Written on April 7th, 2005 at 09:04 am by Darren Rowse
Blogging Fears - Getting Hacked
What is your Worst Blogging Fear?
This might make me sound a little paranoid - but occasionally I wake up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat thinking about the things that could go wrong with my little blogging business. In many ways what we do can be pretty fragile and at the whim and mercy of outside forces.
Over the next few days I’m going to write about some of my blogging fears and what I do to try and protect myself from them. I invite you to share your blogging fears and tips in comments.
Getting Hacked - what if someone took over your blog - changed the password, changed content or even worse, deleted it all. This is something I’ve thought about a lot over the past year. I know of one or two cases where its happened and been pretty devastating for the blogger’s in question. All that hard work, those many many hours of writing, editing, designing - gone in a single foul action of someone with too much time on their hands.
One of a Professional Blogger’s biggest assets is their archives. Overtime these grow and become more and more valuable to them. Each post you have is a potential doorway to your blog from a Search Engine so its worth protecting.
Advice: Its important that you host your blog with a reputable hosting service that gives you some protection against those who might want to get up to mischief on your blog. Make sure your blogs are password protected with a password that no one will guess.
Back it up - I back my blogs up onto my computer - do you? If you don’t you could be putting your whole business at jeopardy. Make a backup of your blog’s content regularly so that if the worst case scenario happens and someone does delete it (or if all is lost for some other reason) you’ll have the capability of getting things back up and running as they once were.
Most businesses I know have security for their assets, alarms, precautionary measures - even insurance - how are you protecting your blog from the malicious actions of others?
I’m interested in hearing your blogging fears and advice in comments below.
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 05:04 pm by Darren Rowse
Adbrite Ad Packages
A blogging friend just pointed me at a new strategy that the AdBrite advertising network seem to be employing - selling packages of ads that will appear on multiple sites. Some of the packages are packages of their higher performing sites in the network and others are theme related on sports, gaming, travel etc. My friend pointed me to a blogging package. They describe these packages on their blog as follows:
‘We’ve been hearing from some advertisers that you’re overwhelmed with the number of advertising opportunities on AdBrite. I hope these pre-selected, high-performing ad packages make your life easier. ‘
I think this is a good move for Adbrite - the only hesitation I have is that they don’t reveal what sites they’re putting the ads on. For instance with the blogging package they just say
‘Blogs inform, influence, and entertain the Internet’s taste-makers. Click “add to cart” and we’ll put into your cart 20 of the best-performing blogs in the AdBrite network.’
As an advertiser I think I’d want to know a little more than that and as a publisher - I want to know how to get in on such a package - looks like good money!
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 03:04 pm by Darren Rowse
Shiney’s BayRaider
Shiny Media is at it again by launching yet another blog - Bayraider - a blog that is centered around another net icon - ebay.
Their Press Release Describes Bayraider as follows:
‘People put some amazing things up on online auction sites, but sadly most of the time the sale of Charles and Diana divorce plates, fake dinosaur eggs and George W Bush in drag playing cards slip quietly by.
Not any more though because you’ll find all the freakiest stuff the online auction world has to offer along with a great deal else at Bayraider which launches today.
Bayraider is on a mission to dig out all that’s best on eBay and its rival auction sites.
Each day its readers will find
• The most bizarre stuff ever offered for sale, from haunted Nintendo games consoles through to likenesses of famous sports stars in potato chips
• The coolest collectibles from Elvis pinball machines through to life-size Dr Who Daleks
• Celebrity cast-offs from shoes once worn by the famous through to the bags they used to carry their pet dogs in
• The coolest gadgets and toys including amazing Japanese items that are not officially for sale in the US and UK
• Hot shots, incredible bargains nearing the end of their auctions
Another innovative idea from the Shiney crew - I wouldn’t mind meet and working with some of these people one day - I like their style. Not only are they seeking to monetize their blog with Adsense this time but they also will have opportunity to unashamedly jump in on ebay’s affiliate program - smart move!
