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| Do you know who I am? |
I am about to leave San Diego. The last day has not been fun at all as I have been dealing with, I think, food poisoning! I did go see Pat Benatar last night, she can still rock. I left after four songs to get back to my hotel, Advil & went to bed at 10 pm!
Ok, here we go with the guest post I had promised. I should catch up with all blog posts sometime on Sunday.
Thank you for reading!
An Insider’s View Of Travel Blogging
When I first discovered Travel Blogger Buzz, I thought “Oh great, a travel blog about travel blogs.” So there is no new information here, just reviews of other people’s blogs? Clearly, I didn’t get it.
I read skim about a dozen travel blogs a day out of hundreds in the point and mile sphere, so a blog has to be very good to grab my attention. But after a while, I realized that George was reading even more than I was, and cluing me in on some of the best posts out there. Eventually I understood that this blog is more than just a meta-blog; George is trying to be an ombudsman for the travel hacking world. And perhaps they need one.
George has a irrepressible desire to critique the bloggers, but he and his readers seems to also have an intense curiosity about how this world works. So as one of the few freelance bloggers out there, I thought that I could share my perspective.
How blogs work
Imagine a movie production. Even a modest film requires writers, producers, directors, editors, cameramen, and actors. A blog is the same way. In addition to writing, someone must design, host, and edit the blog (not to mention monetize, but I’ll get to that later). Some bloggers choose to undertake all of these tasks themselves, and end up with results comparable to a home movie. Most have to outsource at least some of these disparate functions, which is the role of umbrella sites like The Boarding Area or Upgrd.com. The larger blogs even have full-time staff members that can include editors, developers, and contributors.
This is where I come in as a freelance writer. It turns out that producing quality content is very time consuming, especially if you are managing all of these other tasks. It also benefits the blog to offer multiple perspectives.
How blogs make money
Last year I was able to attend both the FinCon financial blogger’s conference and the TBex travel blogger’s conference, and I learned quite a bit about this business. As George and so many others have learned, the best source of income in the travel blogging field are affiliate links, especially to credit cards.
Think of it this way; when you apply for a new credit card, you are offered a sign-up bonus. Similarly, any third-party web site that provided the link is getting a bonus as well. These commissions can range from $15 for some basic student card to over $100 for a high end travel rewards card. In fact, one affiliate marketing company was offering a $250 commission for the Ink Bold and Plus cards at the end of last year. Note how many bloggers were writing reviews and other link-laden insights about the Ink cards at that time.
Why you and I don’t have a money making travel blog
So with up to $250 for a sign up bonus for other people’s credit cards, why doesn’t everyone start a blog? Or better yet, why don’t I have my own money making blog? (my wife asks me this all the time).
Well first, you have to love writing. Think of your favorite sites and how often they are updated. No one is going to read your blog regularly if you don’t offer new content at least five times a week. It is so much work that one financial blogger I know told me that writing was his least favorite part of blogging.
Fortunately, I love writing, and thankfully, I think that I have something new to say. Sadly, many bloggers don’t seem to. My problem is that I don’t have the time, skill, and patience to set up and monetize my own blog.
How hard could that be? Leaving aside the task of developing a quality site, the hardest part seems to be dealing with the affiliate marketing companies. You and I can’t just get some credit card links and start raking in the cash. First you have to apply to one of these companies. Then, you have to be approved, which is not automatic. Usually, they want to see a history of successful conversions (sales). Of course, you then have a “chicken and the egg” paradox.
But let’s say you solve that problem somehow. Even then, you are essentially on probation forever. At any time, the banks can and will ask the affiliate companies to pull you off their programs. The reason can be poor sales, or more likely, poor compliance. Compliance issues can be ones such as writing about credit cards using inaccurate numbers or even terminology that the banks disapprove of. And considering how fluid the credit card market is, it can be a huge task to stay in compliance with all of their rules.
For example, I once had a major bank come to me objecting that I referred to their bank’s proprietary, fixed value, non-airline loyalty program’s currency as “cash back” rather than “miles”. Other times, I have heard of affiliate programs just cutting off large web sites with little explanation or recourse. It’s just not fair out there.
And even when you have links and are in compliance, Google can change their algorithms, which kills your search engine traffic and slashes your income overnight. Look up the terms Penguin and Panda if you don’t know what I am talking about.
