A Lesson In The Benefits Of Blogging

Blogger Jeff Jarvis has outlined the advantages - both financial and otherwise - of writing a new media blog.

Jarvis left his job with Conde Nast to become a full-time blogger in 2005, and says he has never looked back in terms of income, job satisfaction and variety of work.

And he puts a price on all this too - pointing out that his Buzzmachine blog costs $327 (£165) per year in hosting costs and makes him approximately $13,855 (£7,000) in advertising revenue.

That’s not to mention the indirect financial benefits, which Jarvis says include a teaching job at a New York university which he obtained after gaining attention in the blogosphere.

In his Guardian column, also a result of the blog, Jarvis asserts that Buzzmachine has brought him a range of consultancy jobs.

He writes: “The only reason I get those gigs is because companies read the ideas I discuss at Buzzmachine and ask me to come and repeat them in PowerPoint form and explore them with their staff.”

Jarvis reveals that he has also secured a book contract for an idea he first discussed on his blog.

He concludes: “The blog has stoked my ego, getting me on TV and on conference stages to blather to audiences far and wide.

“It has also checked my ego, as my readers never hesitate to challenge and correct me.

“It has forced me to be more open to new ideas. It has given me a second career playing with new toys; professionally, it keeps me young.

“Personally, it has made me countless new friends and reconnected me with old ones, owing to a blog’s ability to give a person a strong identity in Google searches.

“People ask how I have the time to blog on top of everything else. But the real question is, how could I not blog when it leads to so much more?”