izea

When I first began blogging five or six years ago, there were plenty of arguments over whether or not bloggers should use ads on their blogs. Those who did were considered sell outs. Then the “make money online craze” hit and everyone was posting ads on their blogs and all of a sudden they weren’t selling out, they were smart. They found a way to earn money without having to ever leave the house.

Enter sponsored conversations. All of a sudden we’re back to being sellouts again.

I’ve been thinking a lot about sponsored conversations lately. A couple of months ago, my blog network announced a partnership with a major online content site. Though I was thrilled for the possibilities, some members of my community were not. I was a sell out and a hypocrite. Why? Because I’m looking to earn more than my measly Adsense income?

I have no problem with sponsored posts. They remind of TV’s golden days when Milton Berle pimped Brill Cream during his variety hour. Really, how are sponsored conversations different from product placement in the movies? Where’s the outrage there? In case you’re not familiar, “sponsored conversatio” is a pretty term for “advertisement.” The sponsor is paying me to write up his ad and post it on my blog.

As a Premium Blogger in Izea‘s Social Spark sponsored conversation network, I earned $800 with only two posts.  I mean, why not? I figure as long as I’m not spammy, I let it be known that I’m accepting coin for my efforts and I choose sponsorships that are of interest to my community. Why is it such a terrible thing to write a post in exchange for payment. It’s not like I’m promoting laundry detergent on my freelance writing blog.

I feel that:

• As long as I rock the disclosure…
• As long as I don’t spam my community…
• As long as I choose sponsorship that are on topic…
• As long as I don’t offend anyone...actually, scratch that. No matter what I do, there’s always someone who is offended.
• As long as I don’t make every blog posts an advertisement for something or other…

What difference does is make whether or not I accept payment for a sponsored conversation?

What are your thoughts? Is it selling out, or just another way to make money blogging?