Who can you trust?
While it is indisputable that the need to earn a living can influence the choice of cards that bloggers write about, it doesn’t mean they are all credit card whores. Good bloggers will cite both the positive and negative aspects of the cards they like, and will slam the cards that they don’t. Writers build credibility with their readers that way, and this site will keep them honest when they don’t.
But in my case, I offer another perspective. I write about credit cards without receiving any commissions. I offer my honest opinion as a journalist who has researched and written thousands articles about credit cards and travel. And thankfully, I have never received any pushback from my editors when my analysis contradicted their interest in receiving credit card affiliate revenue. Actually, I kind of expected to some day, but so far it hasn’t ever happened. So until I get around to creating my own monetized site, you can trust what I write to be uncorrupted by affiliate revenue.
My business model is simple: I write, and the site pays me. When I write guests posts such as this, I am compensated by a third party site that I link back to. Hopefully, those links help sites to keep Google’s Penguins and Pandas at bay.
What do we owe you?
Bloggers who write about points and miles perform an invaluable service. By employing the travel tricks they write about, you can earn nearly unlimited free travel in business and first class. At the same time, those who own these blogs, and a few freelancers like me, can make money off of the largess of the credit card issuers we write about.
But the odd thing about the hard core point and mile blogs, as opposed to other travel and personal finance sites that I contribute to, is that their readers feel like we are indebted to them for some reason. Although I am happy to receive this site’s constructive criticism, I often sustain vicious comments when people object to my opinions or when I write about a good deal, even after it was dead.
Never forget that travel bloggers offer their knowledge and experience to their readers for free. You are then welcome to read their blog or not. If you like their work, you can support their site by using their links. It’s that simple.
Travel blogs are fun to write, valuable to read, and profitable to produce. By understanding how these sites work, you can properly weigh their advice and recommendations.
Jason Steele is a full time freelance blogger who focuses on credit cards and travel. He is a regular contributor to many of the top personal finance and travel blogs including SmartBalanceTransfers.com, which is definitely being compensated when you use their links to apply for, and receive a new credit card.
This is a wonderful post. I think we need more clear explanations of the miles and points blog business model. I think a lot of people (myself included) are just starting to figure out how the business model works, and the first reaction is anger. Then you get over, and just start taking all of the “best credit cards” posts with a grain of salt.
It is interesting that so many miles and points blogs readers feel grateful to their favorite bloggers. I kind off do. Before I got into miles and points blogs, I read a lot of personal finance blogs. The advice I found there probably benefited my long term financial situation more than the miles and points blogs, but I don’t have the same sense of debt to the bloggers.
Thanks man, I feel indebted to all of the great bloggers I have been reading for years who taught me how to travel for free and find great deals. I am sure they feel the same way about the bloggers who came before them.
Thanks, glad you liked it.
Very good artical for me, cause I just started with my blog 🙂
First intention was to write about places i saw and visited, then I said I should be more focused. So I make something for the travelers and personalized by me. Hope it’s good combo.
Write what you enjoy writing about, and don’t worry about money. When you find an audience, money will come, but it won’t happen overnight.
Good luck!
@Bajazid: Thanks for reading & commenting! Loved the pics in your blog and added it to my review list in Google Reader. I was born & raised down south from you, Larisa!
@Jason: Ok, then I keep going? 🙂
Nice article, thank you
No thank you!
I think the biggest problem with this blog, and blog criticism in general, is the tendency to lump all blogs together and demonize as a group.
TPG is a business, there are employees, it isn’t just Brian like it was in the beginning and it’s his full-time “job” of course much of which is done by others.
FTG is a business, it’s owned by a major internet conglomerate.
But there are plenty that are hobbies. And they all behave differently. They have different areas of focus. I think hating on “blogs” (websites of a specific format) both misses the point and gives a bit of a pass to those that actually deserve criticism.
And so what if a website manages to make money as it becomes more heavily trafficked? And that doesn’t mean we should care less about them. I mean, we care deeply about our favorite travel brands and those aren’t non-profit.
Is it motivations that matter, folks that are out to help and happen to wind up making some money as a result, we shouldn’t hate on that, right?