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 12:04 pm by Darren Rowse
On Clicking your Own Adsense Ads
A reader emailed me this question this morning and I feel its important that I respond publicly to it because it is crucial information for anyone using Adsense to monetize their blog. It is basic information but can’t be emphasized enough. He writes:
‘I just started Adsense, and one of its rules is that you shouldn’t click on links on your own site. However, there seems to me to be at least a couple instances when it should be ok to click on ads on your own site, namely:
1) If I’m actually interested in what the ad offers. After all, I’m writing about a specific topic and they are (mostly) serving ads that relate to the topic. So it’s highly likely that the ads will be something I’m interested in.
2) If I see an ad I hate and want to get the URL so I can block the ad.
There may be more instances your readers can come up with.’
I’ll be blunt with my answer - NEVER click your own ads for ANY reason.
I know of a number of bloggers who failed to learn this lesson and whom today are banned from using Adsense. In my mind there is NO valid reason to click on your own ads.
Why? Google tracks who clicks on ads (probably through IP addresses) and they have no way of telling if you’ve clicked an ad out of genuine interest or out of greed.
I mentioned previously how Google are currently being sued by advertisers over issues of Click Fraud - this is a hot issue for Google at present and I suspect they’ll continue to be tough on anything that even looks like it could be fraudulent clicks.
So what do you do if you see an ad that interests you or that you want to get the URL of so you can block the ad? Is there a way around having to directly click the ads? I’m told by my PC using friends that the Adsense Preview Tool might be something that could explore to get around this. It is a tool for IE 6 (and higher) users that allows you to preview ads through your right click menu (once installed). I’ve never used it (as a Mac User) but know of people who use it regularly and rave about it.
As a Mac user if I want to find out an advertiser URL to ban them or to visit their site without clicking on the ad I simply right click on the ad and copy link to clip board. I then paste the link into a text editor or word and look for the actual page’s URL inside the google code (don’t paste it directly into your browser or you’ll activate Google’s tracking code as if you’ve clicked it). I then extract the URL and either view the site or add it to my filter list. Yes its a bit of a pain but its worth it.
Be very careful about clicking your own ads. Its just not worth the risk.
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 11:04 am by Darren Rowse
Help enternetusers Find a Business Model II
I’m quite overwhelmed by the response to my post asking for Help in finding a business model for enternetusers. There are 29 comments there already from some bloggers that I really admire and respect the opinion of. Thanks to those of you who have left your opinion and who have messaged or emailed your thoughts also. Feel free to continue the discussion (its a useful one to have for more than just my own situation).
Let me re-emphasize that I the issue is not about me making more money. Whilst I’m not opposed to the idea of a higher income from this blog the purpose of what I’m doing here is genuinely about helping the blogging community. The issue at hand is not about my own greed for more cash - rather it is about how I sustain what I do whilst still helping as many people as possible in relevant and effective ways.
I’m now going to spend a little time thinking through my response to the issue with your many comments in mind. I am leaning towards writing a book (the question over whether it should be an e-book or an actual physical book is a question I need to ponder - your opinions would be valued on this too) and would like to further explore the possibility of both forums (although the work involved in maintaining them worries me) and some sort of course/tele-seminar.
In the short term I’m not going to change my approach over consulting - if its basic advice (that won’t take long) you’re after and IF I have the time I’ll attempt to help out where I can - if its more comprehensive than that I’ll probably either simply explain that I’m too busy or that I need to find some way of making a little money for the time I put into it. I’m not going to force anyone to give me a link for my services - but would appreciate this if you feel this blog and the advice I give are worthy of it (It probably won’t hurt your case if you do - but its not a prerequisite).
Thanks again for your support - now lets get back to some blogging!
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 08:04 am by Darren Rowse
Google AdSense Changes
Overnight Adsense have released a few new changes to their program. I’m about to run out the door now but the basics from their Google AdSense: What’s New page are posted below. Most importantly (at a first glance) is Real Time Channel Reports - something I’ve been hoping for for a while. This will allow for much quicker tweaking and monitoring of changes! I’ll update more later.
Update - I’m back and have a little more time to look over the new features and whilst they are not major changes - they are helpful ones. The Real Time Channel Reports are great (as I’ve already mentioned) - I use channels extensively to track my results and to be able to make a change to a particular ad and track its results all on the same day will be very helpful to say the least.
The new ‘Remove Channel’ option is a long time overdue - nothing major but helpful.
The ‘“Shift-select” for channels’ option is a great move - however it doesn’t seem to work in Safari and is therefore pretty useless for Mac users.
