Out of economic necessity / desperation, I’m thinking about taking protein wisdom to the subscription model. In order to sustain the site (and myself, should I entertain returning here with regular content), I need to raise a minimum of $600 monthly.
The problem is, the only people willing to pay for website subscriptions are the die hard regulars, and having been away for so long, I haven’t the foggiest idea how many of those remain — or even if they’d be willing to donate monthly to keep this site going, what with other sites providing “free” content financed by advertisements or paid agreements with satellite sites (for instance, the Hot Air writers each receive in the neighborhood of 10x each what I’d require to keep the site going; PJM contributors likely between 3 – 20x, depending on the contributor).
So. Here’re my questions to all of you. Would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription fee for protein wisdom? If so, how much would you be willing to spend ($5, $10, $20, more / less)? Would you pay for a yearly subscription up front at a discounted rate, or would you prefer a month-to-month model? Do you like the multiple contributor model? Would you prefer more dedicated content from me? Would you be amenable to a part free / part “insider” content model? — a kind of OUTLAW nation within the parameters of a larger site?
Please drop a note in the comments below. If you don’t feel comfortable divulging your identity, use a fake name and email address (problems with trolls and proxy IPs are one of the reasons I’ve decided perhaps to go this route — so smoke ’em if you got ’em).
Thanks for taking the time. I’ll keep this post around for about a week or so to gauge the response. I look forward to implementing any changes that need to be made around here in order to keep the site going in a way that works both for its readers/commentators and its content providers.
And I mostly look forward to being able to write here again without the instant personal attacks that seem to crop up in the comments of any post with my byline.
Evidently, I scare the shit out of certain types.
Yes, 15-20, yearly discount, multiple bloggers is fine and DUH!
Does that cover it?
It will if I can find 29-40 more people just like you, Pablo ;-)
28-39
27-38
Would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription fee for protein wisdom?
Already doing so defacto, de jure is fine with me too.
If so, how much would you be willing to spend ($5, $10, $20, more / less)?
Any of these levels are fine.
Would you pay for a yearly subscription up front at a discounted rate, or would you prefer a month-to-month model?
I would prefer yearly or quarterly, but why not all options unless the more frequent are to be too much hassle.
Do you like the multiple contributor model?
Would you prefer more dedicated content from me?
Yes, multi-contributor brings more perspectives into discussion. That said, your writings are the main reason I started coming here and stay around. Even in discussions of others postings your influence is palpable.
Would you be amenable to a part free / part “insider” content model?
Probably best as the free can draw new subscribers. Perhaps 3 levels? Free content level, free to read. Paid content level, small monthly fee to read all/most all content. Paid commenting level, somewhat larger monthly fee to read all content and comment on it. Just throwing it out for discussion.
26-37
25-36
(In the meantime, can you make the Viagra ads go away? )
Right now times are tough, but I think I can definitely go $5 per month, and probably $10. Not much more. As long as you are writing, I think having multiple authors is okay. I would tend to agree with others that having some free and some fee content would be best overall to bring in more people. Considering all the time wasted in the comments with trolls (and I count myself among the offenders) I would think a model that keeps out the non-paying types and has bans, temporary or permanent, for any subscribing offenders, would be something to think about, especially for your posts which seem to bring out the worst jackasses. I would prefer to be able to keep my handle in that situation, so a model that allows me to use my real name to pay but my handle in the comments would be best.
What Viagra ads?
You know I’m in.
I’d considered making it all pay — with maybe Darleen, JHo, etc., free, if they wish to keep contributing — and then allowing people to read the entire site free for one week. I may be able to do something with levels, but I’m not sure. I’d hate to lose readers who can’t afford, say, $19.99, but if I go with $10, then I need double the subscribers.
I might be able to start at $20 with the goal of getting it down to $10 as I get enough subscribers, then leaving it at about that rate, at which point I’d be moving more toward actually making something off all the content I provide.
Jeff, check your gmail.
I’d pay something.
$10-$20 a month; discount for yearly subscriptions. You could also take a page from Jerry Pournelle’s “Platinum Subscribers” and offer yearly folks some extra content of some kind.
I’m up for it.
TD, there’s a vast difference between offering reasoned arguments (or even unreasonable but mostly polite) and the kind of personal attacks exemplified by someone like thor (the Mother of Trollhammer), which makes subscriptions necessary.
And lefty bigot shows up to squawk old lefty dead and discredited talking points; which are repeats of “racistsexistbigothomophobe”. sqawk sqawk sqawk.
People who believe in the Global Warming “science” scam have no business complaining about anyones alleged scientific lliteracy, since many here saw right thru that fraud early on.
I could handle $20/mo. $10 would be great if we get enough people…
In fact, November’s fee is on its way.
;^)
I could do $10.00 per month.
I hate to be pessimistic about this, but I doubt it would work.
An insular subscription site where the same diehards (who I mostly respect and find interesting) would eventually become boring (and at $25 a month pretty easy to drop out of). The current plan is not exactly working well either, because bitch slapping snowcone only is so fun so long. Even though Darleen does a yeoman’s job making the place run and the content it excellent, it is a blog death spiral.
If the site cannot attract enough contributors at $25 a quarter to make it work, or there is not some patron willing to kick in a big patronage, I would recommend suspending and Jeff doing something new. Because Jeff is a talent. Jeff barely comes now and when he does he does not stay long.
I would recommend a year sabatical for now to think about it.
The alternative (which might work) is more regular contributors running stories such as Jeff in the lead, Darleen, Serr8d, Pablo, BigD, JD (even if I do not like him he does make some good points), etc. Reinvent the site.
Comment by Jeff G. on 11/28 @ 12:22 pm #
What Viagra ads?
Most us see a scroll of Vigara ads below the comment box. Some sort of spam/adware infection.
Jeff, while I understand your inclination to go paid content, please consider your alternatives also.
1) Using to space to do some more marketing. Sell your book and select others, whether political or fiction. Through Amazon marketplace or through the authors.
(was thinking an arrangement with Gunny Bob might be feasible)
2) If financial requirements are being partly caused by blog expenses themselves, consider moving host. I use bluehost.com. unlimited domains and bandwidth for a fixed price.
3) As to paid content, I would stick with teasers out front, pay for rest and all commenting by paid members. that way the content still turns up in SE to bring in new blood and gives you better troll control.
4) Market yourself by writing the occasional article for other venues that link back. Unfortunately, the easiest one to get published in (American Issues Project) has quit publishing new content. Have to try Town Hall or American Thinker as alternatives. Harder to get into.
Fair disclosure, as an E-tailer that’s my first inclination… fwiw.
I could handle $10.00 a month. Which, I think I was doing for a while, but I’ve slacked off thanks to RL craziness. But, if there was “more Jeff” I would definitely keep up.
BMoe, dicentra, guinsPen, Carin, etc, etc. They should all be contributing stories. Keep the place humming.
So far the only websites I have paid for access to are forum sites that add extra features for members. That said, I wish these websites were more transparent on their financial status. The public TV station I grew up with used to have funding drives where they would say how much money they need to operate, and when they got it they would stop the begging on TV. I then moved to another state where the PBS station had squirreled away more than a years worth of extra funds That they were using for funds creating show, to become of of the big boy’s of PBS.
Joe,
Perhaps commenter registration to lock out the snowy/thor idiots, and the occasional “bleg” posts, like plenty of other sites do.
More dedicated content from you; monthly $10-20 range. Extra OUTLAW content for premium.
My #28 is actually a response to Joe’s #22, rather than #27…
By the way, the “V!@gra in Manchester Uk” is at the bottom of the page again. It wasn’t earlier.
No offense, Joe, but if it won’t work, it won’t work, and this site will go away.
I need $600 minumum per month to make it worth my while. If my voice isn’t worth $7200 a year — while others who are consolidating power in the “conservative” movement are either getting paid considerably more, or else are interested in doing some vanity cheerleading for the GOP (and so attract GOP ad dollars and sponsors) — the market will tell me so and I’ll go away.
As to TD’s points — now deleted — the problem is/was never with dissenting points of view, as anyone who’s read this site over its duration knows. The problem is that people like TD use proxies and numerous identities to pollute the site under the protection of anonymity. Thanks to his comment, I was able to delete 20 comments from 12 different user names — with all the comments sharing the same tone.
Don’t like it? Find another place to spread your wisdom. But if you are going to spread it here from now on, you’ll be doing so under a single name and without using IP proxies. Period.
The Viagra ads only show up after one makes a first comment. If I close out pw and come back, they’ve disappeared. I guess that means only commenters need the Viagra.
Wait…
you don’t scare me mister. I’m in for a year cause of that’s more fishunt.
this is exciting
Right now, I’m looking at about $230. I’ll give it a week, as I say, to come up with a workable model, but the bottom line is, I’m going to need to meet my target.
Some of you haven’t been around long enough to remember what this site used to be like when I was providing more eclectic content (interviews, movie reviews, conversations with inanimate objects, original “poetry,” etc). I’m looking to head back in that direction — without the extra aggravation of IP proxy trolls trying to keep me offline.
I want to help keep PW going and to be able to read what Jeff writes. I just don’t think anything that threatens to work out to $100-plus a year is do-able for me.
Still, if I have to lose a favorite read, this way beats at least one alternative. I can always hope my finances get better.
Are you sure, McGehee? I’ll be working blue…
You know I’m in. As for suggestions? I might go with mixed pay/free content, so the “tease” factor is out there to entice folks to join up and get access to all the content and comentary privileges on those threads.
Perhaps I’m to cheery and optimistic, but I’m pretty sure that there are enough folks in the commentariat to keep the costs down; enough so that those who could only afford 10 bucks could be in also. But, tough times require tough measures, and it’s all about what you can afford to take Jeff…
I know that during the last election it seemed like there were easily 100 or so commenters putting their 2 cents in. I’m sure if that if they thought you might be back in the swing of things-so to speak-they’d be willing to put more than 2 cents up for that.
We can make something work out I’m sure.