Or is it results, the best blogs regardless of profit should be highly regarded and the worst ones criticized, that’s the idea behind this blog, right? (Although sometimes I think it falls into the trap of lumping them all together.)
Great points! My dream was to quit my full time job, and just do this. Now that I have achieved it, I am so thankful that I do what I do.
I look at this site almost as a trade publication for what I do, so I am glad it is there. Sometimes I think that the blog blowback that is going on is a little out of proportion. I hope people realize that this is a career for some of us, and it is unfair to criticize us for making an honest living, especially when we are giving away our “product” for free.
I absolutely agree with all your points too! This blog does not hate any blogger, this blog reviews blog posts and features the best and the worst. Some tend to stay in one category:-)
I have NEVER EVER said that it is wrong to make money! Hey, I am all for capitalism. But I am VERY fond of great (and original) content, full disclosures, no censoring and gentle cc pimping (prefer none or a separate tab!)
This blog reviews blogs, it is an art and not a science, deal with it.
@Jason: You are different, you do not have a blog. You write for blogs. That is very different and that is the reason I accepted your quest post because I think most readers will find it educational like I did.
Jealousy fuels many blogger/credit card comments. We’re a bit jealous that Rick and Brian and Gary and others are making quite a haul, not because making money is bad, but because we’re a bit mad we didn’t take the plunge ourselves a few years back. Go easy on these guys, folks. They’ve never hidden the fact they make money off cc referrals. Let’s move on.
With that said, I like this blog, but George, please, focus is your friend. When you go topically shotgunning the blog loses credibility. And since we know it’s taking up too much of your time already, focus will help keep the time required reasonable as well.
Well, we are all jealous of something…
I am jealous of all the single and/or childless bloggers gallivanting around the world, while I stay home and write all day. It is also terribly unfair that they only have to look for one or two award seats, while I struggle to find 3 or 4 for my family, but that is another battle…
“We’re a bit jealous that Rick and Brian and Gary and others are making quite a haul… They’ve never hidden the fact they make money off cc referrals. “
Actually Gary discloses his financial relationship in every post with one of his credit card links. Rick and Brian do not. Just in very little fine print that they hope no one will read.
@Anoymous at 2.28 pm: Can you elaborate on the focus part? I think my blog is very focused. I do have a life you know. I missed one day and got my first guest blog post which, I thought, was quite educational for my readers. I do not have a text/link ready to blast my readers up with “you get 5x at office supplies stores” type filler post, TBB does NOT do that! I am open to learning more and always read the comments and try to respond to every single one! Thanks for taking the time to read and comment!
@Having to look for 4 award seats totally sucks. Teenage son is too cool to travel with us in the near future so we are down to three…Progress:-)
@Anonymous at 8.42 pm: Correct!
8:42 pm anon: Incorrect. left hand blog column as clear as can be.YOU are for your own decisions. and quite frankly all your constant complaining about disclosures is a cop out for accepting personal responsibility. we all comply or wouldn’t be allowed to offer cc links. the balance of my required disclosures are on every page.
Rick: nothing about your financial relationships on the left column of your blog, only at the very bottom of the site after you scroll past every post. It may be all that is required, but it is definitely not obvious. There is often a difference between what is required by someone and what may be more ethical, so don’t be surprised when others comment on it, especially on a site dedicated to discussing other blogs.
You are no longer just a guy and his blog, you are in it as a business, so you really need to develop a thicker skin.
man it is UNBELIEVABLE how unlikable you are, rick.
Ok Rick, you are proud of your site’s disclosure policies it appears. I certainly disagree along with many others. C’est la vie man!
I better stop here…as you already told me you are not sending me another Marriott Gift Card:-)
Anonymous #2, you might be a “bit jealous” but dont assume that the rest of the readership is. TBB plays the role of the critic, the “Consumer Reports”. Why do you think it needs to be any more than that?
From angry to Ombudsman to Consumer Reports to what’s next?
