blog essentials

Whoever said that blogging is free must not have experienced blogging at all.  Even when it is pursued merely as a hobby, there are bound to be expenses.  These are what I discovered about the cost of blogging after almost a year of serious blogging.

1. There is no such thing as free.

Even with the availability of free blogging platforms such as Blogger and WordPress, a blogger cannot actually participate in active blogging without incurring cost.  Some costs may not be as evident as compared to costs accounted for in a regular business but they remain as expenses directly connected to blogging.  Some of these are:

A. Equipment Costs:

Bloggers would need a computer to use for writing and publishing blogs, a decent camera for pictures that will accompany the articles, and other equipment and gadgets that will help them produce blogs with better content.  Software, anti-virus program, as well as other programs are bought and paid for.  It certainly helps to have a suitable working area as well with basic furniture at least.

B. Utility Costs

Electricity and Internet costs are monthly expenses related to blogging.  Without these two, no blogging can be done.  Some do not see this as an expense especially those who are blogging at home and simply relying or riding on the electrical and Internet service of their home and which is still being shouldered by a parent  or the owners of the house.

C. Upgrade Costs

In time, bloggers will want to upgrade their blogging platforms and will most probably shift to the paid version.  This will happen because of the natural inclination to improve the blog via professional themes and plug-ins.  It is a fact that paid themes are really far elegant than free ones.

D. Domain and Hosting Costs

This is not applicable for free blogs.  Self-hosted blogs will have to provide for hosting fee every month.  Domain names are paid for an agreed period of time and are subject to renewal. Failure to renew on time can result to other people buying the name which a blogger has worked so hard for. Rates vary depending on the service provider and the inclusion in the packages being offered.

E. SEO and Marketing Costs

No successful blog ever made it without SEO and sound marketing strategies.  Direct costs can come from hiring SEO experts, outsourcing blog content , and PR groups (usually for company blogs).  Paid listing service is something that may be considered by serious bloggers.

2. There are other related costs to blogging.

Most people see bloggers as free-loaders especially when they get product freebies or cash for attending a product launching, press briefing, movie screening, and other similar events. It has to be noted that bloggers will have to spend on gas if he or she uses his or her own car, transportation expense when commuting, representation expense to look presentable for the event,  and sometimes even for food when the event time goes beyond the time when food is provided.

Of course, there will always be the other side of the story where certain abuses on privileges granted may have occurred but that is another story.

3.  There are unseen costs in blogging.

There are two main costs that can fall under this category – time and opportunity.  Time and opportunity usually equate to money.  It is about finding the equivalent of the time spent in blogging  and the opportunity that may have been lost in choosing to blog instead of doing something else more financially productive.  Writing articles, interacting with readers and the blogging community online, attending events, making reviews, all use time.  Time is probably the most important cost in the equation of blogging expenses.

My Say

I never really realized just how much investment blogging requires from a blogger until now when I am going through the experience of it all.  Blogging is perceived to be an easy job but nothing can be farther from the truth especially if a blogger is seriously into it with a mission.  Potential bloggers will have to understand that blogging entails costs beyond the financial expenses.  In blogging, one cannot help but give a part of one’s self for the craft.