What Do Those Weird :-D Text \&&&/ Symbols Mean?

How many times have you seen on your cell phone, Blackberry, or around the interwebs on forums, blogs, and Twitters these weirdo text emoticons (as they're officially called). You wanna be hip and be in the know, and yet you scratch your head and think "WTF! Might as well be Swahili." This is me almost everyday even as someone who lives on the web.

Stuff like this:

\&&&/   is Princess

\%%%/   is Queen

8-)   is smiling wearing sunglasses

:-S   is "I'm confused"

I've been using :-D for laughing out loud because apparently it is a more mature version of LOL! or lol! which is okay for kiddos not adults over 30. See, so much to learn from the thumb generation.

Need translation, here's some quick links to enlighten you:

Sharpened Glossary - Simple and basic
Wikipedia - Their list includes Basic, Asian, and Complex

Net Lingo - This one has the basics plus fun things like @:-) for "I'm a smiley with wavy hair" and +<:-) "I'm the Pope"

When You Gain 300..No 2300...Twitter Followers In A Couple Days

Yesterday (Wed Jan. 14), I hadn't gotten to email much until late afternoon, and when I opened up my box, I was greeted with a frickin' truck load of emails from Twitter saying, "Hey so-and-so is now following you." I kept scrolling and scrolling and it was like a village was now following.

My Twitter following jumped by a little over 300 by the end of the day. And yeah, I jizzed in my pants.

I was thrilled and yet thought, "wtf?" Did Britney Twitter about me? Are my Law of Attraction vibes finally kicking in? Is my hummus in a tube giveaway as exciting as the Facebook Whopper freebie? Have my twice daily Twitter water reminders become so famous that word got around like wild fire because so many people made a NY's resolution to drink more water in 2009?

After about 200 emails, I was intrigued like a Scooby mystery, so I just asked my new Tweeties. Turns out, Twitter has a "Suggested Users" page and they put me on it. And by the way, Britney is on the same list.

See here it is.

I was between the New York Times and ESPN; um, a skinny jeans sandwich on mega media bread. And right after ESPN is oh one of the world's most famous bloggers Dooce. I'm one avatar up from the woman who's traffic I so want to have even more than wanting to wear the skinny jeans once again. In fact, I'd rather have her traffic than a night of wanton lust with imaginary husband Gerard Butler. Now that's saying something because well, let's just say it is.

Thank you powers to be at Twitter! This blogger is eternally grateful that you think my tweets have that much value. And there's a mini lesson for those of you who want to build up your Twitter following. Tweet about things that help others, offer value and meaning, and most of all tweet things that can brighten up someone's day :) That's my secret sauce.

And well, let's be honest, it wouldn't hurt if Britney tweeted about you too.

Update: It's now Sat. Jan. 16 at 2:30am PST, and I'm up to 3,510 Followers. That's a 2300+ increase since Wed. afternoon. Wowza! Really, thank you Tweeties!

This Is The Year I Get a Book Deal

I'm just going to make a bold outright declaration here today to the universe, and say that 2009 is the year I get a book deal. This is one of my goals for this year and is related to my 2009 NY's resolution theme to be paid what I'm worth financially and emotionally.

Being a published author has been a life long dream of mine, and I have several franken-versions of many a novel and non-fiction memoir. One day, I'd like to walk into Barnes & Noble or Borders, and see a book with my name on the shelves. Mom and Dad would be so proud too, and it's something that they could actually grasp because this "blog stuff" I do on "the online" as they call it, is still foreign to them.

This book cover here on top is just some silliness I played around with playing with the Skinny Bitch book theme. My book would be more of a personal journey versus a How-to or advice book.

What I have hot on my finger tips right now is...

Quote on Dreams

Part II of II: Understanding How Ad Networks Make Money

In Part I of Why Bloggers Need To Understand How Ad Networks Make Money, I explained how the 50/50 split that most bloggers get from big ad networks like a BlogHer or Glam is not really 50/50, and how the ad network actually makes more money than you.

In Part II, let me explain to you a little more about how the ad inventory pipeline from your ad network works, and how the actual overall CPM you are making may actually be lower than you think.