I waiting to see what fleshes out here- I read this a few hours ago and need time to ruminate. I’m in the 10-15 bucks a month range. Higher than that, and I’d have to drop out for now. More Jeff, definitely. Perhaps a monthly, yearly, and doing an occasional bleg for those with extra cash willing to throw in your direction?
Of course, one problem I see is that in such a closed community how do you attract new readers? How do you get picked up (and spread around) by other bloggers? I think you’d have to have a “free” part … with perhaps your more important/pertinent articles appearing there. The ones you would like to reach a wider audience.
At the free portion, “whoever”/visitors would be free to comment. The idea being ONE thread being much easier to police- yet you still have a bit for open conversation with new readers.
Those are my thoughts. not yours.
10-15/ yearly discount. I like the multi-contributer option, but would like more fro you when you have the time or inclination.
There are plenty of folks who’ve regularly contributed to fundraisers over the years whom I’d make sure weren’t hurt by this. But I do need to do something.
At some point, people are going to have to decide if they want to leave the “conservative” message up to the likes of PJM or Hot Air, who can afford to consolidate and pay their contributors.
Huh. A leftard misses the blindingly obvious. Amazing.
I’m glad I got to see that before Gaia kills us all.
#41 is parody, right?
I could use $600 a month too.
Easy. All you have to do is write something that someone else will pay to read, rather than simply TrollHammering you on sight.
Of course, that’s about as likely as you getting any other type of paying job.
JeffG: I’d have to figure it out, but I think I’m probably already in voluntarily somewhere the $5-10 range, so yeah, I’m willing.
No, that was one of our trolls who likes to switch identities every so often. stinkfingerheretic@gmail.com. On the plus side, the comments he left — now deleted — led me to 53 others, also now deleted.
These people can’t help themselves. And that’s been to the site’s benefit here recently.
A site like yours with the number of pageviews you have should be able to be self supporting with a well designed package of advertising slots. Does anyone know of a reputable company able to host and market a site like this without totally pissing off the readers? You know, Netflix popups and auto-loading audio and video ads? Keeping those at bay while making enough revenue to pay for the upkeep?
I think that if you go subscription only, you will lose in many ways.
Just my opinion, best of luck to you whatever you decide.
JeffG
Boss, why a mixture where your content is free, you allow advertising AND commenting via a forum would be paid registration at, say $10/month? No trolls, but your content is out there and searchable. Income from advertising and a comment section that is manageable because anonymous drive-by trolls aren’t going to pay to piss all over the comments. The advertising income could keep the monthly fee in the newspaper subscription ballpark. Offer yearly discounts.
IMHO once you go over the $10/month there is a psychological barrier.
However, the more you write, the more traffic, the more ad revenue, you could even drop the monthly fee a few bucks.
I’m confused: what’s more “welfare”? Selling your services, or having the government increase taxes, then use that tax money, minus their cut, to “create jobs” (that is, to create make-work positions the market doesn’t need, unless the size of the federal government is consistently increased)?
Wait, maybe it’s not me who’s confused…
argh … “why NOT a mixture”….
Also… please ignore my (now) #42. Troll droppings have been deleted.
Darleen —
I used to run ads on the site. Unless you sell them yourself, places like Blogads took such a significant cut that you ended up making nada. I have to reach a certain figure. I don’t want to go more than $10 per month, but I may need to start out with a level above that in order to hit the mark, depending on the number of subscribers. At a certain point, with enough subscribers, I can lower the fee.
Anybody familiar with Pournelle’s model? Want to outline it for me?
Listen: you can get anti-leftist boilerplate for free lots of places. Some of it’s even rather entertaining. I realize that. But I have to do something to survive.
I receive emails all the time telling me my voice is valuable and asking me to write more. I’d love to do that. But I can’t do it for nothing — not because I don’t want to, but because that’s the financial situation I find myself in.
also, JeffG
for the subscription, you could also offer exclusive content, such as podcasts or videos.
$5-$10 a month, but you better make laugh or think.
Left out the “me” there.
Pournelle’s main blog is free, but he also sells subscriptions which give you access to premium content.
He doesn’t really have a comment section, though. Instead, he posts a selection of the most interesting mail he gets. Trolls only make it through if they’re whacked out enough that he thinks they’ll provide amusement value.
Count me in. You need to consider too, Jeff, if you start contributing on a regular basis the readership will go back up quickly, especially if the trolltards are eliminated.
Ideally, I’d hope to settle at about $4.99 per month as the base subscription level.
What kind of premium content does he provide? Any ideas?
Yeah, I think 10 bucks a month is fair to start off. Anything more is like an actual bill, and lord knows I have enough of them. Also, it might be worth your while to actually develop this into a site as well as a blog. I think you have plenty of material backlogged that is relevant to expand upon on a front page. Maybe add a bulletin board for paid subscribers as well?
I would be willing to pay a yearly subscription. This site is unique in what it provides, particularly if you (Jeff G.) have dedicated posts more often. The other contributors are good, but you are sui generis.
I like 4.99 better than 10. :-)
Expand on this idea of “site” as opposed to merely a “blog,” RepubOnAcid?
Here’s description.
He has a subscriber’s mailing list, and there’s also a premium content somewhere on his site (I’m not finding the link right now, of course).
He does tech journalism and writes science fiction. I think I might have seen somewhere that he gives subscribers access to drafts of his books, but don’t take that as read.
He certainly does use his site for promotion of his print books, and uses the Amazon affiliate program for those (I gather that he gets more in commission from Amazon from the link than he does in royalties from the publisher, so that’s something to keep in mind, too).
I forgot to mention that I would pay up to $15/mo., preferably with semiannual or yearly billing.
I only read Pournelle when he collaborated with Niven. Haven’t read much SF at all lately, either, so I’m not sure if he’s written anything interesting.
I’m so far off the modern line of SF that I still consider Snow Crash new and exciting.
“Snow Crash is Neal Stephenson’s third novel, published in 1992. Like many of Stephenson’s other novels it references history, linguistics, anthropology, archaeology, religion, computer science, politics, cryptography, and philosophy.”
I mean, has there been anything worthy since?
are there any sites out there that charge you for each comment you make?
Yes, I think highly of Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon, Diamond Age, and Baroque Cycle.
My idea of a site is that you would have a front page that centers around your writing and thoughts. Maybe news links and other points of interest. I don’t have much time to think about anything today but I will on Monday. I will send you an email I suppose.
Will pay $10-$20. Yearly discount would be great. I like the other contributors, but it’s the JeffG that brings me here.
I found Snow Crash after reading Cryptonomicon. Bogged down in the first book of the Baroque cycle; might pick it up again, but not anytime soon. It sits there, taunting me.
I am in..
Another thing: anybody have any experience with self-publishing and or Publish /Print on Demand? I would like to put together several books from the stuff I’ve written here, but I can’t afford the break even point to be 250 copies sold.
Jeff, Amazon’s CreateSpace has no up-front costs at all. You set your own price and retain all rights. That automatically gets your book on Amazon. Putting it on Kindle is free, too.
https://www.createspace.com/
They do require that you buy one copy of your work, I think, but that’s nowhere near $250.
Back in my past a company (Animeigo) had the rights to a series of shows (Kimigure Orange Road TV) that some of the fans wanted released on Laser-disc this being long before DVD. They did a deal if enough people would put up the funds in advance they would do the set. Those persons got some extras but it was mostly done because we wanted it and were willing to put money where the mouth was. I was one of them.
Could something similar get a book done?
LuLu.com gets good reviews as a self-publisher service.
Just to throw another idea out there for your monetizing this: a “$5 per month subscription for the ability to comment, so long as you’re not a jack-ass, in which case I’ll ban you, delete your posts, and keep your money” model might work.
I don’t know if you’d hit 120 distinct commentors per month, but you might get a core group of 60 or so, with trolls paying you to attack you so that you can later delete their comments.
Also, the work itself would be public and, therefore, accessible.
just a half-reasoned out thought.
I was looking at Lightning Source. Will check out CreateSpace.
geoffb — well, I’m not averse to it, but if I can get a book out On Demand and retain the rights, that’d be the best. Ideally, I’d be able to sell them both from the site (at a higher profit rate) and through Amazon, etc., (at reduced profit).
I’m thinking about putting out a book of some of the original “poetry” I’ve published here. I was going through some of the stuff and it still made me chuckle years later, in some cases.
I have a subscription website but offer a serious actionable service. You need to measure your traffic and accept what advertising you can make.
I enjoy visiting occasionally especially for the humor. Don’t be discouraged since you do have a unique slant on things.
I offer actionable service, too. Because let’s face it: not just anybody can summarize the news…
I’m in for the $10.00 a month. I would love MUCH more Jeff Goldstein, thank you. Darlene and JHo are great as they add different perspectives and it would be cool if they could still post, too. A premium plan would be good and maybe even a la carte pricing for the premium content as well. “Hey, here’s an interesting article, here’s the $2.99 (or whatever), let’s read.”
BTW, any book of any type you publish will be bought by many.
Other suggestions:
If you want your book to look like a real book rather than some shitty bound Microsoft Word document, check this out:
http://web.aanet.com.au/sage/lyx.pdf
For managing citations, you want this.
All of this stuff is free.
No more than $10/month. But you have to write more…
$10/mo, or $50 for six months. I might have to drop Rush 24/7 to afford it, so you’d better be skewering people on a regular basis. And I’d better see the armadildo dance for that kind of coin. Huh, what did I say?
hot air’s really been taking it to the next level lately
I dun’t ever read Hot Air anymore. I like reading Doctor Zeros pieces but that’s about it.
I dun’t like the way they summarize the news.
I’m interested. Anything below $20/month sounds reasonable.
it’s very lowest common denominator I think… sometimes Mr. Cap’n Ed surprises me. Not just too often though. I go there for Mr. Karl.
in re tv and the Lambert contretemps, I wonder what one would have seen were one to have been in the audience at the first performance of the Lysistrata? Course, that wouldn’t have been as simple as flipping a switch, entailing as it did a walk to get to the theater.
