How to Make Your Blog Attractive to Advertisers and Traditional Media

Originally online journals used for recording and sharing personal perspectives, blogs have gradually become an established form of online media.

Mini-hubs of social interaction, blogs have gained an interested audience derived from a smörgåsbord of keywords, communities, interests and demographics.

They have evolved into platforms allowing traditional media and businesses to reach communities hitherto immune to their advertising efforts. Because of their strong integration with niche communities, blogs are also becoming an invaluable part of any viral marketing or promotional campaign.

The Value of Blogs as Advertising Platforms

A recent analysis of the advertising revenue earned by bloggers in 2006 examines the rising value of blogs as advertising platforms. Utilizing data from Chitika’s network of 12,000 blogs and Technorati’s ranking system, several conclusions were reached:

Ad revenue in a blog is more sensitive to the rank of the blog..One reason for this may be the social value of advertising in a blog. If online advertising is like advertising in a mall, advertising in the blogosphere is like advertising in a country club.

Apparently, the top 15% (rank-wise) blogs accounted for approximately 90% of the total revenue earned. The report goes on to suggest that the overall social popularity or size of a blog is important to advertisers.

There are several major weaknesses in the report. For example, it uses a small sample size and does not take into account the indirect income generated by a blog.

Another problem is the focus on Technorati rank instead of traffic figures, which has a higher relevance when it comes to blog advertising revenue.

While the link between the statistical data and conclusion is not strong, I agree that the ability to influence a specific target audience appeals to advertisers.

Traditional Media’s Growing Interest in Blogs

News broke today that Discovery Communications purchased TreeHugger.com, a environment and sustainable development blog, for $10 million dollars.

In the issued Press Release , Discovery gushed predictably about how the partnership is a way to fulfill their vision of ‘bringing green living to the masses‘.

And rightly so. Discovery just acquired the most popular and respected blog in the environment niche. Treehugger’s figures: 1.4 million unique monthly visitors, 13,500 posts and 35K feed subscribers.

This includes archives of video podcasts, radio shows, newsletters and a job board. An established niche blog which reaches an large audience through multiple streams of communication.

To put it another way, an influencer with a community of readers and supporters.

How to Make Your Blog a Magnet for Big Advertisers/Media

Treehugger’s purchase exemplifies traditional media’s growing interest in blogs. Large advertisers as well, have money to spare and they are looking for blogs which offer the best platform for their brand.

If you own a well established blog within a particular niche, you have a potential money maker. One way to improve your blog income is to focus on attracting both big advertisers and traditional media.

Here are some tips on how to do so:

Actively contact advertisers to look for ad buyers. Passively relying on advertisers to contact you limits your ad selling potential. At the very least, create an advertising page for your website.

Think of your blog as a business. Monitor your traffic and webpages with conversion ratios in mind. Set up auxiliary streams of income (Job board, online stores) to improve your site’s perceived income value.

Consider syndicating your content through alternative means (podcasts, newsletters etc.). Contact online and traditional magazines and offer some of your articles for free in return for credit.

Build a community around your site by actively engaging in dialog with other similar blogs in your niche. Create forums, social voting sites or allow users to generate content for your site as well.

Develop social proof indicators such as the Alexa Rank, Technorati Rank or RSS Feed subscribership. While these indicators of social proof can be flawed, they are widely accepted and acknowledged by traditional media and some parts of the general public.

Establish Authority by focusing on a specific topic in great depth. Spread your opinions by contributing articles to online magazines, blogs and newsletters. Get interviewed if possible.

Hire writers/guest bloggers so you can focus on strategic planning for your blog. Multiple writers will also help establish your blog as an online publication or community blog.

A strong community that trusts and support your blog is attractive to advertisers, particularly because they can leverage your personal reputation or blog brand.

Building advertising partnerships with traditional media and online businesses is an effective way to generate a substantial amount of regular income from your blog.

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