Is Paid Content the Future for Bloggers and Websites?
 |
| Image by expresswriters from Pixabay |
Income from advertising is not that easy to realize for many bloggers and websites, and other sources of income do not work as easily either.
Is that why paid content is a solution?
I am answering this question as part of my blog parade article Would you pay money for web content? to.
Is Paid Content the Future for Bloggers and Websites?
 |
| Is Paid Content the Future for Bloggers and Websites? |
More and more services are coming onto the market that makes it possible to implement micropayment payments. This allows you to pay for individual articles quickly and easily and thus implement paid content.
But membership sites that are completely behind a paywall are also becoming more and more popular.
So it works. The only question is whether it is a possibility for many or if only a few can live off of it.
Would You Pay Money for Web Content Like Your Own?
This question contains 2 questions.
I would spend money on content, but of course only on selected content that is worth it to me. In no way would I pay a flat rate for web content.
The second part of the question is more about how you assess your content. Is it so good or is it so important to others that they would get paid for it?
This is a very important question to ask yourself before you even think about installing a paywall.
Robert, the initiator of the blog parade, asked a few questions that I would like to answer:
- How much would you spend on a blog article, for example?
That is of course difficult to answer. It depends on the content. If an article says how I can save 100 euros on the purchase of certain software, I would certainly pay more.
If it is just an interesting article that I would like to read, the pain threshold is certainly lower. - What kind of content would you pay for? (News, evergreens, tutorials, it doesn't matter, the main thing is high quality)
To pay for content at all, it would have to be unique or not be available anywhere for free in this form.
In my case, that means that I would only pay for unique tutorials that I can't find anywhere else. Of course, size also plays a role here.
In my opinion, it is also very important that I already have a lot of trust in the author or the website concerned. Because then I know that I am getting high quality.
I think it's rather unlikely that I would pay for news or other content that has no long-term benefit and that is also available free of charge elsewhere.
Most users share this assessment, as this study shows. Even if the trend is upwards. - Which form of payment would you choose? Once per content or as a subscription for an entire website?
That too depends on the individual case. However, I'm more of someone who prefers flat rates and therefore prefers to pay a monthly fee, for example, rather than for individual content.
This is the case with me for example with video streaming services. - Would you pay (donate) for content voluntarily, like a “Like” or “Tweet”?
I've hardly done that before and when I see how little many blogs and websites earn with Flattr and Co., it doesn't seem to be widespread.
Especially since donations are something completely different from paid content in my opinion. - When would you not pay?
If it's not worth it to me In addition, I would only use a few offers of this type in order not to lose track of things. - In your opinion, is the payment for (blog) content fundamentally contrary to philosophy?
On the philosophy of blogging? There is no such thing as THE blog and that's why there will certainly be bloggers who generally reject it and others who have no problem with it. It looks similar to the users.
Does Paid Content Have a Future? Yes and No
Paid content will surely be accepted by more users in the future. It just takes a bit of getting used to. After all, many people are willing to pay for content (newspapers, books, CD, DVD, television ...). In time, at least some of them will be ready to pay online.
Still, I don't think it's a trend that will take hold on a broad basis.
On the one hand, it is because relatively little money will be spent on paid content in the next few years. According to this forecast by Statista, in 2016 there will be just 560 million euros for e-publishing.
That may sound like a lot at first, but it is spread across many online platforms and the money primarily stays with the large and well-known providers.
As already mentioned above, there are a few requirements to make permanent money with paid content:
- You need a relatively long-range, as only a fraction of users are willing to pay.
- You need a good reputation because trust is important with paid content.
- Unique content that is not available anywhere else.
- The content must also be of high quality and must not disappoint the “buyers”, otherwise, you will not earn money in the long term.
- The right audience is also important. Not everyone is willing to spend money at all.
All of these prerequisites are not guaranteed, but they increase the chance of making money with paid content.
But that also means that the majority of bloggers and websites will realistically not be able to make money with paid content.
Euro Opinion
Is paid content a realistic source of income for bloggers and websites?
- This will only work for certain content. (39%, 124 votes)
- Yes, in any case. (22%, 68 votes)
- No, it won't work at all. (20%, 64 votes)
- Large blogs and websites only. (19%, 59 votes)
Number of participants: 315 (1 vote)
Post a Comment