With Black Friday behind us and Cyber Monday just around the corner, there’s a wonderful way to support your favorite bloggers.

When I started blogging eight years ago, it never crossed my mind I could earn money from it. Never. Ever.  A friend had asked me to read hers – I didn’t even know what a blog was before that – and it seemed like fun.  Thinking “out loud” in front of strangers–fun?!  Apparently a lot of people agree.

That was the Dark Digital Ages, of course, when Facebook was but a year old and Twitter had just been born.  It was also before national brands tapped into the power and persuasion of a writer’s voice.

Fast forward to today and it’s a different story.  It’s a thrill to see the hard work paying off substantially for some of my earliest blog friends; I’m restraining myself from naming names, but these ladies are earning six-seven figures which, incredibly, is no exaggeration.  Whether through NY Times best-selling books, collaborative sites, reality network shows, affiliate links, speaking events, sidebar ads or sponsored content, those who hit the sweet spot are earning breadwinner incomes…

 

…I am not one of those.  Neither are the majority of my blog friends.

 

But we’re likely working just as hard when we write.

Writers are driven by diverse motive.  When I began blogging there was no money to be had; writing was creative outlet, a means of engaging and encouraging others, a practice to develop a skill set.  A lot of things but not a means to earn an income.  Today, while there are numerous ways to make money, for most of us it’s an added bonus, not the reason we blog.

Every blog financial success story I hear, I applaud.

Wait, that’s not true; every blog financial success story I hear where there’s balance in the home, I applaud.  Sometimes people achieve success but the personal collateral damage – children…marriage… – is too great; those I grieve.

But mostly it’s all good, reason to stand and cheer for those I’ve seen working and writing and building a strong foundation for what they’ve well earned.

 

Bravo, girls.  Brav-o.

However, this isn’t the case for every blogger; many who are part of advertising networks don’t even earn enough to warrant a check every month.  I’ve talked to Amazon affiliates who don’t even earn enough to cover the cost of maintaining their website.  Just because there are affiliate links or sidebar ads doesn’t mean that blogger is getting rich making money.

 

Bloggers staple their behinds to their chairs on a regular basis and write their hearts out for you.  For free.

 

Certainly, I write for myself, first; I don’t believe anyone who says otherwise.  But I truly consider writers to be God-gifted to do this thing they love (and on the blockiest of days, loathe…) in order to inspire and encourage others; or, maybe simply to share resources and helpful content.

 

Maybe you don’t realize it, but there’s a simple way you can help a blogger earn a little money and it doesn’t cost you a dime:

Whenever you shop online, click through their sidebar ads and affiliate links.

When you do, they’ll earn a small percentage of the sale for referring you to the site; it will cost you nothing more, and there’s no way for the blogger to know who purchases what.

You do realize that every time you buy something after clicking through a site-ad, someone is earning that small percentage, right?  If the e-tailer isn’t receiving 100% of your purchase (i.e., you going directly to a website), whomever you clicked through is earning those pennies.

Wouldn’t you like to reward someone you already enjoy reading?  It’s a kind, generous (albeit anonymous) way of saying Thank You.

It took me several days to put together my Christmas Gift Ideas post for teenagers and tweens; though it’s a list of most popular gifts selected from my larger  post, it’s a real list compiled from talking to a number of teens and college students, who wished gift-buyers in their lives would read it (or they had already received the items)!  It takes time to gather all the links, research products and make thoughtful recommendations.  Same thing with all the holiday gift guides you see popping up–they require time.  They are work.

A lot of us don’t write TO make money, but it’s nice when we earn enough, say, to justify the expense of a new blog design.  ~ smile ~

For those who are interested in social justice and Kingdom work, earning blog revenue is a means to extend charity toward others.  Gifted to give.  Lovely.

When I explain how affiliate links/sidebar ads work to friends and family, I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard “I just ordered a bunch of stuff from Amazon” or “I had no idea.”  I imagine this is the case for many of my blogging friends, too.  This is my small attempt to encourage all of our readers who aren’t bloggers to support those of us who are, and for bloggers to think to support one another.

For example, Art of Simple Facebook manager Prerna Malik from The Mom Writes, asked our AoS Facebook Group if anyone was a because a) she isn’t and b) she wanted to purchase some items.  She could have gone directly to the site, but instead, with generous intention asked specifically so she could shop through one of .  It cost her nothing more than an extra click, but it was a very thoughtful gesture.

I hope you’ll keep this in mind when shopping online.  Bookmark your favorite bloggers’ sites and click through their sidebar ads, holiday gift guides, and idea lists.  Share posts like this via email, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter or via your favorite social media network.

And to those who quietly support my site, I’m genuinely grateful.

Fantastic Black Friday sales are still happening this weekend, and Monday, Cyber Monday, will kick off a week traditionally offering shoppers fantastic values online.  Click the affiliate ads below for both great ideas and wonderful savings.

If you have questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to ask or share!  I’d love to hear your thoughts.

And while you’re here, subscribe to new site?
That would be an wonderful gift to me!!
{And if you click through my site to shop…heartfelt thanks.}

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