The options to count ‘impressions’ either per page or per ad unit is a good move by Google - I’ve often been frustrated by the fact that impressions are per ad unit (which is useful to know but doesn’t give a complete picture. I’ll use both options from time to time to check my stats.
Improved channels functionality: better tools to help you optimize
By now, you’ve likely discovered the power of AdSense channels when it comes to tracking ad performance. Today, we’re introducing 3 updates to channel tracking, to make this feature even more useful:
• Channel reports in real-time: Until now, channel data was delayed 2 days before appearing in your reports. We’ve upgraded our system to provide real-time reporting, allowing you to quickly react to changes in your ad performance on a page-by-page basis.
• Remove channels: Your channels UI has been cleaned up, by introducing a ‘Remove Channel’ option that allows you to remove channels from your Active and inActive lists.
• “Shift-select” for channels: When selecting channels from the Reports page selection box, use SHIFT+click to select multiple channels at once.More information about URL and custom channels is available from the support center.
Improved reporting: ad unit impressions vs. page impressions
We’ve added new options to your reporting page, allowing you to select from page impressions or ad unit impressions when generating your performance reports. Not sure what this means? Check out the AdSense Support center for an explanation of page impressions versus ad unit impressions.In addition, your browser will now remember your prior report settings each time you select a report. If you have a favorite report that you run often, you’re going to love this feature!
AdSense for content in two new languages
We’re pleased to let you know that AdSense now supports pages with content in Russian and Hungarian, in addition to the 16 languages previously supported. Account pages and support articles are also available in all 18 languages.
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 06:04 am by Darren Rowse
More on Getting Yahoo Traffic for your Blog
A month back I wrote a tip about Getting Yahoo Traffic for your Blog that simply involves a technique where you add your blog’s RSS feed to the customizable MyYahoo headlines feature. I wrote in that post that after one day that I noticed a small increase in Yahoo referrals to my blogs.
I thought I’d give you another update on my Yahoo traffic.
It varies from blog to blog but I am pleased to report that Yahoo referrals have continued to rise since implementing this strategy.
On the majority of my blogs the rise has been reasonably small but with the most recent Yahoo index update in the past few days I’ve noticed a substantial increase in traffic to three of my blogs (blogs that until the last month rarely,if ever got any Yahoo traffic).
These blogs still rely on Google for most of their traffic but the new Yahoo visitors have increased overall blog traffic on these blogs by at least 20% (in one case traffic rose by 70%).
So if you haven’t implemented this simple technique to increase your Yahoo referrals I’d consider doing it today. No promises that the traffic will come flodding in - but it all helps.
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 05:04 am by Darren Rowse
Google Sandbox Explained
I hadn’t noticed this post over at Wayne’s on the Google Sandbox which I’m linking to here not only because I think many of you will find it valuable but because I am always getting asked about the Sandbox and this will be a great article to send people to in future to explain it.
‘What is the Google Sandbox?
The Google Sandbox is an alleged filter placed on new websites. The result is a site does not receive good rankings for its most important keywords and keyword phrases. Even with good content, abundant incoming links and strong Google PageRank, a site is still adversely affected by the Sandbox effect. The Sandbox acts as a de facto probation for sites, possibly to discourage spam sites from rising quickly, getting banned, and repeating the process.How would you describe the Google Sandbox in one sentence?
The Google Sandbox is very similar to a new website being placed on probation, and kept lower than expected in searches, prior to being given full value for its incoming links and content.’
Read more at Google sandbox theory validated by search engine giant
Written on April 6th, 2005 at 04:04 am by Darren Rowse
Advertisers Sue Google and Yahoo over Click Fraud
Just spotted an article in the Wall Stree Journal that mentions a group of contextual ad advertisers who are suing Google and Yahoo over issues of click fraud - this will be an interesting one to watch as its going to be a big issue for those behind contextual advertising systems and has the potential to have flow on effects to publishers.
‘A group of advertisers quietly filed a lawsuit in February against Google Inc., Yahoo Inc. and other Internet companies in a potentially important legal test of those companies’ liability for a form of online-advertising fraud.
