Seriously, I love you guys for continuing to read and comment on my blog entries, despite the fact that I do sponsored posting here and there (and sometimes, as evidenced by the 15th, in bursts). I know that a lot of people swear to and actually do boycott blogs who do sponsored posts, so I definitely appreciate your willingness to “overlook” things, so to speak.
I don’t do sponsored blogging as much as I used to, mainly because freelance writing for one client and web design and blog maintenance work for another client usually provide me with more than enough. Note the usually. There are times, like now, and especially after Christmas, when the work dies down, and there are times, like now, when birthdays and holidays are approaching, and so I kick things up a notch in anticipation of it all. This is especially true for the holidays. Dan’s paychecks cover the bills and spill over to cover a bit of food and other things, but it’s my money that covers the majority of food, “other things”, and everything above and beyond those two categories (like preschool tuitions. Oy. The first payment for both kids is due at the end of the month!). So it’s important that I keep the cash flow coming our way, even if it means “resorting” to upping the amount of sponsored content I do for a while.
I do try to keep the sponsored blogging to a minimum, and I try to write those entries in such a manner that I “shine through”, if that makes sense. Like the recent entry about chat rooms. Sponsored? Yes. But that whole first paragraph is all about me and my personal history with chat rooms. Of course, you don’t have to read that or any other sponsored blog. Feel free to scroll on by. 
That’s what I usually do on other blogs that feature sponsored content.
I also try to keep sponsored posts from invading, so to speak. You won’t find them being tweeted, you won’t find email notifications for them, and you certainly won’t find them cross-posted to LiveJournal, Vox. I try to do little things like that to keep jenn.nu as free of it as possible.
Of course, not all sponsored content is bad. A lot of what I choose to include may have some type of relevance, or it may be something of interest to others. And I always make sure to not knowingly post content that is a scam, a fraud, a lie, or just complete bullshit.
So with that said… I think I’m going to bed!
No related posts.
11 Comments
, on September 16 2009 at 8:58am:
Jenn, your blog was one of the first ones I ever started reading on a daily basis. I have been reading since 2002! and I’m not about to stop now. :-) Keep doing what you’re doing!
, on September 16 2009 at 4:16pm:
No worries about it, Jenn. I’m sure every one of us knows what posts are sponsored and take them at face value without freaking out over them. 
, on September 16 2009 at 9:06pm:
There are a lot of blogs that turned to sponsered posts that I won’t read anymore, just because sifting through the paid entries was more hassle than it was worth but I feel that you’ve handled it extremely well and the paid posts you have here don’t “interrupt” my reading experience at all.
, on September 17 2009 at 3:43pm:
Balance is zen! =) Keep up the good work with that, no one should be complaining. You seem to be keeping a happy medium between the both~
, on September 17 2009 at 4:44pm:
Half the time, I don’t even realized your sponsored blogging is sponsored blogging, lol. I like how you write so it seems to work out well. You can definitely tell when I’m doing it. I need to get into it better and I need more offers so I can make some more money.
, on September 17 2009 at 6:19pm:
Even before I did any paid blogging, it didn’t bother me. I do the odd one now (if the price is right) but it got boring after the inital thrill of catching a big one!! so I don’t check that often-maybe if I am bored or I actually remember!- you do what you gotta to pay the bills right?
don’t worry about!
, on September 18 2009 at 11:23am:
Everyone has to make a living… doesn’t bother me anymore, I do it to pay bills, you gotta do it to pay bills, whats the prob
, on September 18 2009 at 10:23pm:
I am with Nicolah! Sometimes, I do not even realize you are writing a sponsored blog until the very end and then I’m like, “wow!”
By the way, I love the new look!
, on September 19 2009 at 12:28pm:
I usually come here from a tweet or an update from your RSS feeds, so I generally don’t see the sponsored posts. I used on do sponsored posts on my blogs as well, so I know what it feels like for people to be all negative about it. However, when you can earn some extra bucks by giving your opinion or making the post tailored to you/your life and still include the anchor text for the advertiser, I don’t see the problem.
Also, if you are looking for extra money, have you written for Demand Studios? Since you are a freelancer, I’m sure you could get on with them and write when you wanted, which could further reduce the amount of sponsored posts here.
, on September 19 2009 at 10:17pm:
Jenn, I seriously think that you are one of the few people who do paid blogging professionally, successfully, and discreetly. I have always respected how you integrated your sponsored posts into your blog. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone do it better, to be honest. Whenever I see someone starting out with paid blogging, I point them here and tell them to use you as an example.
I’ve been reading your blog for years now and I would just like to throw this right back at you and say… Thanks, Jenn, for sharing your life with us, too.
<3
As the domain name suggests, my name is Jenn, and I own this blog. I'm 26 years old and married to my one true ♥, Daniel. And while I have two kids (Alyssa is five, and Ryan is three), you won't find "mommy" in my username or email address, nor does my blog revolve around them. I'm a mother, but most importantly I am me, with a passion for love, blogging, reading, and photography. I'm also a busy freelance writer, web designer & SEO goddess.
Don’t worry about it, Jenn. You’s awesome.