Generalizing but it can help you ask better questions

Most of the info I have provided on how ad networks make money is very broad and generalized, so to be sure, please have a detailed conversation with your ad network. As well, because the market is so volatile and things are changing almost daily, the ad networks are getting really creative and changing their own offerings. So like I said, don't assume that all the ad networks operate the same.

I'm giving you some basics so that you can have a better understanding of how the ad networks can work so you can ask better questions. Again, there are many Pros and Cons to using ad networks, and you can make better decisions if you know better what you're dealing with.

So, let's learn more about the ad pipeline...

Part I of II: Understanding Your Real Cut of the Ad Network Revenue Pie

As a blogger who wants to make a living from your blogs, it is important to understand how ad networks make money because you too are a business owner, and depending on what your financial and growth goals are, the ad network option may or may not be a viable one for you when you start to see how much (or little) revenue you generate using ad networks for an income source.

For me, I am really reconsidering using ad networks at all or becoming far more selective which I'll explain more later. There are Pros and Cons to using ad networks.

Slap n' Go

The monetization option that is most appealing to many bloggers is advertising via an ad network like a BlogHer Ads, Federated Media, or Six Apart Media.Google AdSense is an ad network too but the quality of the ads and the CPM pay outs are better on the bigger ad networks. When working with an ad network, all you as a blogger have to do is slap code onto your blog, and that's it. You don't have to cold call advertisers, deal with invoices, manage any ad management software, or hunt for new advertisers. The ad network does it all for you which is nice.

You blogger can go along on your merry way and do what you love most which is creating content and getting more traffic, and let someone else handle all the money making side of your business. You can just log in to your account and see how much money you make each day, and wait for the check to come in the mail or in direct deposit. Sounds really wonderful and it is in so many ways.

Logistically, the ad network option is great for lifestyle bloggers because many of us are creatives and we most love to just create, and we hate or really dislike the business side of our blog but we know we gotta do it. We don't mind sharing the wealth to have someone else take care of the business stuff. But, how much are you willing to pay for that convenience?

You're not really getting 50/50

So, this in a nutshell is how the ad networks make money. For this example, let's make up a scenario where Cheese Farms is the client, Ad Media is the ad network, and you are a food blogger aka the publisher.

First, Ad Media determines a CPM, a dollar amount for every 1,000 impressions you blogger deliver. Cheese Farms will pay this CPM for their Monterey Jack campaign across Ad Media's food publisher network which you are a part of.

Let's say Ad Media charges $10 CPM to Cheese Farms for this Monterey Jack campaign. How Ad Media comes up with that CPM number is a science to them and is influenced on what they think they can get across their food network. What matters is that you food blogger have no say in determining that CPM number. It is what it is. Later on, as you get bigger, you will start to care about the CPM number and I'll explain more why later in Part II. For now, Ad Media is in control of the CPM determination.

Now, the $10 CPM is a gross number, and not a net number. The revenue split you agreed to in your contract with Ad Media is typically going to be something like 50/50, but it's 50/50 of a net number, not a gross number like the $10/CPM that Cheese Farms is paying. When you log into your ad reports the CPM number you're seeing is most likely the net number, not the gross. Your ad network may or may not share the gross CPMs. You'll have to ask them.

The net number could be anywhere in a typical range from 10-30% off the gross number. So, let's say Ad Media takes 15% off the $10 gross number which they use to pay for operations things like sales people commissions, and means to run their business. So, that brings the net CPM number to now $8.50/CPM = $10 (gross) x .15 (the 15% operations cut).

So, you blogger, are getting 50/50 of $8.50 not $10. Overall, your share is $4.25/CPM and Ad Media actually gets $4.25/CPM plus the $1.50/CPM for the operations cost which comes to $5.75/CPM. The ad network gets two cuts in essence, first in the gross, and second in the net. So, you really are getting a net of a net. Follow?

$10/CPM      Cheese Farms paid (this is the gross)

- $1.50/CPM   To Ad Media for operations cost

----------------------------

$8.50            Net CPM

Split 50/50 between you blogger and Ad Media

$4.25            To you blogger

$4.25            To Ad Media

At the end of the day, Ad Media gets $5.75/CPM ($1.50 + $4.25) and you get $4.25/CPM. Which is really a 58/42 split.