‘feets, that link needed a disclaimer.
I refuse to watch mainstream TV anymore. Why suffer the guaranteed revulsions ?
They’re GONE! The Viagra ads didn’t reappear after the comment post!
(more OT commentary, sorry Jeff – but who watches awards show?)
Jeff, I’m in for $5 to $10 for now. I’d happily do more if I could, just because you’re the best damned thing there is to read on the Internets. Per your #34, I have been here long enough to remember when you used to write funny shit, and I’d love to see more of that from you, and I’d hate to have the possibly too-high price push me away.
Since the second best things to read are Darleen, JHo, TSI, and the others, I am in favor of multiple contributors. Just want mostly Jeff.
Also, regarding your implied lack of desire to be a GOP cheerleader-for-hire, you could perhaps nevertheless utilize that model, just with a different client base. The Sarah Palin approach, if that association doesn’t turn you off. Look for individual candidates who “get it”, rather than playing the party list, and cross-pollinate your ideas and theirs, on your site and theirs. You’re getting their message out, and they are the public face of your message. And they pay you for the privilege. Granted, not GOP-size bank, but $600 a month is piddling as a campaign expense.
especially that awards show… it’s just made up
I don’t like Mark Kirk. He’s a buttface.
this is for you Mr. serr8d
this was my favorite part
Jeff:
$5 a month I would be willing to do, $10 a month is a possibility, anything more and I personally would have to take a pass at this time (my family does OK, and I want to keep it that way).
More of you posting would be real great, but I’d still like to see the other posters too (Darleen most especially). A free area would be good, and even important for bringing in new readers.
I love the political stuff, but a return to more varied content would be wonderful. Some of the older stuff you wrote still makes me laugh. The Martha Stewart prison diaries were awesome.
I think $5 – 10/month would work for me. Give a discount for annual sign up. If Collins gets posting privileges back, I’ll want a refund.
Count me in Jeff.
The front page can be the Pub…. and the 10 bucks or so a month get you into the private lounge. Have you considered a little on the create your own ad space? A few bucks here and there….. just a jpg really and so NoScript and AdBlock would be bypassed. What I am saying is I hope to reach a level at some point to need further advertising.
I miss the eclectic content, but love the new stuff from guests. II also enjoy serious generated content. Premiums could be the archives, video, etc. I wold also subscribe to your book. Either in helping publication or serial.
Sorry… a little stream of consciousness.
Ha, that was a good article Happy.
“I go there for Mr. Karl.”
I go there for Doc Zero Feets.
Jeff I would do something along the lines of Rush Limbaughs site. Basic content (in PW’s case Darleen, JHO and TSI’s contributions) along with teasers to the paid content.
Make an appearance on the free site when hot news topics occur to keep your name in the market. You could always block comments on your free posts or mirror those posts in the paid area and subscribers could comment there.
One somewhat off topic suggestion would be to integrate the pub posts with the main site like hot air does. That might draw in more traffic and encourage people to write more. My guess is that a good number of your regular visitors either don’t know about the pub or rarely visit it.
As for subscription prices try 9.99/month or 19.99/quarter. Yearly subscriptions probably won’t get much interest
Well thats my nickel (more than two cents but probably not worth a dime;)
Jeff I’d do $10mo, but the obvious question is this: What was pw’s former average peak traffic?
It seems you have the ability to generate a ton of page views, and with that traffic comes the ability to montetize by page and click – per ad impression and/or per ad click. Install GoogleSense (which pays per click) write your ass off, take the subscription base offered in this thread, and see what your “new” paid traffic looks like compared to your best traffic of the past.
Then decide which works better: Take the new, under-subscription ad performance, ratio it to new traffic, compare new traffic to past traffic, and project what an all free site would generate in revenue once the barriers to unpaid reader traffic came down. You could run such an analysis monthly.
Look, the hard truth of web content is that it’s a load of daily work and just as much luck. I was involved part time with a firm managing 100,000,000 pages a month and while it was possible to pay a half dozen folks a decent wage from that volume, it wasn’t making them rich. Should you drive traffic to even a few million a month, you’re making your nut just off the ads (not Google, but they’re how you start and how you keep the base ad “mailbox money” happening.)
Other: Uppgrade to WP’s latest, install some sort of reader/commenter registration, puke the trolls at sight, and never pay them any more mind. Also, have you no other webzine you could join? Could not pw’s good name be partnered somewhere? Would PJM not benefit from pw being incorporated there?
WSJ charges $102 a year, $1.99 a week.
Whatever the market will bear, I guess. I could only throw $3.00 a month at you, but that would also include Mrs. Click.
Danger,
Jeff 24/7?
;^)
Personally, I think all blog posts and comments ought to be viewable on the “public” side, with posting comments and Pub posts being “members only”. I’m sure we can come up with some other features for registered members along the way.
i think that makes sense
Does the WSJ do prison porn?
No. I don’t think so.
Wasn’t that, technically, erotica?
JHo —
You get that kind of traffic in the blogosphere by getting other big sites to link to you. Hot Air, Ace, and Patterico are not likely to do anything other than freeze me out.
If I can’t get what I need, I need to go away. It’s pretty much that simple.
I’ll try doing ads on the “free” part of the site so that I can keep the subscription price down. But I can’t compete with the WSJ, eg. Then again, the dynamic is much different there than it is here. You get what you pay for, I guess.
I could do $10/month
Jeff,
Jerry will provide the Platinum folks his column before publication; newsletters about every 2 months about what he’s doing, such as science fiction cons, conferences on computing, etc., recommendations (pro and con) on tech, book progress, etc. He’s also sent out things like bookplates with his autograph, and of course he is likely to hear about such things as new virii and puts out the warning when he does. He also does a fair amount of blog posts on politics type topics, especially when it touches on space and technology.
i like the pay to comment approach i mean you could harvest $0.25 for my thoughts on your property right now
I’d do $100 a year, $150 if you wash my car next time I visit my brother in Centennial. Well, Okay, just do the windows.
Numbers 99 and 101 seem cogent. Front page, Pub and limited content; $10 subscription gets you Jeff G. and commenting privileges. Some of ‘the good stuff’ escapes to the Pub as a hook for subscriptions. If anyone wants to link, from Ace, HotAir, whomever, they’d better pay for the privilege.
I’ve had it with a lot of ‘mainstream’ bloggers; the circle jerk is annoying. F’rinstance, I’ve read Allahpundit on Twitter…he’s taking commenters for granted; not a good thing to do if you’re dependent on traffic. (OT, but did you see how AP was eviscerated on Black Five last week? A few more like those and he’ll be back to photoshopping! ;)
That sounds familiar. And yet, the people who counsel that are traffic pariahs, and the big voices on the right are the metrosexicons and sanctimonious pragmaticrats who’d rather pretend to fight little individual battles, even as they run from the battle over first principles that make every other fight moot.
pay per comment makes trolls pay
pay per comment also allows linking. if you hide behind a wall not much gets out.
jeez i just spent $1.00
If it takes one man sixty seconds to dig a fence post hole, would it take sixty men one second to dig it?
“…one man sixty seconds to dig a fence post hole…”
Never dug a post hole, have you?
No, but I invented these here intartubes.
No, but I did invent blah-blah-blah…
Souffle.
Everything old is new again. What’s been tried, needs to be tried again.
Two words:
Jeff.
_._
Cam.
…. you could charge $1,000 per month for, say, an average of six hours per day of Jeff in all his glory: Reading blogs, doing research for writing, eating Cheez-wiz straight from the can, taking a nap … and so forth.
As Mick Fleetwood once responded to a reporter, about the band’s plan to price their upcoming album at $3,000,000 per copy: “Well, we only need to sell one.”
So, how does one put/type the frog deal on the “e.”
The White House just got in trouble for that omission.
or, given the nature of them what hates you,
you could get a web cam and charge people to watch you read their posts outloud on your site. No comment, no critique. Just your voice reading their posts.
Oliver Willis would pay.
Retardo Montalban would pay.
Amanda would pay, as would Jill, and the other one, the one that’s a guy, but writes at a site for gals, he’d pay.
and the gals at that other site that writes about gal-stuff, they’d pay, too.
~ cue James Earl Jones ~
They’d pay, Jeff. They’d most definitely pay.
Their money would show up in your paypal account … a link attached to an email … the links would be so thick you’d have to go to Full Pane view to see them all .. they’d plunk down their money and bask in the sight of their mortal enemy reading their words.
The one constant in America, from generation to generation, from technological leap to technological leap, from the past to the present is that there are a lot of douchebags, many of whom have disposable income. People would pay, Jeff.
.
I had an idea about five years ago that there was a market for people would pay to have a hand-written copy of their blog post mailed to them. It would be a service-based subscription.
By doing that, they’d know that somebody had written their words.
But my handwriting is for crap and really good handwriting font software hadn’t been developed yet, and I didn’t know that ACORN could help bring in underage El Salvadorean calligraphers and get me housing …
Timing is …… …… …… …… .. ….. everything
by “written” I meant to say “They’d know that somebody had *read* their words.”
.
Jeff, I do not use proxies nor do I know how. I guess I am a troll, though; but I would pay to access this site because I value the wit and wisdom here.
I always figured cynn was an honest troll.
I don’t actually consider cynn a troll at all. Not overly bright, invincibly ignorant, and inclined to post when she’s drunk off her ass, but she doesn’t deserve to be included in the same category as SFAG, Rilly, Racist Willie, and their ilk.
cynn darling
Yes, and actually cynn’s Thanksgiving tidings seemed very heartfelt. It made me a little verclempt.
cynn has always used her own name and avoids the kinds of personal attacks on me that are favored by both the left, and the exceedingly good people at Patterico’s.
I’d be in for $20/month. I pay half that much to hear Hugh Hewitt interview Mark Steyn four times a month with the occasional dash of VDH thrown in.
If the subscription base grows, I like the idea of ‘early adopters’ getting a break on their subscription prices down the road. Kind of like being charter member of an exclusive club. Also, maybe for a premium those of us who don’t currently have blogs of our own but might want to occasionally highlight items of interest could have limited posting privileges, in the Pub or a variant thereof.
