Ad revenue that used to support websites is plummeting. Vastly increased competition, sharply lower advertising rates, and ad blockers are the primary reasons. We all need to financially support content creators we like, especially smaller ones. If we don’t, many of them will simply vanish. The dream that the web can always be free, supported by ad revenue, was just that, a dream. The web can’t and won’t be free forever.
Tech video blogger Chris Pirillo has been delivering quality tech content since 1996 and is now using Patreon to attract people who will pay for his content. Prices start at a mere $2 a month. He says one webmaster tells him his page views are up 40% while ad revenue has dropped off a cliff. This is the problem many websites are facing now.
Getting attention for ANYTHING is challenging enough with valuable content available everywhere, but layering on top of that the problem of ad blocking, and you’ll see why indie publishers like myself are turning to ongoing crowdfunding campaigns to further sustain our efforts and offset our absolute costs (let alone, the cost of our time).
So, if you haven’t realized it by now: the only way I’m going to be able to continue to do this is by appealing to my core supporters. I currently only have one campaign on Patreon, but am working on bringing that value closer to my own domain and adding private forums for those who want me to continue doing the things I’ve been doing for them for quite some time.
Pirillo is not alone. Pando Daily has switched to a subscription mode for $10 a month. The No Agenda podcast fund-raises each show and after years of hard work and quality content you won’t hear elsewhere, probably averages about $6,000 a week, split between Adam Curry and John Dvorak. They have no advertisements.
I support Pirillo on Patreon, donate to No Agenda, and will be joining Pando soon. Support your favorite content creators with donations and contributions now.
Every time I have ended up sending money to supposedly Left websites, they end up banning me because they don’t like counter opinions to their own from being expressed. I learned just to expect all these Left sites to be absolutely trigger happy with their so called ‘Moderator’ buttons, that I just no longer send them money any more.