This could be a contest:-)
Seriously George, you couldn’t get a writer whose biggest claim to fame among your readers isn’t as the most well known case of plagiarizing in travel hacking circles
I of course referred to his cut-and-paste-without-a-hat-tip rip n’ read of Frequent Milers “One card to rule them all” post…. then tried playing dumb in the comments section before TPG had to begrudgingly put in a hat tip at the top which STILL didn’t really give credit to FM for figuring it out
Plagiarizing is a strong word? Yup. But you be the judge…
http://thepointsguy.com/2012/07/maximizing-chase-ink-bold-spending-bonuses-at-office-supply-stores/
And it showed up on TPG’s blog for the first time a month after FM posted about it, after dozens of bloggers wrote about it as well (of course, all giving appropriate credit to FM)
The above post might be a perfect summary of every reason TPG has gone downhill since becoming a “full time” blogger-
1) Incessant CC pimping? Check
2) Hire someone else to do your “full time” work? Check
3) Not give proper credit when due? Check
4) Report on a major finding a month after everyone else has? Check
5) Play dumb in the comments? “Frequent Miler is awesome and has done some great work on this subject, but the strategy of buying gift cards in one merchant category for spend at another pre-dates even him”… Check
Seriously? Do you guys even know the definition of plagiarism is? Do you really think FM was the first person ever to write about buying gift cards at office supply stores to maximize spending bonuses? (The first time I wrote about it was in 2009). I know the author of FM, I’ve spoken to him about this and we are totally cool.
If you want to sit back and be “more Catholic than the pope” and make up words, enjoy!
Jason, as an ex blogger myself, I thought your post and some of the earlier comments were the best here in the Tabloid Blogger Buzz since inception.
But now the “angries” have, as always, reappeared. After a while you can see the pattern. As soon as one “anonymous” poster spews their anger, and it sticks, others will soon follow amd become more brazen. It happens as well on FT and in other blog comments. Unfortunately the only way to combat it is to delete the ” angry” comments which leads to more “angry” comments about deletion. Civilized discussion has become well, unattainable. Too bad because your post was a great opportunity to heal.
“opportunity to heal”??!?!?!?!?!?????!?!?!??!?! Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha
I rest my case 🙁
LOL still playing stupid Jason with your ” Do you really think FM was the first person ever to write about buying gift cards at office supply stores to maximize spending bonuses?”
Can you link me to the anyone who made a post prior to Frequent Miler about a way to get 5 points everywhere, everyday by using a combination of Ink Bold, Vanilla Reloads and Office Depot
It’s extraordinary that something that was such common knowledge garnered about 400 comments on that thread, dozens of trackbacks by other bloggers (giving him H/T’s unlike you) and even FTG himself hyping it as a true game changer the day before Frequent Miler wrote the article (He told FTG in secrecy what it was, and FTG agreed it would be a huge thing)
I wonder why FTG had to promise to keep it a secret? And why all the faux bravado by FM…. it was common knowledge afterall, right?
“Civilized discussion has become well, unattainable”
Tell ya what Rick…. if he can provide a link of any mention of using CIB/IB/OD to get 5x spend on everything, I’ll retract my statement that it was plagiarized?
I think that’s unreasonable, no?
Do you think someone who posts about that trick for the first time after FM broke it should give him a H/T? Or do you think it was “common knowledge” and thus doesn’t require providing credit to FM?
@FTG, great point. In fact, the commenter proved my point about vicious comments. I will take your advice and let the commenter stew in his or her own juices.
Give us a break! You are ducking the question. You pooh-poohed FMs “One card to rule them All” and said you blogged about it back in ’09. The only thing I could find of yours is a generic credit card review in Dec ’09 that mentioned the bonus category – just like you mention in every card review. But zero comments about buying gcs/VRs to manufacture spend…
And you deleted my question asking for a link to prove what you claim…
Oh what a tangled web we weave. When we first practice to decieve!
Looking up the official definition of plagiarism:
“an act or instance of using or closely imitating the language and thoughts of another author without authorization and the representation of that author’s work as one’s own, as by not crediting the original author”
And having now read that post on TPG for the first time, here are my thoughts:
1) Short of him actually providing the requested prior mention, I’m going to assume this is one of the 99% of cases where “I’m going to take my ball and go home” is just a case of “I can’t provide it” and not “I won’t provide it”
2) That pretty obviously meets the standard for plagiarism (assuming @anonymous is honest about that H/T at the top not being there)
3) We can play naive on plagiarism in many cases, maybe attributing it to “coincidence” (i.e. when TPG posts something that was common knowledge, but just happens to post it a couple of days after Gary did – like the status matches by airline). It’s hard to conclude that Jason “figuring out” the Vanilla Reload trick a couple of weeks after FM did it by pure coincidence…. I think if you’re honest with yourself George, you would agree. I hope you don’t exercise naivete out of convenience here
I am starting to feel like Rodney King “Can we all get along?”