That said, why not dedicate a few of my rapidly devaluing dollars to help keep this site alive? What’s it worth, to keep one tiny candle alive against the coming darkness?
Mongo,
I won’t pay Hewitt that money. I really miss the Steyn, VDH and occasional Hitchins, but I’m not paying some overpriced lawyer to listen to something that goes over the air for free. I’ll pay Rush that, for now, because I can’t listen during the day.
Jeff, when you have asked, I have given. I am sure the core group of regulars do that too. Do not mix me in with TD. I am not being pessimistic just to be negative. You should be getting at least $100,000 a year for doing what you are doing (hell a lot more than that)–But I do not see that happening at $20 a month from 30 regular voices. I do not see how it expands.
You do scare people. I hope you scare them more. The truth can be scary. If you are asking for 30 contributors to support the mission (mini patronage for a bigger purpose)–fair enough. But I do not see a subscription service like what is being proposed doing that. It cuts off the people who do not visit here regularly. It is the outreach of the message that is critical.
Then again, this kind of shit is pretty fucking scary.
Not that my head’s worth anything, but here are a few things off the top of it:
Would it be easier to look at a lot of smaller revenue streams, instead of or in addition to one big one? I don’t know about Amazon’s program, but I’d bet my entire paycheck that Insty gets revenue when people buy things through his Amazon links. I don’t know how much that is, but if your readers buy something from Amazon it wouldn’t cost them any extra to buy from Amazon through your site. In a post about books, tv, movies, I’d hope it’d be fairly easy to add click-through links. If it was something I wanted, I know I’d make an effort to get them through you.
If you do go with a subscription setup, I would keep at least some of your (Jeff’s) stuff available for free, because I think you can still generate links. Don’t know if the old setup’s enough for you financially anymore, but I’m pretty sure the blog traffic only dropped with your posting level. It seems to me that if your output on the site went back up, at least some of those links would follow. And the higher the traffic, the more you can get for ads, whatever that number may be.
Also, trying to get a site like The Qor onto something like the Kindle might help a lot. It looked like an interesting site, but my main problem with it was that I would be paying $20 a month to read stories on my computer monitor. Maybe it’s just me, but I only read certain things on the computer. If you can somehow get The Qor set up for a subscription service on the Kindle, though (I know you can subscribe to blogs, but I don’t know the details), then its content would get a lot more appealing, at least to me. Hypothetically; unfortunately, I don’t actually have a Kindle yet, and I doubt I’m the only one.
Finally, you’re the only person on earth who might be able to out-Twitter Treacher. I don’t know if there’s any money in that, but there it is.
I’d like to say that $5-10 is fine with me (it definitely sounds fair), but I’m afraid I’d flake out eventually and don’t want to lie to you about something this important.
Good luck.
Ace generates traffic with pussy. You should try that.
Patrick – I’m on the west coast, so if I don’t get Steyn on the podcast I won’t hear him. For now I’ll shell out the money. What’s more, I think the net is moving in the same direction – you’re going to have to pay for quality content. I think our esteemed host has twigged to the same trend.
Joe – Agreed. Jeff G. + Catblogging = $Profit!
Charge $50 a year. You would only need 144 subscribers to meet your minimum income requirements; any more above that is gravy. Creamy chicken gravy, with bits of giblet.
You have the cart before the horse. You have a good product but your launch strategy needs work. Email me. I work cheap, or in this case, free.
Every link is sacred. My hunch is that you would be better off with all your content free to read, and subscription only access to post comments on the main page and the ability to post content and comments at the Pub.
Ace, more pussy.
$10 a month is fine for me.. Especially with the AUD/US exchange rate as it is..
I like the variety of contributors too..
I don’t comment very often, but I check in every day just in case Jeff posts something. I could probably swing $5 per month, but only if it means more Goldstein. I like Darleen’s stuff just fine, but not enough to pay for it. That’s not meant to be insulting, either, as I could count the number of bloggers that I’d be willing to pay to read on one hand, and have a couple of fingers left over, but Jeff is one of them for sure.
I think your commentary is nothing short of a necessity and I would commit to a yearly subscription. But while I find the other bloggers interesting and the commentary dynamic and insightful, it better mean more cowbell.
Jeff, long-time,first-time.
Used to visit PW 2-3x per day; now maybe once a month. I felt like we had something there, but you apparently just not that into me, and I took the hint.
I want lots of JeffG, many small snarks during the day, and the weekly, or more, of the garrulous, eloquent, loquacious and bitchslapalistic oratories on the latest Identity politics shit of the week, philosophic and hermeneutics (though less than 10,000 words per post. Dude, i’m trying to read this at work). Jeff, you must be getting blue-balls from all of the low-hanging commentary fruit that is falling off the vine for lack of a JeffG-wheres-my-bat-you-friggin-pinata” bitchslap.
$5-10/mo, paying semi-annually to ease the pain, and is less hassle than monthly for you to manage.
I drop a tip in Glenn Reynolds jar every year at Xmas time, because I spend so much of my day having him tell me what to think. Paying for you to do the same (but with more dick jokes) would fit into my budget nicely.
Anyway, thinking of you and yours. I’m a former OC,Md bartender, so i got that going for me…
$10/month, I’d do. Keep it simple, at least at first. You could spend a lot of time and effort, and money, and get a big kludge, easy. Free to read, pay to comment. Leave all else as it is. For a little bit anyway. As an early next step, the blog+site idea intrigues; the site could have an intentionalism academy, MMA videos, and breaking/related news links.
I have a friend that did an on demand book for his first novel. He’s writing a second now for a traditional publisher as a result. I could pass questions to him, if you like, of ask if he’d discuss it with you himself.
Any chance you could just get a gig writing for one of the big sites?
If it becomes pay,I won’t visit. You have a good site and I stop by daily. There are others though and unless the whole internet turns to a paying proposition, I’ll not pay any of them.
Sorry – no offense, and I’m only one of many many, but you asked.
They are lagging indicators, riding passively into the future while looking/facing backwards. You have always been “bleeding edge”, seeing/making the future before it arrives.
*De-lurking* I’m a college student and have been reading PW daily for the past 2 years. In that time, I’ve learned quite a bit from the postings and subsequent comment threads. I’m here every day, really. I understand Jeff’s attempt to make this a profitable endeavor, but at this time I won’t be able to contribute to make it worth his while. But, well, this is just me. My two cents, so to speak. I hope this site doesn’t go away.
You get a million plus views a month if you work your tail off, Jeff, this is true. It’s a big number and would take assorted strategies — I like sdferr’s #114.
Even Ace? Anyway, such an endeavor will take first that high content output and then a smart strategy for a link network — Fedora could yet offer one such inroad but then I don’t know any of those personal dynamics. Yet some or all of them could be part of your long term approach.
Of course. As yourself how thoroughly you’re willing to work whatever equation you decide to. It will take a multi-faceted approach. A slight cosmetic overhaul to show a new direction, your content again, and a load of networking when and wherever possible. sdferr’s steps, others.
Don’t keep the subscription price down for its own sake, obviously, maximize both. Maybe take the consensus monthly rate in this thread and make your decision.
Yep; it is what it is. I just spent a year on a major site effort and so far it’s costing the group over a grand a month in ad work — I won’t see a return for months, if ever. We have no idea if or when it’ll go viral and actually break even. Over five thousand content pages and there you have it.
You, you have a gift. Unless you put that back out there and work every angle you can, you’ll never know. If under a grand a month is your goal to start you may have a solid chance.
Almost certainly.
Well.OK. $5, maybe ten., But I get to wrap it around a brick and pitch through Amandas picture window first.
“It’s a big number and would take assorted strategies — I like sdferr’s #114.”
JHo meant serr8d’s there. Just saving ya the startle when you look it up. ‘s cool JHo, it happens.
Jeff,
I’d pay whatever fee you deem appropriate. I’ve been on this site for years, de-lurked on a few occasions, but have learned more just reading what you and yours have had to say. Why not try to link-up with a few other notables like Ace/Maguire/Denninger. You guys would have all bases covered and it would probably be the only blog I spent time reading.
Comment by JohnP on 11/29 @ 1:38 am #
… “I want lots of JeffG, many small snarks during the day, and the weekly, or more, of the garrulous, eloquent, loquacious and bitchslapalistic oratories on the latest Identity politics shit of the week, philosophic and hermeneutics (though less than 10,000 words per post. Dude, i’m trying to read this at work). Jeff, you must be getting blue-balls from all of the low-hanging commentary fruit that is falling off the vine for lack of a JeffG-wheres-my-bat-you-friggin-pinata” bitchslap.”
Jeff,
That should be the title for your grand re-opening post.
Which reminds me of another idea. I’d like to see a Hall of Fame for comments similar to your greatest hits. Their is a goldmine of Happyfeet comments alone in the archives that are are in danger of being lost forever.
FOR THE LOVE OF ARMADILLOS MAN, DONT LET IT HAPPEN!
“that are are in danger of being lost forever”
their can never be too many are’s when refering to Happyfeet ;^)
56.Comment by Jeff G. on 11/28 @ 2:16 pm #
Ideally, I’d hope to settle at about $4.99 per month as the base subscription level.
God bless you, sir, and a happy Christmas to you and yours, sir.(Rusty tugging is forelock, hat in hand)
I can do that.
I’ve loved PW forever, but I’m so thoroughly disappointed by the last few years (Jeff in/out, here/gone; blowing off Karl and Dan; the endless Hamlet act, etc.) that I’m sorry to say I wouldn’t pay. Jeff, I’ve lost faith in your ability to commit, produce consistently, keep your head in the game. Sorry- I just don’t trust you anymore.
No offense, Joe, but if it won’t work, it won’t work, and this site will go away.
If this site went away and Jeff did nothing that would be tragic. But if this site was a step on Jeff’s writing career–well, that would be okay.
