This post was written by Deb
Blogging for a Living: Is it Better to Work at Burger King?
Though they’re an awesome place for networking, I rarely visit writing and blogging forums anymore simply because I don’t have that kind of time. The other day however, I noticed traffic coming to my Freelance Writing Jobs blog from the Absolute Write Water Cooler. I popped in for a visit. Someone was looking for a blogging gig paying “fast”. Now, I can write a whole post about that inquiry alone, but instead I’d rather quote one of the responses:
Start your own blog, for love.
Put on Google ads, or a paypal donation button, or blogads.com. But blog for love, not money.
Some bloggers make a living at blogging. Most … don’t.
If you need money now, get a job. Burger King is hiring.
What the heck? Does this person not realize many people earn an admirable living blogging - and even support a family? I think Jennifer and I are proof of that. Sure blog for love, but don’t be afraid to blog for money too. If I didn’t start looking into paying blogging opportunities, I might not have landed my wonderful full time community manager gig. Blogging is the future of business. More and more corporations are hiring bloggers and social networkers to help promote their businesses. To tell someone not to blog for money is lame, wrong and is from someone who is clearly misinformed. Do blog for money. You might not make a mint at first, but it can lead to bigger and better things. Trust me, I know.
Now, I know many who scoff at network base pay because it’s low to start, but I wonder if these same people would turn up their noses at four figures a month with the same base plus traffic bonuses. Plenty of network bloggers earn thousands of dollars each month. I had one client who paid me several thousand dollars a month to update a couple of blogs on a regular basis. I think that’s a little better than a fast food salary. And yes, it pays fast. More traditional forms of writing pay sporadically - on publication or acceptance, whenever that may be. Blogging pays at the end of each month. Some private clients pay once a week. So I wouldn’t put on that fast food apron just yet.
Do blog for love, but don’t turn up your nose at blogging for money. It can lead to a very good living. Just ask Jennifer, Gayla McCord, Chris Garrett, David Peralty, Liz Strauss, Lorelle VonFossen or any number of well-respected professional bloggers.
Feel free to testify below!
Comments
12 Responses to “Blogging for a Living: Is it Better to Work at Burger King?”
Leave a Reply
I am just getting started with blogging. Basically two blogs - one is for money, the other is for love. We will see how each of them does!
The best situation is when you start blogging for love and it ends up making money.
I agree with Candy Addict, that’s how it worked out for me. I started blogging because I enjoyed it and enjoyed the topics I was blogging about. It led to paid gigs and paid network blogging, (and making some cool money on a couple of my personal blogs), still writing about things I love:)
The pay is fast, and regular, but it takes time to build it up.
Deb,
I agree wholeheartedly with you. However, I think you’ll also agree that blogging is *not* a “get-rich-quick” scheme.
And the tone of the OP’s post, as both myself and the poster who made the now-famous Burger King quote read it, was definitely of someone looking for a fast pay right out of the gate, with no prior blogging experience–or even published writing clips, for that matter! (I know you had writing credits and tons of experience when you started…)
Deb, you are a huge inspiration to so many people! And you ARE testament to the fact that you can make money as a blogger! But you didn’t get there overnight, either.
BTW, this is my first visit to this blog of yours. I like it.
Will be back. LOL
@Eric - I did the blogging for love thing first - which led to blogging for money.
@Candy Addict and Linnette - I absolutely agree. That’s how I began.
@Dawn - Thank you for your kind words. The truth is, it’s the people who followed me all these year who made me a success.
I absolutely agree that blogging, for the most part, isn’t a get rich quick scheme. However, I also feel nowadays a brand new writer can get a job with network and earn some good coin.
In fact, if said blogger takes over a pre-existing, already popular blog, all she has to do is keep the momentum going.
Yes, it took me years to get to where I am today - but I don’t think it’s that way for everyone now. There weren’t too many networks when I began blogging and the ones that were around were pretty picky about who they hire. Some networks aren’t so picky and almost all networks are very willing to hire brand new writers - as long as they can write and show passion for their topic.
So…while I do absolutely agree blogging isn’t a get rich quick scheme, and I’m not rich 3 years later, I maintain a brand new writer can get a network blog and make good money from that network blog within a month. It may take time to build up a great big audience, but in the meantime, the money is flowing.
Deb,
Speaking of your community manager job, I’ve been trying to reply to the message you sent me last week and keep getting rejection messages. I tried your Blog Talk Radio, Freelance Writing and Network Blogging Tips email addresses and every message came back rejected. I’m not ignoring you, I just can’t get any messages to go through to you!
Feel free to email me again if you have any idea what might be going on. Otherwise, I suppose we could PM eachother through AW or WAHM.
Hi Susan - you should be able to reach me at deborahng@gmail.com or deborahng@blogtalkradio.com. Wonder why you couldn’t get through.
In the mean time, I’ll drop you another line.
Sweet - I’m going to Burger King. Just kidding; what would I eat at break time? Great post. I agree, you can’t make money fast, but you can make a living after you build up clients. I used to do all sorts of freelance writing, including blogs. I switched to almost all blogging gigs less than a year ago, but kept a couple random article jobs to cover the lost income for a while. All in all, it took me about a year to get to a FT income with just blogs on my resume; and I’m supporting a son almost entirely on my own, so it can be done, even for the single parents out there.
Looking back on everything, I could have made more money at Burger King for my first year of blogging, but I can’t think of a job at BK that would allow me to work from home, make as much as I do now (in my 3rd year), and really enjoy my day to day work and free time.
If you are passionate about hamburgers, work at BK. If you love to write, blog.
I wish it could be the same everywhere. For sure blogging is not for a living in Italy, just a lot of passion.
Just to play devil’s advocate, the quote is true. Most bloggers do not make a living solely by blogging. Even if you excluded blogs with no moneymaking device on their blog (i.e. ads, affiliate links, etc), the majority of bloggers are not able to make enough from their blogging to quit their day job.
Maybe that’s because the majority don’t really know what they’re doing or aren’t trying very hard to make money. But the guy’s statement and sentiment are correct. It would be foolish to pick up a network gig or throw some ads up on a blog and quit your day job. As other commenters have said, blogging is not a get rich quick scheme nor is it a surefire way to make money (i.e. it’s not a money tree). It takes talent and dedication. A lot of times, someone looking to make money fast doesn’t have either.
Hi Fern,
Thanks for weighing in. I do think a person can earn as much or more during a month of blogging for a network than getting paid $5 or $6 an hour at Burger King.
I agree blogging isn’t a get rich quick scheme - Three years later and I’m no where near the six figure blogging level of some of my peers, but when a snarky forum member suggests burger flipping over blogging, I feel the need to object.
I’m not talking about quitting a day job, though many bloggers can and do if that’s their preference, but I’d recommend a life of network blogging over a life of supersizing any day. To suggest one can’t make a living blogging is wrong. One can and many do.