Advertising on my website…
Visitors to my website might have noted that I don’t advertise anything beyond my books here. It’s an author’s website, after all, not The Huffington Post or Forbes. You won’t see pop-up ads. In fact, I hope to remove those annoying “Buy Now” buttons in a future upgrade to the website. The interested reader will be able to click on the cover and go to the Amazon book page, I hope. Otherwise, I’ll change “Buy Now” to “Amazon Page” or something less annoying than “Buy Now.”
As the number of real visits (not just random hits) to the website has increased, so has the number of people asking to advertise on the site. Some of these requests are tempting because (1) the services or products sound like something I could endorse, (2) visitors to the site might be interested in them, and (3) it might bring me some badly needed funds so I can produce the next book. My business model has always been a version of “crowd funding” (today’s parlance—I’ve been using it since day one): reinvest royalties accrued from past books into producing the next one, with hopefully enough left over to pay for website maintenance and upgrades.
But I’ve resisted the temptation of going the ad route. I’ve always been nice about declining offers, saying something like, “Your product (or service) sounds interesting, but it’s against my policy to accept advertisements.” Maybe that’s stupid, but that’s my policy. Nevertheless, as I cruised around my usual social media sites last weekend, I asked myself, “Steve, what kind of ads would you accept if you did?” The short answer is: not many. But then I wouldn’t have a blog post, would I, if I left it at that?
I already post links to several services and sites that I’ve listed on the “Join the Conversation” page of this website. I include these under the subsection “The Business of Writing” because most are associated with that. My predilection for Irish liquor and hats might be suspect. The first helps me in my writing business, though—don’t think I’m a sot, but a finger or two of Irish whiskey lets me relate to my characters more easily. The second keeps my brain warm—I have crown baldness just like my father. I have to protect that brain—it’s my best asset—and I can’t write without it.
But what ads might I accept? Mostly certain causes. I’m a long-time member of The Nature Conservancy, so I’d probably accept some sort of ad from them, but they don’t do that. Same for the World Wildlife Fund—I’m not a member, but I support their work. Same for The Sierra Club. I wouldn’t support PETA, though. They’re close to being eco- and animal rights-terrorists and probably would object to my wool Irish hat because they refuse to accept that sheep should be shorn. I’d probably support any GMO product if it’s shown to help in the fight against human hunger. Attackers of GMOs are other extremists who see the world in only black and white. Their motto might as well be: The human race may starve, but at least it will be GMO-free.
I’d probably support anti-fracking and solar and wind energy. In contrast to many ecologically minded people, I think nuclear energy can be made safe and should be on the table as a viable substitute for dirty coal. Nuclear power plants are only unsafe because the people who design and build them don’t make them safe. Still, I wouldn’t build them on earthquake fault lines. Japan isn’t the only country who does this.
Disaster relief and medical issues provide another category where I might accept ads. The American Red Cross, the American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, MADD, and Alcoholics Anonymous offer examples. Good causes deserving promotion, certainly. A few hospitals also could advertise here: Sloan Kettering, M D Anderson, The Mayo Clinic, St. Jude’s, and so forth. There are so many possibilities here that things could really get cluttered.
I supported MassPIRG in Massachusetts, but I’ve resisted NJPIRG in New Jersey. Most of the PIRGs are rabidly anti-nuclear, and I have a problem with that. Most of their other goals are OK, though, and might sway me to advertise for them. I might even post ads for causes at a reduced price, like $0, if they asked, but, just like I don’t advertise, they don’t either. I’ll write positively about these causes maybe, but I won’t advertise for them.
I’d probably do better with some ads AGAINST something. Many social media sites come to mind—Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter—as well as companies like Apple, Microsoft, Big Five publishers, Walmart, Dominos, Papa John’s, Chic-Fil-A, etc. These companies obviously wouldn’t pay for the ads, of course, but someone else might. The list here could grow pretty fast, though. I just added Whole Foods to it!
With all these choices, you can begin to see why I don’t advertise. I apologize to all who have queried or have thought about querying. Your products or services might be excellent—I might have even already used them, as in the case of the Irish hats and liquor—but the added revenue could be more trouble than it’s worth. The easy answer is to just say no.
That means it’s up to my readers to finance the production of my next book. I keep my costs to a minimum and pass the savings on to you, the reader. You will find in my books good entertainment at a very reasonable cost. But my “crowd sourcing” type of funding assumes I have some kind of modest crowd! So, if you haven’t already done so, take a look at my books. And this goes for all my fellow authors. Discover a new author (new to you) each week, and you’ll be a happy reader. Here’s the link to my web page. And, if you have any comments and/or questions, write me at steve@stevenmmoore.com. And thanks for reading.
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May Day Sale. Mary Jo Melendez invites you to a Kindle Countdown sale. Before she adds her stories to Smashwords, making them available in all ebook formats, she’s giving you a chance to read Muddlin’ Through and Silicon Slummin’…and Just Gettin’ By at $0.99, reduced from $2.99. That’s a lot of exciting spring and summer reading for only $2. The sale will take place from April 29 through May 6. This is absolutely the last time these prices will be reduced. Celebramos Cinco de Mayo con María José.
In libris libertas….