More Jeff and I’d do 10-20 a month. I’d prefer paying annually but will do what I must to get some more of those armadillo adventures.
I’m good for $20 per year.
The feeling is mutual, conanthelibertarian.
I posted an item over at the Pub about an anthology of Jeff’s work:
As Jeff alluded to last week, I’ve been going through the archives here, assembling a collection of his work with an eye toward pitching it to a publisher. Last week I asked him for permission to enlist your help.
Jeff and I came up with a quick list of “categories” under which to organize the book, but I think it’d be best to not influence your choices by letting you know what those are.
Feel free to recommend categories yourself, for that matter. Use the comments here to point out particular posts that were intellectually stimulating, scathing, funny, etc.
Also, and I haven’t talked with Jeff about this yet, but a comment on Jeff’s post today made me wonder if adding a few comment threads might not also be a good idea.
Anyway, please let me know what you think.
Thanks.
It has been great fun going through the archives, especially those with items from before I became a regular reader. I’ve got a pretty good first list with some ancillary material for between “chapters,” but it would be great to include the favorites of the loyal readership!
You don’t necessarily need to have the exact URL for the post, I’m familiar enough with most of them at this point that if you just let me know what it was about generally and I can find it.
If you’d rather email me than leave a comment at the PUB, my address is:
mathew1421 at gmail dot com
This is exciting stuff, and it’s an honor to be working on getting such an important voice out there!
Cowboy – The Kennedy interview and the Phones in a time of Roaming are classics.
Jeff G – I am with Pablo above.
Just tell me what you need big guy.
I would like something like $20 a year. I want to only notice it once every long time and have it be small enough that I don’t mind paying it.
I’m with Mr. blah about those amazon shopping posts. I like knowing what I’m supposed to maybe buy, and I don’t always stay on top of it all very well. There’s just so much stuff. For example I need a GPS but the ones the dealers sell you are offensively expensive I think. Those Mini dipshits want like 2K… plus they do that “this car rides on nitrogen” gayness that makes me want to slap them upside their stupid gay Mini heads. Also I need diet materva cause I can’t find it in my stores anymore but for that price there should be some good what comes of it, no?
The Great Theresites Massacre could be edited down into a pretty entertaining read. It covered a few posts as I recall, and was real infotainment.
the Amanda Marcotte dealio Mr. G was way on top of before it was really on too many people’s radar
You get that kind of traffic in the blogosphere by getting other big sites to link to you. Hot Air, Ace, and Patterico are not likely to do anything other than freeze me out.
Which is why LGF/CJ loves throwing the racist card out. No one wants to link to a “racist”. RSM just passed three million hits, but other sites will not link him because CJ has yelled racist long enough to make it stick.
Um, could I mention something? And I am directing this to all of ya’ll. Times are very tough. Could I recommend something that no matter where you live (In America), I can assure you you can put together a mortgage payment or so every month part time and hopefully have fun.
It’s sports officiating. I’ve been doing it for 25 years, it’s an obsession for me and I’ve cost myself a small fortune by sticking with it, but I know several guys (And gals) who are involved at the high school and youth sports level that are getting by. Really, I would recommend to everybody just check it out. Every state has a governing body for high schools sports and every where around ya’ll there are leagues in football, basketball, baseball, volleyball, wrestling, lacrosse, soccer etc…
Hope I don’t come off as a numb nuts.
Or is that numb nut?
that’s smart I think
Right now I’m a few hundred short each month on that mortgage payment. Thus, this.
Thank you HOPE and CHANGE!
Id probably do what ive done in the past…hit you with a one-time $100-$150 and then continue on (think Ive done it to Dan C. when he had the Fla.problem a bit back)….I’d do this twice a year. makes it about $20 monthly, annualized.
then again, you probably wouldn’t recall me since I use my real name on paypal.
I enjoy the conversation around here, I learn a lot.
I like the $50/year idea, maybe an executive level of $150/year for the “watch Jeff shave himself slick as a baby seal” webcam. Plus, the faster swimming!
This is how you do it, bitches. Ka-ching.
Word. This place needs a bailout.
I’ve lost all HOPE that I’ll ever have anything in my pocket but CHANGE, and I won’t have much of it.
That people continue to read LGF says to me that humans aren’t nearly as smart as, say, gibbons.
Gibbons rarely if ever read LGF.
Gibbons are very graceful too.
Snark noted, but we’re each responsible for ourselves and nobody (we want to be) prospers simply by being owed. To prosper, pw has to hunker down and work a consistent plan.
IMO, the first step is to resolve to ignore an internet full of fools and liars. Which could be as simple as deleting their lofty works on sight. Can’t write by editing some moron’s leavings, and can’t earn without writing, yes?
And #185 about gibbons too.
So ignore the smarmy little bastards except to disassemble their pathetic bleats if and when it adds to a largely unassailable pw architecture.
Policing comments can become a full-time job if you let it, as can defending yourself to keep the record straight.
RSM is trying to get in on the Glenn Reyolds Amazon sales effort. He is trying everything, blegging and shaking his tip jar as if he just got off stage at a Vegas strip show, blog ads, and now hawking Amazon stuff.
Running a blog is tougher than being a real estate agent now a days.
Can you sell Amway from your blog? Talking about evil cults, CJ is selling calendars of his photographs for $20.
I am not sure what Patterico does for blog funds.
In re gibbons, can they too be characterized by the Dunning-Kruger effect? Somehow I doubt it.
RACISTS!!! Just saving the douchenozzles like SEK the trouble. I am nice like that.
I read that as talking about civil suits…
I can commit to month-to-month at this time.
I would only add that if you go with $20/month my expectations would be really high, I could only justify paying that amount long term if the content was useful on a day-to-day basis.
Dancing Armadillos and couch diving might be cute and serve as a nice relief valve, but those aren’t things I would be interested in purchasing at premium rates.
Gibbons rarely if ever read LGF.
Do gibbons read Gibbon(s)? Euell or Edward?
Instapundit definitely uses the Amazon Associates program. Note that every Amazon link on his site has “violentkids” somewhere in the URL. That’s his affiliate ID (technically his wife’s, I think — she’s the violent kid expert). That can bring in okay money, especially if you have as much traffic as Insty. I’ve made pin money from it on various sites in the past (occasionally a bit more — e.g. when people bought some new Macs through my affiliate link). I don’t use it any more myself; under my current contract I’d have to fill out conflict of interest paperwork, and it’s not worth it for the minor income. This site has much more traffic than any of the ones I used it on, though, so I’d say it’s definitely worth doing.
The classic liberal reading list is still there, and might be worth using as source material for a PW-recommended list.
Dancing Armadillo? When?
Plea bargains, mostly.
my favorite book fell off the list, Spies. It’s very subversive I think. In a nice way.
“Also, and I haven’t talked with Jeff about this yet, but a comment on Jeff’s post today made me wonder if adding a few comment threads might not also be a good idea.”
Cowboy that commenter was a smart cookie ;^)
Unapologetic double post(from the pub):
Excellent idea Cowboy, here’s another:
Pauses, turns on voice recorder.
Search the Pub posts for the “Underground Wisdom”.
Shameless plug:
Very few actually read LGF. The only ones really reading it are Sharmuta, Kilgore and Mad King Charles looking for dissent they can root out (those sociopaths make Scientologists look sane and tolerant). The entire purpose of LGF is being a “moderate conservative” site who can denounce anyone (almost exclusively people from the right) LGF disagrees with as being racist along with promoting issues LGF wants to promote. No analysis, no wit, no nothing, Charles Johnson writes his prose in a simplied NewSpeak that any chimpanzee with a key board could pick up in a few minutes (if you offered it a banana as a reward for doing so).
Then Andrew Sullivan and other serious sites like Gawker, Wonkette, Daily Kos, Huff Puff, etc., link to LGF as being a sane brave conservative voice for promoting global warming awareness, or out of control Christianists, or Beck/Palin conspiracies, or whatever. It is a circle jerk feedback loop.
https://proteinwisdom.com/pub/?p=2851 HTML is what makes the “smart cookie” crumble 8^)
I bid 100 Quatloos and an old coffee table.
I’m in as long as it doesn’t cut into my beer money.
Lamontyoubigdummy–on your beer money dilema–I would encourage you to pursue homebrewing, but a careful study of my books show that it costs me more to produce beer than it costs AB to do so and sell it to me. Granted, mine is better. But even pricy micros do it more efficiently than I do it (especially when you factor in the time involved to do it).
Also, I’d be all over the $50-60 annually. I said I’d probably flake out over $5-10 a month, but that is just knowing how I am with monthly payments. $120 at once seems like a lot psychologically, but I could probably be browbeaten into it. If $10 a month is acceptable, maybe two payments a year of $60? Discounts or not, to get more people to pay there should be a lot of flexibility about when to pay.
I’ve tried home brewing beer Joe.
The result was 1lb of crystal meth, 6 grams of enriched uranium, a small rip in space time (do NOT open my refrigerator), and an eviction notice.
I think I’m doing it wrong.
We (Buddies as stupid as, or more stupid than me) tried to make some crystal meth in 1979. It was more of a funy happy drug thing to teenagers. We ran around stealing those big heads full of anti-histimines on counter of convienence stores for about a week.
That was my crystal meth experience. I liked pot better. I am/have been at times a world class numb nut.
Apparently this shole crystal meth thing means a whole other thing these days.
I think you need to keep some of the site free and accessible otherwise you will never get any new subscribers.
“This whole crystal meth” thing.
my favorite book fell off the list, Spies.
Hmmm…. I see it on there.
How about free meth with every new subscription. Then you can stay up late and read stuff.
oops. I searched on “mountain” in firefox but I forgot I had the match case thinger checked… my bad… sorry.
I think donald is high.
Right now.
RSM on mocking AGW
high priestsscientists and promoting tips and Amazon book sales for blogprofit.I would not disagree with this if it was being reported as a caution for the future, but unfortunately it will be used as an explanation of why failure in Afghanistan was Bush’s fault.
Fuck, perhaps Beck and Pablo are right.
