Needless to say, there have been a lot of changes in the online income game over the past few months. The rules of the game have changed. It is survival of the fittest. It is time to adapt or die. I refuse to be a buggy whip manufacturer but will stay as nimble as possible and continue to do what I can to continue this hobby of mine and maybe even make enough on the side to pay for my other hobby, golf.
eHow Cancels WCP
Several of you may have heard that eHow will be shutting down its Writer's Compensation Program. The choices are to accept a buyout offer for the rights to my articles or watch them get deleted. Now I could claim them for myself and publish on another site, but I really don't have any place to put them. So, I plan to accept the buyout offer. It works out to about 6 months of revenue so I can't complain too much. I have earned my fair share for the amount of effort that I put into those articles.
HubPages and the Ad Program
My HubPages traffic continues to dwindle. It seems yet to find a base. I signed up for the HubPages Ad Program figuring that I might be able to some revenue from the limited number of views that I get daily. I am not sure how well this is working. It is really hard to say since my AdSense revenue is now nonexistent. No revenue at all for the month of May is unsettling to say the least. It is reminding me of the first few weeks of writing on the internet although at this pace, I will have earned more then.
Is the HubPages Ad Program having a negative effect on my AdSense? It is hard to tell what I might make with the massive traffic decline. The Ad Program does replace several of the AdSense blocks. I will say that the eCPM for the Ad Program is similar to what I was able to get with AdSense so maybe the impact is negligible.
Future Plans
Since my 2 main sources of online revenue have been destroyed, it is time to start over again. I have learned quite a bit these past 2 years and plan on using that newly acquired knowledge to make a real go at earning online income. I plan on taking this hobby thing to the next level and officially making it a part time venture with the goal of creating online assets that will supplement my golfing fund in retirement.
I can think of no better way of spending my time than getting up early and heading to the golf course while letting my wife sleep late. Then I can come home, blog and work on sites for a few hours after lunch, then have the evening free. Sounds like a great life to me. Unfortunately, it is probably about 15 years down the road. But that gives me plenty of time to develop a few sites, right!
I plan on using the eHow buyout to fund a hosting account and domain. I figure that would give me about a year to get the site supporting its own hosting costs. If I can't get it making $7 per month in a year, then I will have to re-evaluate my abilities. I might have to retire as a starter at a golf course instead.
I should also be able to reach the $50 HubPages payout in another couple months. I am about halfway there now. Once I get to that point, I will try a little experiment and discontinue the program to see what the AdSense impact truly is. That $50 can also pay for some of my hosting expenses and maybe even another domain or two should I come up with a couple good ideas.
Well, that is the approach that I plan to take for the rest of this year.
Readers, what are your thoughts about my plan? How have you altered your online strategies with all of the recent changes? Are you defeated or adapting? I would love to hear from you.
Posts
Kidgas, Sorry to hear that your HubPages income has gone by the wayside. Many of mine have done the same including Suite, which should have been one of the good guys. I'm going to focus more on up-front pay writing like I did in the "old" days and am also working on a site of my own. Revenue share sites were good while they lasted, but nothing lasts forever. Good luck with your site.
ReplyDeleteI think upfront pay may end up being a decent alternative for some. It doesn't work for me as much since I want to write what I want and when I want. It would definitely be an important thing to consider for those trying to make the transition to their own sites especially if that money was needed for bills. I am lucky in that I could easily walk away and spend more time watching TV and playing computer games.
ReplyDeleteKidgas, your plan sounds like a good one. It sounds well thought out and logical. Using your eHow earnings for hosting is wise. As long as you keep that dream of yours alive about spending your mornings on the golf course, you'll get there (so funny, as I was typing this comment with the TV on and a commercial with Phil Mickelson came on).
ReplyDeleteI've made a few changes to my online strategies too. 99% of my efforts will be focused on my own ventures and 1% of my time will be devoted to Suite 101. The lion share of my time (about 75%) will be spent working on my sites and the remainder of my time will be devoted to creating a series of e-books.
We're all finding out that depending on content sites is a thing of the past.
Felicia,
ReplyDeleteYours also sounds like a good plan. Spending the majority of your time on your own sites is a good idea.
Kidgas, best of luck as you move forward with your ventures! I'd recommend concentrating on one niche site, at most 2-3 initially. By focusing your efforts and energy into one quality property, you stand a better chance of passing muster with Google and drawing an audience. I've seen writers/ internet marketers spread themselves too thin and give up when they don't see a monetary return for their (scattered) efforts.
ReplyDeleteMaria,
ReplyDeleteI think you have a good idea. I do plan on focusing on 2-3 sites at most. I do have the options site already and would be thinking of adding a blog format personal finance site and possibly a golf site as well. These would be consistent with interests of mine so I don't feel that I would have to force myself to work on them.
Hey Kidgas,
ReplyDeleteI think you definitely have the right idea. Getting 2-3 sites going will allow you to see what works without spreading yourself too thin, although finance and golf can be two really competitive niches. Have you heard of the Keyword Academy? I know the monthly membership is probably too much for where you're starting, but the first month is free and then you can cancel if need be - their education on how to find good keywords, how to set up sites and build links, and all the other nuts and bolts are amazing. It might be something to seriously look at to get a real strong education on how to kick off with your own websites. Anyway, keep at it. This was definitely a kick in the gut, but the people willing to persevere will end up even better off in the long run because of it.
Best,
Shane "Master" Dayton