So, my question is, could this really happen? Could there really be millionaire bloggers or vloggers? I think the answer is yes.
I’ve had a couple of emails recently about a way to monetize your Twitter feed – personally, I don’t like the idea because I just don’t want my timeline (which I feel quite protective of) cluttered with ads although in theory I have no objection to monetizing. The email gives examples (very unprofessionally) of bloggers/vloggers with 250K Twitter followers being able to earn approx. £650 per advertisement Tweet on that basis. If they Tweet 27,000 times (I’ve tweeted 69,000 times) you can multiply that by £650 and you have £17,550,000. Yikes! Obviously there are flaws in that example because not every Tweet could be monetized, but it takes you in the direction that makes my theory possible to stand up. The idea of monetizing Tweets has forgotten to take into account bought followers, so actually if brands don’t realise that some high profile accounts have many, many bought followers, which is fairly common now (and absolutely no suggestion of anyone in particular, here) then they’ll be sending their ads out to empty eggs. NB Have been in communication and the system apparently has sophisticated software that allows the true reach to be revealed and catches empty eggs. I’m also told that on my follower numbers (25K, the earnings would be £53 per tweet).
Blogger/vlogger fees vary enormously from blogger to blogger. I do think it’s okay to monetize – the power blogger/vloggers can reach an enormous beauty-engaged audience and god knows, if you wanted an easy life, you would never be a blogger/vlogger. They’re able to target in a way that wasn’t possible even a few years ago and so the benefit is very much to the brand. If I put my hand on my heart, I have to say I find it irritating to hear of demands for cars, hotels, payment to even leave the house more or less, but the schmucks surely are the ones that pay, not the ones that ask. Beauty world is small.. if you ask for £12K to get out of bed, you can be pretty sure that everyone will know about it. But, I see no reason why bloggers/vloggers should promote brands for free, which is still the expectation of many a press office and brand.
It’s up to the brands to sort out relevance – a blogger/vlogger with a massive audience of young girls or ‘fans’ isn’t the right place for a £25 lipstick. It will be seen, for sure, by hundreds of thousands but until you break the demographic down to relevance, then it’s like putting an ad in the Times for Butlins. And I think there is a dividing line between ‘fans’ and ‘readers’ although I find it hard to put into words what it is. Some of our very best vloggers have their share of ‘fans’ – girls who want to be them, I think might be a good way to put it. But if you are eleven with a girl crush, it doesn’t mean you have the wherewithal to be a beauty shopper. And, that is no denigration to any of our blogger/vloggers – you can’t choose your readers!
Sometimes I think that PRs bamboozle brands with numbers, but neglect to point out the relevance or reach. Specific targeting and clearer brand appropriateness surely would be better for everyone. Brands who leave everything to agencies and don’t bother to be even basically educated in social media only have themselves to reprimand, because these days, getting number is the easy bit.
So, yes, there will be blogging/vlogging millionaires (there probably already are in the US) and I would raise a glass of something very bubbly (not shampoo!) to them. Who would have thought, hey?
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All products are sent to me as samples from brands and agencies unless otherwise stated. Affiliate links may be used. Posts are not affiliate driven.
3 comments
“I would raise a glass of something very bubbly (not shampoo!) to them” Oh Jane, you are simply wonderful, hehe x
Is anyone else getting a bit sick of the conveyor belt beauty blogging that is going on now? I don’t believe a lot of endorsement from blogs now. I love your blog because you kind of do it in 2 bits. 1. This is coming out news and 2. stuff you’ve tried and the results. A lot of blogs seem to be turning into QVC and I won’t be following them in other ways when Google reader goes 😀
I tend to avoid U.S. based blogs for that very reason; you can barely find the content for the advertising. I’m not talking the pro blogs, which tend to keep the ads minimal and select anyway. These are ordinary mortals who I think have lost the plot. I have no objection to monetizing, why shouldn’t you get a bit back for the time and money you put into your writing. But you need to keep it sane.