Comment by Joe on 11/29 @ 11:23 am #
RSM is trying to get in on the Glenn Reyolds Amazon sales effort. He is trying everything, blegging and shaking his tip jar as if he just got off stage at a Vegas strip show, blog ads, and now hawking Amazon stuff.
Running a blog is tougher than being a real estate agent now a days.
Not really. Running a blog is easy. Generating enough revenue to make it a career . . . eh, not so much.
For my part, I would argue against a subscription model. I have no insight on the revenue calculations at Hot Air or at PJM or anywhere else, so this cocktail napkin Underpants Gnome theory is guesswork:
1. Build traffic
2. Monetize traffic
3. Profit!
My own addenda to that basic theory are subject to criticism. I’ve never had any shame about rattling the tip-jar because I consider it a fee-for-service arrangement: If you like the blogging, hit the tip jar.
Despite the frequent complaints about the PETA ad with Pamela Anderson’s big fake hooters — or the occasional Google ads for gay stuff — it’s the same deal with advertising. I’m a capitalist blogger. The revenue generated by advertising and from tip-jar contributions is entered into an informal calculation: Should I spend today (a)writing a freelance article, (b) looking for a job as a forklift driver, or (c) posting stuff on my blog?
So far, I haven’t applied for any forklift gigs, but who knows what will happen tomorrow?
Joe,
That report is ass covering horse shit. Directed blame horse shit. The “won” campaigned on it and can’t deliver horse shit.
HORSE. SHIT.
It takes no account of what was happening on the ground, nor the insurmountable difficulty of building any kind of alliance in just weeks to get us close the asshole. Bin Laden was fucking Robin Hood to those people. Short of nuking the Hindu Kush to prevent passage without radiation death, our best did EVERYTHING to get that motherfucker.
Pick this up and give it a read.
RSM,
Like your blog, but stopped reading that comment at “Pamela Anderson’s big fake hooters” and went off somewhere else for a minute.
Jeff, ignore RSM. I would pay a lot more per month if you were to include big fake hooters with your intentionalist/ classical liberal stuff.
Not Pam Anderson’s though.
Too easy.
Plus, those things have seen too many miles.
don’t those hooters have hepatitis or something? I will google if I must.
Joe,
Lamont is no dummy, There is no way that we would have short changed the effort to get Bin Laden. The Demorats should be forced to explain their responses to Somalia, Kenya, Tanzania, Khobar towers and The USS Cole.
Lamontyoubigdummy: I agree with your assessment. Do not take my initial comments as critizing the men on the ground at Tora Bora. Obviously
Obama, oh excuse me, Osama escaped at Tora Bora and that issue should be studied. The AP article however seemed written to give cover on Afghan failure so Dr. Utopia can move on to bigger goals likedestroying“reforming” American healthcare. You summed it up with the product produced by the back half of a horse.Danger, agreed.
Ready willing and able.
Since I’m confident of the product I’d prefer an up front annual at a discount, otherwise month to month is fine.
Lamont, thanks for the book suggestion. And if Jeff had it set up we could contribute a buck or two by buying it here.
5.Comment by geoffb on 11/28 @ 12:02 pm #
Would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription fee for protein wisdom?
Already doing so defacto, de jure is fine with me too.
If so, how much would you be willing to spend ($5, $10, $20, more / less)?
Any of these levels are fine.
Would you pay for a yearly subscription up front at a discounted rate, or would you prefer a month-to-month model?
I would prefer yearly or quarterly, but why not all options unless the more frequent are to be too much hassle.
Do you like the multiple contributor model?
Would you prefer more dedicated content from me?
Yes, multi-contributor brings more perspectives into discussion. That said, your writings are the main reason I started coming here and stay around. Even in discussions of others postings your influence is palpable.
Would you be amenable to a part free / part “insider” content model?
Probably best as the free can draw new subscribers. Perhaps 3 levels? Free content level, free to read. Paid content level, small monthly fee to read all/most all content. Paid commenting level, somewhat larger monthly fee to read all content and comment on it. Just throwing it out for discussion.
What geoffb said.
And if you insist on talking numbers
25 or 6 to 4
But if you go that route I hope the crew at Qor understands they are toast. Lileks is great and all, but he’s no OUTLAW…
#219
Don’t sell me short Danger! I’m a HUGE dummy.
Outside of that you are balls out on target.
Clinton had 7 shots at Bin Laden (that we know of) and puckered on all of them. Two of them were silver plattered by foreign governments AFTER major terrorist events (Kenya, Tanzania & Khobar), but the Saudis “convinced” him to say no. And Bush gets shit for his relations with the house of Saud. Cigar Bill was too busy with his ugly fat whore intern to muster up the courage or conviction to scoop up Bin Laden because poor wittle terrorist wouldn’t be read Miranda on the spot. Forget about ordering a SEAL or Marine sniper to quietly ventilate his fucking ass from 700 yards out.
So 17 sailors and 3,000 innocent Americans would have to die.
How Americans don’t understand this all falls back to a weak Democrat President is quite frankly beyond me.
It’s because most people have the intelligence of gibbons, LMYB.
Yeah, but Carter.
“It’s because most people have the intelligence of gibbons, LMYB.”
So…you’re saying most people are like this?
Awful, I know (but it made me laugh).
I will now denounce myself, internalize my oppression, and go stand in the corner for 15 minutes.
At least gibbons don’t read LGF.
Bill Clinton gets a pass, Carter gets a pass, Obama gets a pass. It is all George Bush. Hell, you would think he flew those planes into the WTC himself.
No, that was the Jews, Joe.
“No, that was the Jews, Joe.”
I knew it!
Jeff G is secretly Mel Gibson.
The whole “Goldstein” thing is a front.
Everybody be quiet and don’t let on.
If he’s drunk he might call one of us “sugar tits”.
I hate to say it, but I find myself agreeing with conanthelibertarian (#163). I’ve read and thoroughly enjoyed this site for a long time, but Jeff’s frequent absence, the general (and often melodramatic) negative tenor of the site, and the mantle of martyrdom that Jeff has seen fit to wrap himself in, particularly since the PJM and Patterico episodes, has caused me to read less and less. Which, for me, conservatives/libertarians, and the Internet, is a truly unfortunate thing. Nevertheless, I wish this site, and Jeff especially, all the luck in the world.
I’m probably one of those out there among the great unwashed who is part of the problem, in a sense – I read a fair number of conservative/libertarian-leaning blogs on a daily basis, and have almost never hit the tip jars. One exception has actually been this site – I sent a small amount of $ Jeff’s way a little while back. Still, I blanche at paying regularly for access, mainly because the Net has given me the mistaken impression that it’s pretty much out there “for free” and that if one site vanishes there’ll always be more. Jeff’s easily one of the best writers I’ve ever read – Lileks might be the only guy with the same (seemingly) effortless ability to churn out awesome prose. The fact that both are at Qor has gotten me thinking about subscribing to that – but thus far, just thinking.
I’ve come to this site a lot less over the last year or so, and my visit rate is pretty much directly correlated with how much Jeff writes. Not to slam the other posters, they’re far better than I could ever be, but they just aren’t Jeff. Would I think about paying $5-10 a month? Yes. But it’s better be pretty much 80% Jeff G, with all the crazy stuff (the armadillo, the imaginary conversations, the empirical observations, and the biting commentary) I loved. First time I visited, I loved the site, and it’s a mere shadow of itself. I don’t know what the answer is here, because I have no clue how much it costs to run a blog like this. But here’s a gut reaction.
Yearly discount, more Jeff. I’d even contribute some work. Milblogs seems to have crapped out since I came home from Iraq.
It’s definitely Bryan’s fault I think.
I have to admit. I don’t come here for Jeff so much anymore. I want to, it got me here, and I’ll continue to hit the tip jar, but Jeff ain’t around so much anymore. I come here for you guys. This little community has turned into something great. Dunno what the hell you’d call it, but it’s good. Regardless of particular political bent (‘cept for trolls) this joint has managed to attract the cool, the grounded, the knowledgeable, and the funny.
And, PW is like a speakeasy. Most don’t know where it is and, if they do, don’t know how to get “in” (which is a fucking blessing if you ask me *see HotAir). Darleen and JHo keep it going. We miss Jeff and get all slap happy when he shows up. Retards, trolls, and mouth breathers get spanked pretty quick, and the ones that hang around get shamed daily.
I’d pay to be here, but I don’t want the change.
A few additional thoughts having read others comments.
1- I love the blog +site model. Really like it. I would pay for access.
2- Idea. If in the pay side (and this could be tiered as mentioned… extra to post) Jeff could help with writing… notes or tips. WOW like an instructor. It would work as an incubator for a network of blogs or just overall improve content exponentially.
3- Network and cross post. Jeff is good enough to be doing additional content for more mainstream blogs… Drive numbers up here and it will increase these opportunities. If Jeff is comfortable and has the freedom to post more, numbers will increase.
4- What makes PW work for me is the eclectic nature. Not just news aggregation, or spouting thoughts (notice that really really is all Insty does? He could move his entire operation to twitter), but the original fiction, intelligent discussion, Citizen Journalism, and from day one, an open playground. And I began reading in Spring 2004.
Jeff,
No offense to your cadre of writers, but I wouldn’t pay to read any of them. They’re good bloggers, but I can read other good blogs for free all over every corner of the internet. And if I want to fisk an article, I’m perfectly capable of doing it myself. I don’t need Dan or Darleen to point out blatant idiocy for me, heh.
I’d be willing to subscribe to your site if it were, in essence, what it was before you went into virtual hiding from some pathetic lunatic and we started seeing nothing but content from people not named Jeff Goldstein. Your posts made me laugh, made me think, expanded my worldview and even improved my vocabulary. Wrapping my mind around your writing made me a better person.
But this “look at the stupid liberal” schtick that dominates your site, now… I can get that anywhere. I sure as shit won’t pay for it.
“I don’t need Dan or Darleen to point out blatant idiocy for me, heh.”