But, that's not the end of the story. Tomorrow, I'll explain how your overall CPM you make with an ad network can be way smaller than you actually think.

A Blogger's Journey to Pay Day

Over at Back in Skinny Jeans, I spoke of my general personal New Year's resolution theme for 2009 which is:

Be paid what I am worth financially and emotionally

I do themes instead of specific resolutions because I think themes lend themselves to more fun and freedom. For the last 3 years, I have been working my ass, off to be frank, to make a living from blogging, and in full disclosure I will admit that as much as I have learned, grown, and benefited from being a blogger in the lifestyle categories of healthy living and food, I am still not standing on my own two feet financially.

I am indeed making money and more than many, but it's not at the level where I can stand alone living in the San Francisco Bay Area. And yes, compared to the rest of the U.S. I have a higher bar to reach because it is pricey in my neck of the woods.

Huh, but aren't you a top blogger?

I know that many of you who know Back in Skinny Jeans and Noshtopia find this financial fact a bit dumbfounding because I am considered one of the top bloggers in the healthy living niche so therefore I should be rolling in some kind of dough. And believe you me, I am equally speechless in many ways because when I started blogging, my overly confident business marketing mind thought, "How hard could this be?"

Turns out that in the lifestyle categories, it's a bit harder than if I had initially gone into a tech or business topic, or if I didn't have such high or particular standards in what I'd sell or market on my blogs, but more on that later. On the up side, though, making money in the lifestyle blogging niches is a very new thing but it is on the rise, and in so many ways, those of us in it today are pioneers who will benefit long term. Likewise, all the big lifestyle brands are moving more of their marketing efforts to the web so, those in early and doing well, will also benefit.

Getting to do my life purpose work

I'm choosing to look at these lean money years as going back to school to get a PhD in blogging and social media. I've temporarily sacrificed money making and the lifestyle I once had for longer term gain. I know with every fiber of my being that long term I will reach my financial goals. In many ways, I'm rich already.

So, I'm not giving up. I can't. You can't separate me from what I blog about, it's me fully expressing my true self and heart, it's my life purpose work. I just have to figure out the revenue generation part, and I know I'm close enough because I can smell it. In 2009, I'm also going to be way more experimental in finding revenue generation ways through blogging, and as well I'll share what "not" to do. I've come to realize that there is also good value in sharing what I've learned that does not work.

All these challenges I've faced, I consider part of growing and learning, and I'm either brave or totally nutzoid to be fully disclosing my financial situation like this, but this is why I love blogging and this is the kind of blogger I am, truly authentic, maybe to a fault sometimes, but this is my style.

Good debt

In the last 3 years, I've had jobs here and there along with contract work, but for the most part my parents are helping me out, and seriously everyday I thank them and God for their help, love, and support. But, my folks are not just giving me a hand out, they have ownership in my company, Thriving Media, so in essence, they are investors.

But like any good investor, there comes a point where they want to know when the company will start being profitable. Things have an added twist now because we are in a down economy but again, I see this as an advantage. As well, I want to be done living like a starving bootstrapping entrepreneur, so there is an extra oomph this year.

Come along for the blogging journey

So, in the spirit of my 2009 new year's theme, I'm going to tweak the perspective of The Everyday Blogger to be more of someone who is on a journey to make a living as a lifestyle blogger instead of one who is some kind of expert or guru in social media. I'm going to write more about what I'm learning, and what cool things I find along the way.

We're going to have a bit more of a reality TV show spin here minus the bitch fights and eating of multi-legged insects. I'm going to share my journey with you all in reaching my first financial goal which is to become a six figure blogger. I believe that many of you will enjoy this new perspective because one it's like hitching a ride with a friend, and two we can learn and have fun together. This is why it's called "social" media, yes?

If you have any particular topics you'd like me to cover, or have any questions about blogging in the lifestyle categories, please let me know, and I can share the answer on a post for everyone to learn as well. And again, thank you for you readership and support. I think 2009 is going to be very exciting!