Rick: Ex-blogger?
You can all judge by yourselves what is stated here, the timing, etc. I am going to the gym so I can get back in time to watch the SuperBowl…commercials:-)
I am in contact with Jason & FM and maybe one day I can get clarification…until then
I review blogs
You guys can figure it out, you are not newbies, they are not my audience!
Lol, TBB just made worst of! Congrats!
Oh oh. How can I repent?
I will respond to the comments when I get a chance as I have a gazillion things waiting for me today back home. And then it is Super Bowl time. So, hopefully tonight.
Tabloid Blogger Buzz
That made me laugh, thanks Rick!
FrugalTravelGuy Rick, please just take your money and go away. Every time I see you write a comment, I am embarrassed for you.
Embarrased? Please don’t be. Accept the fact I appear to be the only blogger willing to stand up to the whining and complaining in this blog. You and your fellow anonymous posters hide behind the anonymity of the Internet saying things no respectful human being would say face to face to another human. you have been given the gift of free or deeply discounted travel by the forums amd bloggers yet can do nothing more than complain and whine behind anonymity. Be embarrassed for yourself. Take some personal accountability for your actions. if you don’t like a blog, don’t read it. if you don’t like a tv commercial change the channel. Quit your whining and grow up
+1. Couldn’t have said it better.
“if you don’t like a blog, don’t read it”
Is it safe to assume that everyone sees the irony in this?
Rick seems to be the only “angry” person here… His arrogance is laughable.
C’mon let Rick be….
He just wants to remind all the angry people that if you don’t like a blog, don’t read it
You know, just like Rick doesn’t read blogs he doesn’t like…
That’s something only an “angry” would do. Right Rick?
And that was even more embarrassing than usual. SMH at Rick.
Deep down Rick likes my blog:-)
deep down, I like George, don’t care for the blog. too negative for me
Hey Rick, I’m not scared of you. Feel free to email me at johnclark11170@yahoo.com. I think you’re a miserable, cranky, borderline senile old grouch and I’d be happy to tell it to your face. We all would have made just as many miles on FT without you, so don’t act like you saved the world. All you did was make tons of affiliate dollars and ruin a bunch of deals.
Jason,
Thanks for your post. I think I can help provide some insight as to why your posts get the reactions they do. My perspective is much more from the novice side than from the hardcore one. I know my (micro in comparison) site has two VERY disparate audiences: hardcore FTers (of the ilk who would find FBB, for example), and casual readers who are just getting into their first forays into miles and points. My readers are split between the two worlds, as are the readers of the really big sites like TPG and FTG that do a great job marketing to the public. I’ve learned that you have to thread that needle very carefully or you risk alienating one audience, the other, or both.
For instance, you wrote a post for TPG about 5x for prepaid cards at Office Depot and while the post was clearly for newbies, in the comments you casually mentioned that you could easily drop 20k in prepaids in one trip to OD, that 100k miles a month was “only 1 domestic rt in coach for my family of 4”, and name dropped Pickles and Pudding. I’ve been to FTU, but 99% of your readers haven’t. To those people the comments sound, well, arrogant (and confusing…Pickles and Pudding?).
I started a small kerfuffle on Twitter when your piece posted by mentioning the above. FTUers who knew you came to your defense told me you were a nice guy. I’m sure you are and look forward to meeting you in Tysons. I would love to brainstorm strategies for family travel as my biggest challenge in Chicago was finding people who shared my challenges booking for 4 and around a school schedule.
However, I would ask you to read what you write aloud as if you were someone who had just heard TPG for the first time on NPR before you post…maybe it will help tone down the trolls.
(Running for cover now)
TDM,
You make some great points, much better than I did in my private exchanges with JS. We are cool I think now, we are all learning as we flop along on da internet:-)
I think we should start a private club titled “We book for 4 and it is so painful to put it all together”
Thanks, TBB. Maybe we get a breakout at FTU? Problem is that we’re more of a support group than an “expert” panel as booking for 4 sucks!