Business Case #2: The Commercialization of a Blog

January 27, 2004 | View Comments (12) | Category: Web Business

Summary: The beginning (or the end) of the 9rules Network.

When do you put more energy and passion into something, when it's something you love to do or when it's you get paid to do it? How about answering with a third question of would I put more energy and passion into something if I loved to do it and I got paid for it? This has certainly become a major dilemma with myself. I love writing for this website, but I would love to make more money (who wouldn't?). If I invested more time into other things then I would certainly be making a better living, but that would be at the expense of writing. Designing websites for a client is one thing and designing websites for yourself is something different. Clients have this amazing ability to kill your passion for design, so do you stop designing and find something else that you like less, or do you just keep designing?

People enjoy this site because they believe the content is of a higher quality than most sites and the discussions seem to take the content to another level of thinking. I learned that I loved teaching design, discussing design and building resources for others to learn, more than I did designing for clients.

This is a touchy subject for many including myself so hopefully my words come across the way I intend them to. If you like what you read here and would like to see even more quality content then feel free to donate. If you felt that I have in some way helped you in the past, then feel free to donate. If you just want to donate because you enjoy the scene here, then go right ahead. If you think the content on this site warrants a monthly subscription rate then donate monthly. If you feel the CSSVault is a great resource then feel free to donate. Otherwise, just continue on reading and enjoying.

I will be straightforward and say that more money means better content, more frequently. If I begin to make money here, I can focus less on how to make money elsewhere. I have a ton of projects (dubbed the 9rules Network) that I would like to do for everyone, but money and time hold me back.

The reason this is a case study is because I have taken a risk and decided not to take any client work for the whole month of February to fully invest my time into this venture (and LAJ). I may fall flat on my face, but not without giving it my best shot.

Feb. 1 is the launch date of the first project on the 9rules Network (excluding whitespace and the cssvault of course).

Trackback URL: http://9rules.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/125

Comments

#1

Quick note... you need to store your logo on an SSL protected server or something... it throws an error when you go to the paypal page. :-)

JC (http://thelionsweb.com/weblog)

#2

Hmmm, I don't get any errors when I click on the buttons.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#3

Try it in IE for windows. Any time you visit an SSL page which is attempting to include anything that is not protected via SSL it throws up a warning which you must respond to prior to viewing the page (basically it lets you decide whether you want to block the non-ssl content or not) And it's one of the very few IE things that you cannot turn off the first time it appears. Really, I think it's something that all browsers should warn on, annoying though it can be... the potential for abuse exists.

JC (http://http;//www.thelionsweb.com/weblog)

#4

Well I guess I will just take the logo away from the paypal page then to prevent the popup.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#5

Oh, pal! Wish I could donate but since I live far away from USA, a dollar is a bit expensive, you know.

Gaspar (http://511.blogspot.com)

#6

"... Clients have this amazing ability to kill your passion for design..."

I don't entirely agree with this statement in fact this is, in my view, one pitfalls of trying to be a designer. You must never forget your are working for your client and if you want your client to be passionate about the work you provide then you need to be able to communicate in a meaningful way. It's not a coincidence that some of the best designers are the best not because of their work but because they can convey this passion to others or even the reflect the passion of their client. That's the trick that makes designers real money. The clients idea's and your idea's should be seem as one. Of course there are clients who can be just plain difficult, but in my experience most are not. You just need to chat them up a bit.

Egor Kloos (http://www.dutchcelt.nl/weblog/)

#7

Egor I believe you are mostly correct in this assumption. I believe the more recognized you get and the more business that you build up, the more selective you can be towards who you taken in as your clientele. Many top designers are able to show their passion towards something because they are able to choose which projects to take on therefore enhancing the experience.

I will admit that I have had few problems with clients and this isn't even about designing for clients. It's about writing and creating projects that everyone in this community can benefit from. That is what I am beginning to enjoy doing more (as cheesy as that sounds).

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#8

"People enjoy this site because they believe the content is of a higher quality than most sites and the discussions seem to take the content to another level of thinking."

Thanks for giving me a good laugh this morning.

Jonathan

#9

Hey no problem Jonathan. I guess I was just going on what people tell me. Note that most sites does not mean all sites. There are still plenty of design blogs out there that top mine easily. But I am glad I could make you laugh.

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#10

Paid money means deadlines. Deadlines mean less time spent on the details. Details is what makes a site, piece of design etc. in my opinion.

David House

#11

Well posting everyday I kind of already placed deadlines upon myself. Whether I receive donations or not the content is going to hopefully continue to get better and I understand that many people (maybe everyone) feels that this stuff is not worth a couple of dollars. I have no problem with that, but I guess sooner or later I am not going to be able to write at this rate anymore (of course nobody is forcing me to).

Scrivs (http://www.9rules.com/whitespace/)

#12

I made a donation. I have only been reading this blog for a couple of weeks and I've found a lot of great reading. It's worth it in my opinion. Keep up the good work Scrivs :).

Vinnie Garcia (http://blog.vinniegarcia.com/)

Keep track of comments to all entries with the Comments Feed