Relationships > Information

Back in the olden days of blogging, there were personal blogs, where the topics often varied a bit based on the interests of the author. That’s how Another Blogger started. Over time, posts here became less frequent and my energies became devoted to mostly-informational content elsewhere on sites such as Social Photo Talk or Picture Pundit. It’s hard to articulate why I’m dissatisfied with the angle of those sites but they’re note the content I want to produce going forward.

Metal on the support of a bus shelter in downtown PortlandIn the past six months or so I’ve noticed a shift in the content I’m reading. I’m spending less time reading informationally-focused sites and more time following the sites which are more personal and reflect the lives of interesting people. I’d rather hear the personal take on a particular subject than an article aimed at being as objective and neutral as possible. I’ve gotten to know these bloggers via their writing. The combination of information along with the personal aspects of their lives is interesting. Instead of reading a dense set of information on one topic I receive an individual’s take on a few different topics.

The personal relationships are more valuable than the information.

Hence a shift in my own blogging habits. This site has been rethemed to focus on the various facets of my life. I’ll continue to write about my photo business over at Hockley Photography but I expect more frequent articles here that will mix up a few topics of interest. Expect to see:

  • tech/blogging/social media
  • photography
  • Mac-based productivity (OmniFocus, TextExpander, etc)
  • perhaps even some parenting-related observations
  • community & event management

In addition to longer-form articles, I’ll be posting the occasional link roundup. I run into lots of interesting things and I’d like to share them. This site is about five years old; here’s to another five years of content that hopefully makes the internet more useful for someone.

Video & Slides: An Intro to Making Money with a Blog

The video and slides from my WordCamp Seattle presentation are now available:

Blog Monetization Resources

About the time that this post goes live, I’ll be presenting at WordCamp Seattle about how to start making some money with a blog. Here are some links and resources that will probably mentioned during the discussion.

People / Websites to Follow

Books

Affiliate Programs

Places to start if you’re looking for affiliate programs:

If you have any other questions about the topics we discussed, leave a comment below and I’ll do my best to help you out.

Some of the links above are affiliate links.

Presenting at WordCamp Seattle: Intro to Blog Monetization

I’m excited to be heading up to Seattle in April for WordCamp Seattle 2011. I’ve been selected to present “An Introduction to Making Money With a Blog”. Aimed at an audience that’s curious about how to start bringing revenue with a blog, we’ll cover the following:

  • Prerequisites – things to think about as you plan to make money. A quick overview of some considerations that will help guide your monetization strategy.
  • Revenue Sources – options for income and a look at the plusses and challenges of each one. I’ll talk about advertising, sponsorship, affiliate programs, membership sites, and product sales.
  • Lists – a quick look at email lists and how to effectively tie one into a blog revenue stream.
  • Resources – where to go, what to read, and who to follow to learn more about making money with a blog.

Tickets are on sale now for WordCamp Seattle and I’d love to have you join me for what should be a great event.

If this sounds vaguely familiar it might be because this presentation will be similar (but not identical) to a talk originally presented at the Portland WordPress User Group earlier this year. That talk was very well received so I’ll start with it as a foundation and incorporate some improvements as well.