Good thing since Dan hasn’t been here since…hey, somebody get me a calendar.
And, the “look at the stupid liberal schtick” that “dominates” this site, while above the height of your genius brow, is, according to every goddamn poll out there, pretty much the current American fucking pass time. So, sure slick, you can get it anywhere.
Just once, I’d like some of the people here to post content regularly under their full names and have people show up to personally attack them and their family day after day after day.
When they begin bitching about it after, say, 5 years, find themselves spending countless hours in a legal fight and at a court house, and having their names archived in search engines as “idiot,” “homophobe,” “racist,” etc., I can show up in a comment thread using either my first name (or better, a pseudonym), tell them that they should quit with the martyr act, stay positive, and continue to produce content for free. Or else I’ll be forced to pass judgment in the form of a guy at a soup kitchen complaining about the menu.
Maybe then they’d share my perspective.
No. This is an occasional read to me (and even more rare to comment), though I consider it as valuable alternative viewpoint on the occasion …but not *that* valuable. I wish y’all well, regardless.
Comment by Jeff G. on 11/29 @ 4:08 pm #
No, that was the Jews, Joe.
Fuck I forgot. Bush was a shitty Air National Guard pilot too.
Just once, I’d like some of the people here to post content regularly under their full names and have people show up to personally attack them and their family day after day after day.
You are right Jeff, because they would not do it. Why do something for free or that you lose money on, only to catch shit from douchebags and jerk offs? They would walk away from it. And there is no reason you should have to face that without compensation. Even with compensation there is no reason you should have to face that abuse at all.
OT: Joe has struck a chord.
Fuck healthcare. I am for an immediate federal “Douchebag & Jerk Off” statute.
If I am forced to deal with either/ or both on any given day, I get paid by the Government regardless of outcome.
In addition, any legislative language shall include legal exclusions for any civilian actions against said Douchebags and/or Jerk Offs that encompass the following: Murder/ Death/ Kill.
I second that. I can even name the horse, er, ass… We’ll just split the difference; I can name the horse’s ass.
The report was done for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by the majority at the request of it’s French-looking chairman: John Kerry, who, by the way, served in Vietnam.
The idea that the ball was dropped at Tora Bora was a favorite of Kerry’s during his Presidential campaign. It only got traction with the moonbats back then and shoudln’t go any further this time. That it’s in this report–well I’m sure that it’s all just a coincidence. It sure as hell ain’t true.
Bin Laden is long dead – prove it otherwise, Senator Kerry. I can still see the pitying looks and head shaking when people used to ask the Afghans “where is Bin Laden” in 2004. They wearied of reminding people he was dead.
John Kerry: “Bring me …………………………… a shrubbery.
Ni”
If Bin Laden’s dead who’s feeding his kittehs?
[…] the mighty Jeff G. over at Protein Wisdom. Hie thee hence and make with the feedback, […]
Here’s what I’m leaning toward at this point: a tiered system with the base being free content on the front page and some partial (teaser) content; subscription commenting on the front page and select other posts ($4.99 monthly); extra content (a lot of more of my stuff, full site commenting privileges, Pub posting privileges, a bulletin board for members, etc.) at $9.99 /month or $100 for the year. Beyond that, I’ll keep a prominent list of special pw patrons (anything at $20+ per month or $220 for the year); I might even do something like a “university” for interpretation theory.
These are rough ideas, mind you. I’d need to run some numbers.
I also get $4 per person who joins The QOR, which features a number of top-tier writers and much in the way of exclusive content. So for those who want a kind of swanky place to relax with more literary types, that’d be something to consider, as well.
“Bin Laden is long dead – prove it otherwise, Senator Kerry.”
Hold on Colonel. Senator Kerry is trying to find someone else’s medals to throw at you.
Sounds good to me.
Jeff @ #252,
I dig it, but only if you promise to let some trolls in free every once in a while so we can fuck with ’em.
Picked up earlier this year but haven’t read yet a copy, #256, of “Strategy and Tactics” wargaming magazine. Article inside on Operation Anaconda. I expect it to be much better than any blather from “The Other Senator from Massachusetts”.
LYBD,
Jeff could have troll tryouts. They send e-mails with their troll offerings and, say, once a quarter, one or two are awarded basic memberships!
Your current leanings above sound good to me as well.
I was prepared to send about $20-$25 per quarter for any future fundraising, so $100/year would be just fine.
“Jeff could have troll tryouts.”
Something tells me snowcone and RD ain’t gonna make that cut RTO.
And I’m fine with that, but we’re not doing this over beers and a pool table (wish we were).
It’s the internet. And every Batman needs a Joker (and a stable of lesser villains) to keep him honest.
That said; I’m good with Jeff @ #252.
Bill me. I’ll pay.
Then bring the fucking thunder.
The good news is that you have a brand, JG. No disrespect to the others, but none of the rest of us have that. I pop something up from time to time hoping to keep the JG brand in idle until something or someone takes it up a notch again. It’s not blogging but folks kindly drop by anyway and the community persists.
That brand rings true. Think about it: 300 million folks in the place and precious few right wing blogaterias serve up necessary secprogg deconstruction. Anyone can fisk the left’s bullshit; it’s unending work. But who deconstructs what promotes bullshit as a matter of daily course and grinds it to powder where it lives?
And yes, both 238 and 240 are right. So divide off what makes 238 true (the Pub) and apply the pissy veracity of 240 to the rest.
What is with the folks coming in with the trash talk? If you don’t show up, I think it can be assumed you’re not interested in paying. It’s just…tacky.
Anyway, I’ve mostly lurked here for years, recently chiming in on a post here and there. I’d hate to see it go, so I would pay a couple of fins a month, especially for more prison porn.
People like to be tacky. Many lack the ability or drive to accomplish anything of note, and it bothers some that others do, so they must tear down others who do to feel better about themselves.
I finally have time to think. Work is horrible this weekened. All of you people out there if you do pc games please go to gamestreamer.com. So…., instead of an email I will post here. I am glad the front page idea took. Whoever you have design it, make sure they have some experience with dhtml. Or if it is you, study it, it is the future. If you go with some sort of Content Management System, I am not sure what to say. I have played with a few of them and I suppose you can tweak them enough to get what you want, but I just don’t like them (so far).
I am not sure if your style for a Frontpage should mimic Rush or anything like that because you actually write. Rush’s front page is usually a regurgitation of his radio show. You would probably want to feature an article that you have written and then have side panels for all the other goodies. So my advice is to go around and look at other writers sites. In particular the “underground” ones since you want to keep your outlaw shine. I think you catch my drift on that.
As far as a bulletin board goes, the best seems to be Vbulletin. You have to pay for it, but it is really stable and intuitive. The free ones are nice, but just not quite as nice.
That’s my twenty five cents. Can it be subtracted from the first installment?
Sorry to go off topic, but breaking news: Huckabee has his Dukakis moment.
“Tacky”
That’s old school.
Haven’t heard the word “tacky” since my Mother described my prom date in 1989.
Yeah. I got some.
cranky-d, if you call a penis a “tallywhacker” I’m gonna fucking fall out of my chair. :)
Just using the word Frontman used. Plus, it gets the idea across without being vulgar. Vulgarity loses its power when overused.
I’m gonna chalk #264 up to a Red Bull overdose (and maybe he thought he was somewhere else or something).
Or…ya’ know…LSD + computer = Protein Wisdom comment
Heh.
That would mean there actually is a “republican on acid”.
Huh.
Who’da thunk?
On the other hand, at least he’s honest.
Point taken cranky (and it’s a good one).
Oh, I dropped right before I pulled the lever for Nixon Lamont. Couldn’t bring myself to do it any other way.
Arkansas governor and pardons are terms that really should never appear in the same sentence. Ever, I think.
Huckabee wasn’t on acid. He was on Jesus.
Not that there is anything wrong with that. Well except that the turn the other cheek thing is beyond dumb when applied to murderers. Man I new there was always a reason I didn’t like that guy.
BTW, what is with Palin flying around on Billy Graham Jr’s jet? I mean not that it really matters but I am not sure that Ronald Reagan part 2 will work in that regard alone. Maybe I am wrong, but it doesn’t seem like it to me. I suppose if the market crashes again (and it will – I am pretty damn sure of it) there will be a mass of folk becoming deeply religious.. I wonder if that is the plan.
KNEW! Sorry for the grammar and stunted sentences. My brain is fried, but not from chemical abuse. No, my brain is fried from work abuse.
Somebody get “Republican on Acid” a Tylenol PM.
And then get Huckabee a good lawyer.
Also from child abuse but not me abusing them, them abusing me. Just got a call from the wife.
“Hey, I just found a woman’s bra on the floor.”
“Wow, really?”
“Yeah, I was cleaning up the basement and found it. So do you have a girlfriend over this week?”
“You know it isn’t me, I am too old and ugly now to have more women than one. Besides, I am also old enough to realize there isn’t any benefit to having more than one other than 20 or seconds of gratification. It doesn’t work.”
“well, I found it in Ian’s doorway next to his room. You don’t think it’s his girlfriends do you?”
“God I fucking hope not. He is my son, he is a moral compass that boy!”
“Well you better call your son and ask him about this.”
“OK.”
************
“Ian, a bra fell out of your bookbag while you were here.”
“Um no, no, I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“Yeah, a bra was on our floor in your room. Who’s is it?”
“Not mine!”
“Obviously pecker wood, go ahead and tell me, because your step mom is blaming it on me and says we are getting divorced.”
“Nope.”
“Jesus you rat, not even that can stop you from lying to me?”
“I am not lying! You are, about getting divorced!”
“Ok, so I am. I have an eye on you pal. You may think you are slick, but you aren’t. We will be watching your every move.”
The first time I dropped acid was an object lesson in how not to do things. About a 1/2 hour after we dropped, and it had not kicked in yet, we decided we got duds, and ate another tab. Good Allah, were we fucked up. There is my self-deprecating comment for the day.
Republican On Acid,
#1) Your son is not a rat (good boy).