The plaintiffs, led by Lane’s Gifts & Collectibles LLC, a Texarkana, Ark., retailer, allege that the Internet companies knowingly overcharged for advertisements they sold and conspired with each other to continue doing so. The plaintiffs are seeking to have their suit, which hasn’t received widespread attention, certified as a class action….’
Read more at WSJ.com - Internet Firms Face Legal Test On Advertising Fees
Written on April 5th, 2005 at 03:04 pm by Darren Rowse
Help enternetusers Find a Business Model
I’m hesitant to post this but its something I’ve been pondering for a while now and I’d appreciate your thoughts and ideas.
You see I love writing on this blog - it is the blog I’m most proud of and that I put most time into. I get more feedback and interaction with readers here via comments, IM and email than any other blog in my stable. However for the time I put in its the least rewarding financially. Ads for blogging services pay next to nothing and my readership is not really big enough to attract any big private sponsorships. I’d be lucky if this site pays for my morning coffee most days (and I go to a cheap cafe).
Now before anyone worries that I’m about to either can this blog, or start charging people to read it, or that I’m going to ask for donation - please don’t worry - this is a free blog and I intend to keep it that way. In actual fact I don’t write this blog for the money but because I’m genuinely passionate about blogging as a medium, want to connect with and help others who are also and because I enjoy writing on these topics.
So what am I hesitant about? Let me cut to the chase.
Looking at my email inbox and the logs of my IM client for the past 3 days I’ve just counted up 20 requests from readers to ‘take a look’ at their blogs or to ‘offer advice’ on everything from SEO, to Adsense optimization, to design, to overall vision etc.
I enjoy these requests, I love to help others (otherwise I wouldn’t make my contact details public) but it is now starting to get to the point where I could dedicate a few hours each day to the task which whilst an enjoyable task is one which takes me away from my other business. I do try to accommodate all requests, but as the readership of this blog rises (as it steadily is) I can see that the day is coming where I’m either going to have to say no to such requests or find a way to either make it pay for my time or decrease the time needed to do it.
So here is what I’m asking you my blogging buddies - what do I do?
I’ve asked a few of you already in one on one chats and some of your (and my) ideas include:
- Charge a consultancy/coaching fee per 10 minute block (or some other amount of time).
- Open a free discussion forums where bloggers workshop their ideas together rather than relying upon me to give advice.
- Run a short course in ProBlogging (which people pay for) that takes people through the basics
- Write an Ebook on the topic and sell it (offer an hour consulting with each book)
- Do case studies on the blog which the recipient of the case study pays for the time of but everyone else learns from
- Do consulting in return for non financial reimbursement including links to my blogs from those that I help or even by them placing adsense ads with my publisher code on their blog for an agreed time frame.
- Try to put a figure on what the increases in earnings are for the blog in question and take an agreed cut of these profits (10-20%) for an agreed time (six months).
- Charge people by them writing one article for one of your blogs per ten minutes of time that you give them (ie if you consult for an hour they owe you 6 posts on one of your blogs).
I’m not sure on any of these options. There are things about some that I like but disadvantages of each one.
My main desire is to keep this blog at enternetusers free and running as it is - but I’m finding that many of your want more individual attention. I actually think my archives are full of the answers to most of the questions that people ask me - but I guess to sift through them all takes time and its quicker just to come straight to me.
The other issue to consider is that many readers of this blog can’t afford to really pay much at all for my time because they are just starting out and often have either no blog or a blog with tiny readership that could take a substantial amount of time to build into something that is profitable. On the other hand others are already earning decent money from their blogs. Is it fair to charge both the same for my time? For example, a few days ago I helped two people within an hour of each other. Today I found out that my advice helped one of them increase their daily earnings from $1 to $1.30 and the other one increased their earnings by $40 per day. I spent the same time on both of them but obviously one is in a better position to pay than the other simply because their blog has been going longer and has a larger economy of scale.
I hope that this post doesn’t put people off making contact with me - I love the interactions that I have and learn a lot from you too - I’m just thinking out loud about how to make our interactions as mutually beneficial as possible.
I’d appreciate your thoughts - please share your ideas on what business model (if any) you can see me moving towards here at enternetusers. Would you be willing to pay for some of the above services (or others) - if so how much is reasonable - if not how else might I structure things so we all come out of this better off as bloggers? Please be honest - I won’t be offended by your ideas, feedback and thoughts and value your time and energy.
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