Crime and Punishment: Are Big Bloggers Taking Dirty Money?
I don’t normally rant on my blog, but after seeing many big name bloggers struggle and make tweets like this I felt it was time for me to have my say. What’s all the hubbub about?
Bloggers are being all but stoned to death for taking money (or products) in exchange for sponsored blog posts. That tweet clearly states that the isn’t a paid post, but at the same time, why should they have to explain things like that? It shouldn’t make a difference whether it’s paid or not, so long as it’s honest.
Sponsored blog posts are yet another advertising/social media marketing practice being used by many companies. These aren’t little companies either; think cameras and cars for starters.
I don’t care whether we are talking about Brian Clark, Darren Rowse, Michel Fortin, or Joe Blow from down the street. When these people post entries in their blogs, they are providing a service. This service includes all kinds of thoughts and information that most readers would not have access to otherwise. The reader takes this information and can apply it to their own writing and blogs and make money with it.
Now, many bloggers sell advertising, have affiliate links, or use Adsense to monetize their service and ensure they can cover costs. I have several affiliate links on this site. I don’t hide the fact they are affiliate links. I have even provided readers with an alternative, non-affiliate link to use if they so choose. The only thing is that I only choose products that I have used and have had a positive experience with. In many instances, they have helped me get to where I am today.
Honesty and transparency is more than my values coming through in my writing. It has become a mainstream marketing trend whether we all like it or not. Consumers demand this out of every company they purchase from.
And they should!
I think, as a whole, we’ve had enough of the sleazy marketing types that could ‘sell you the wedding ring from your own finger’. I agree wholeheartedly with this trend. I feel that this is the positive effect of the recession. (Because money has become tighter in most instances, people are a lot more careful about where they’re spending their money.) I also think part of the reason for this change is social media, which is the driving mechanism behind this trend.
What irritates me the most are those who write a sponsored post, and get roasted for it. Now, I could understand if this was kept a secret, but not when they are open and honest from the start. The way I see it, the ones who get these opportunities are all big time names who have been around a long time. Their readers have generally been reading them for a long time, and should have some level of trust there to ensure the honesty of the blogger.
What bothers me is the idea that some people feel offended that the writer would take money to write a post. Hello??? How much do some readers honestly expect to get for free? The money isn’t out of their pockets. No one is forced to read the post. No one is forced to buy. What’s the issue?
I do think there is a reason for this. Michael Martine of Remarkablogger (Michael, I think this was you. If it isn’t please correct me. It sounds like Remarkablogger wisdom to me though.) hit this nail right on the head with a single statement. ‘If you don’t monetize from the start, readers are offended by it when you do decided to recoup some of your loses’ (paraphrasing here, but you get the idea).
Regardless of what anyone tells me, there is a lot of expense tied to blogging, particularly for those who blog or write professionally. The time invested in quality posts costs money. Then, there is hosting and domains. On top of that, there are the expenses associated with the design, development, and upkeep of the site not to mention those last-minute, panicked repairs. Bloggers shouldn’t have to apologize for trying to recoup some of these costs and even make some profit.
Dirty money? IMO, not a chance!
Am I being irrational here? Should bloggers refuse companies who ask for sponsored posts? Should it only be done under certain circumstances?
</rant> 
Home Office Organization – Get Your Finances Straight
Spreadsheets and Accounting Programs for Copywriters
Well, this copywriter and WAHM has managed to finish organizing the entire office. You can see pictures of the finished product at the Flickr group, Clean Up ’09 Campaign. Vicki will also cover the project at SmartWomanGuides.com, so go check it out.
I can tell you it feels fantastic to take out some of the clutter, add a little inspiration, and a lot of convenience. I also spent a large amount of time transferring all of my finances into Simply Accounting (for Canadians). In fact, I spent four, long, stressful days. Now, I’m going to help you prevent the same disaster.
Keep Track Of Finances From The Beginning
I can’t stress this enough. I have just finished attempting to fix this mistake, and I am still finding the odd expense I’ve missed. I thought I had done a great job keeping track of everything until it came right down to it.
Make An Itemized List Of Your Writing Projects
Each time you sell an article, receive advertising revenue, or complete a project, make sure to write down the name of the piece, the order and completion date, the price of the piece, and the cost in your home currency.
Keep track of them as you go, and enter them into your chosen program in daily batches to save yourself confusion later. Trust me. I did keep track of everything I’ve sold from the day I started, but I made the mistake of not transferring from USD to CAD. I’ve been dealing with exchange rates for days.
You will also want to keep them separated by method of income. The money made from selling written work should be separate from advertising revenue, and so on. Your accountant will love you for it.
Choose A Method Of Tracking Your Finances
If you only write for money on occasion, do yourself a favor and set up a group of spreadsheets. It is far more affordable, and far easier to use (Google Docs offers free spreadsheets.) If you plan on freelance writing part-time or more, consider purchasing Quicken or Quickbooks.
After talking with my accountant, I spent a whopping $499 on Simply Accounting. It has many options for serious business people including payroll. Unfortunately, you need an amateur accounting degree to figure it out. Finding help isn’t easy either unless you don’t mind paying for it.
I did manage to figure it out, I think. We’ll see how my accountant’s hair fairs in a month’s time. If you don’t need to, save yourself time and money. I felt it was important for me and for my financial expert to have a set of streamlined programs. It costs both of us less in the end.
Itemize Your Expenses
Every time you spend a penny, keep track of it. Write each fee, supply, and travel expense down complete with the receipt. I’ve also assigned each expense receipt with an item number and recorded that as well as the tracking number from the store/service to make it easier to track.
Be sure to separate your expenses by type. Maintenance costs for your home office should all be on one sheet. PayPal Fees should all be on another (Don’t faint when you add up a year’s worth of fees from these guys. I recommend a glass of wine for this one.) Your bank fees, business licensing fees, software, hardware, etc should all have their own sheet as well.
Find Write-Offs
Being your own boss does have some financial benefits you may not have thought of. In Canada, I can claim a portion of my taxes, insurance, building upkeep, utilities, Internet service, and other common expenses. I have to pay provincial sales tax on items I purchased outside the province, but I make a small enough amount that I receive all of the government sales tax back. It works out to my benefit in the end.
Anytime I travel to the city to purchase supplies, my gas and meals are write offs as well. Expenses such as computers, computer repairs, and other costs are deductible as well. This should translate into some decent savings.
Have A Budget Done Up And Analyze Pricing
The previous year is the perfect opportunity to track how much you are really making from each method. You can balance the income with the expenses to pinpoint what your goals for the upcoming year should be. If you make more money selling articles than advertising revenue, for example, you might want to spend more time pushing that than building article pools.
Storing Your Receipts And Statements
I have a separate file for each set of papers I might get throughout the year including my provincial sales tax correspondence, travel receipts, and bank statements. Each year, my personal and professional copywriting finances are set up this way. In Canada, the tax man can come after you for up to 7 years of previous claims. If he should knock at the door, I’m covered.
I may not need to have my taxes ready for another month, but I’m glad I did it now. If you follow these simple tips, you can avoid making the same mistakes. You’ll be organized and ready to go right from the start.
(image taken by Life in LDN under the Creative Commons License)