#2) Cocaine wears off after a while. Give it a bit before your next comment.
Ahh! Carpet sharks!
Mushroom tea was also a bad idea. Really bad.
Having never tried cocaine, acid, mushrooms, basically anything other than weed and alcohol, and then seeing some of what goes on around here, I don’t miss not knowing what it does to you.
I have had pharmaceutical grade morphine, though, and let me tell you that shit is AWESOME.
I was in the hospital at the time, recovering from surgery, so it was kosher. Plus it helped pass the time.
Never more than good weed here.
BUT
When I was in high school the movie “Young Guns” came out. We knew peyote (We’re in the spirit world asshole) grew in “The Canyon” north of town, It was a wealthy area surrounded by red rock. One of our buddies lived out there. We camped out, harvested a few bulbs, and ground them up in coffee. We were 16 and none of us even drank coffee, but that’s how they did it in the movie, so that’s what we did.
Three hours later a raccoon walked by, stood up on it’s hind legs, and asked me, “Shouldn’t you be getting home young man?”
I tripped for 18 hours.
I had to fucking go home 12 hours into it.
My poor parents.
I had 3 days of that prior to surgery, cranky, and between hitting on the nurses and having conversations with people that I could never recall, it was … interesting.
1st, Lake Michigan, Warren Dunes, Summer ’68. Never knew beach sand had so many colors and patterns. Water was great too.
Yes, Jeff, I’d pay. But only if this stays a group blog. I like Darleen’s and JHo’s posts (as well as the others); they’re what have been keeping me coming here in your absence. I can handle about $10 a month.
JMHO
I wish cocaine was my problem. This seems to be my problem:
http://www.psc.edu/networking/projects/hpn-ssh/
“Ahh! Carpet sharks!”
Senior year, decided to drop about 2 and go to school. Got into English Lit and the teacher played an old bumpy and scratchy record of some old crag reading “Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner” with sound effects. At some point I looked down and the entire floor had turned into the ocean. I started giggling out loud and the teacher stopped the record and asked me what was so damn funny. I don’t remember what I said, but whatever it was, it worked.
Okay, Jeff, this is what you do:
1.Go back into your records and count the number of names who’ve commented here regularly over, say, the last 3 years. That’s the highest possible number of subscribers you can depend on. If it’s promising, proceed. If it’s not, do something else in life.
2. Figure on $10 a month subscription fee. $10 seems to be the sweet spot. Discount 10% for for payment in full for a year.
3. Grandfather in loyal readers who’ve stuck with you but can’t afford the $10/month right now (we’re in a Depression). Give them an option of paying what they can–even if it’s only $1 a month. They’ll pay you more when they can. They’re loyal readers and will want to talk you up. Loyalty is something you can’t pay for; use it. They’ll also help you in countless intangible ways.
4. Feature an article each week on the site that’s publicly available so that the general reader can get a taste of your style and so that the article can be referenced in other blogs.
It should be a general interest article based on important events of the day that clarifies the Left’s rhetorical mendacity. The American public is in desperately in need of someone with an independent bent who can explain how and why politicians–both Right and Left–are bamboozling them. Mark Steyn’s purview seems to be free speech. Your purview can be the political use of language; no one covers that beat. Somehow, the government that was supposed to be held in check, broke through its bonds and is now oppressing us. For the sake of our children there needs to be a champion to help us beat statism back. The average person doesn’t have the tools to fight the lies, but they know they are being lied to. You are capable of clarifying these thoughts in their minds.
4. Write a funny book about parsing political speech: fallacies politicians use to fool the voter. Write it in very simple and clear way. Americans are dying–dying–for this information. They sense they are being brainwashed, but they don’t know the mechanisms by which it’s being done. With your background and ability, you could do the voting public a big service by explaining this to them. Not many people have your expertise in linguistics. But you have to write it as though it were a news article: simply, so a 5th-grader can understand it. Your mission has to be to enlighten those who are honorable citizens but unacquainted with sophisticated linguistic arguments. There’s no opprobrium in writing simply. Thomas Sowell does a great job in another complicated study: economics. His simple phrasing has turned the light on for many.
I would go for that.
Amen to ahem at 289.
I think that Jeff should Jeffalize all banks within 10 miles of him as it is known that banks never give loans to poor people and should therefore be Jeffalized.
It is none of your business about the Armadillo brothel.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20091129/wl_nm/us_venezuela_banks_chavez_1
I think we need a Hugo story arc by Jeff.
Unions and stuff:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3mw49mk_x0
not that it is surprising, but listen how jack ass Olbermann makes sure we know it isn’t “funny”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaT0ZI1Jqis&feature=related
God, that asshole, does he have any real friends? Do any of them tell him to STFU?
Someone up there (too lazy to go look) was mentioning the Tora Bora thing …
Why did they release this finding “now”? Look no further than tuesdays presser featuring our fearless leader. I needed to read no further than this:
Staff members for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee’s Democratic majority prepared the report at the request of the chairman, Sen. John Kerry, as President Barack Obama prepares to boost U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
That is all you fucking need to know about THAT report. EOL.
Would Jeff guarantee regular appearances?
I am in for $10/month. I think a combo of free and pay is good.
Have you considered a paid newsletter? Have you considered merging your blog with another? For example, I would bet that a large percentage of your readers also go to Ace of Spades and vice versa. The sites are similar but different. Both you and Ace cover politics, movies, etc, with great humor and insightful commentary – each have a unique voice. You two along with the co-bloggers would make a very interesting and informative site. I say this because Ace’s co-bloggers were recently trying to raise money for Ace (probably in the same situation as you). Just a thought.
Whatever you decide do so quickly as 2010 is an election year and blog readership will be going up.
As much as I like Darleen et al, I look forward to Jeff’s writings enough to pay…would prefer $5 but can do $10/month. Small enough investment for the entertainment and political insight. Although I would miss the occasional troll-work that infuriates our writers and posters. I still would subscribe even if it meant that we become an echo chamber; at least it would be our echo chamber. Count me in.
To make sure I didn’t insult anybody, I’d like to say Darleen is the hardest-working writer I’ve seen, and I know she has kids and other responsibilities. I especially appreciate her photoshop work, and the occasional Ramirez cartoon.
Jeff,
I’ve hit your tip jar on occasion and would be glad to do so again. Sadly, there are some monthly price levels that simply aren’t doable with three kids in the house. However, at the $5/month, potentially discounted for a year, I could buy in, especially if you might come back on a regular basis.
One other thought: perhaps there could be one day or one week buy-ins for some flat fee? From a cash flow perspective, it’s obviously not the way to go.
In any event, keep me posted with whatever you decide. If I can find a way to afford it, I’d love to watch the armadillo dance on a regular basis.
I said it back when you had your post about the QOR or whatnot that if you would post here more I’d pay for it, and I absolutely will Jeff. Bring it on and come back to PW!
Everyone knows you can’t argue with reason.
More Jeff is good. A lot more Jeff is great.
I’ve been traveling this weekend and just now got a screen in front of my face. I’m in for up to $20/month, but I do agree that $10/mo is about all you can get folks to pay.
To attract people, you could have a free section called “Thwack the Troll!”, where people can watch a poor defenseless troll du jour get batted about. You’d have no shortage of proggtards willing to play Judy to your (and others’) Punch. Plus for the paying people, vids of you showing off some of the catch-rasslin’ stuff. Also, I vaguely remember some man-in-the-street stuff I seem to think you did around what I think was Boulder. I remember it was teh funneh. Or I made it up, can’t recall. But it was good if you did it and could be fun again for the paying peoples.
Yes, video would be great. What ever happened to the PW TV? Nothing? Right. Maybe you can incorporate that, too, as an a la carte offering. Of course, now you’re only one man and can only do so much. I’m just thinking out loud. BTW, in regards to the side drug conversation. One word for me: Vicodin. Come to papa.
So I was thinking about what I pay for magazine subscriptions–depending on the mag, maybe ~$10-$15/year. Mostly they’re monthly, a couple go bi-monthly for part of the year. Yeah, many of them have websites with additional content and probably even forums, but those I’ve looked at are populated with idiots (in stark contrast to the PW commentariat).
Bottom line, considering daily or multiple times per day content, plus a community with which to interact, PW has to be worth at least $10/month to me, maybe more. Of course, small discounts, like 6 months for $50 or a year for $90, would have the psychological effect of making me think I’m a smart shopper, so that would be cool and gratifying.
Ditto.
My initial concerns about subscriptions making the site too insular is addressed by Jeff’s proposal above at 252 and Ahem’s comment at 289. Without outreach beyond this important but limited community really what is the point? That is just preaching to the choir.
But if it is about getting the message out (and getting more voices to carry that message forward), well that is evangelical Outlawism.
You know that Scoop Patterico will buy a sock puppet subscription just in hopes he can pull another “Bill O’Reilly” website story. But all he will find is distain and scorn.
Would just like to point out that the frequency at which some people might be inclined to hit the tip jar might be in direct proportion to the amount of content Jeff actually adds to the site. I like Jeff and have read the site for years, and I have hit the tip jar a couple of times. But it strikes me as odd to ask people if they would be willing to start paying for something they aren’t already getting on a regular basis.
Jeff,
Forget the subscription site model – it never works. The reason that it never works is that you’re trying to charge people for reading your take on whatever the subject is. Only a tiny portion of the audience will do that.
What people really want is to be able to interact with their take on your take and the responses to their take. People want confirmation and recognition.
Try a new business model. Reconfigure your comment section so that you can display “supporting members” in different typeface and color, perhaps with some other identifying insignia denoting the level of support. From “Platinum” down to whatever, you’ll be allowing those who can contribute the most the recognition they deserve. Ego sells better than the thirst for knowledge.
Second, work the brand. As others have commented (and I pointed out in my last bit of advice) you have a good brand that sorely lacks exploitation. Keep your intellectual honesty, but write more linkable articles. Mend whatever fences you need to on the right and use your rapier-like wit to attack the left. Get the web talking about you.
Third, from your past videos you appear to be less-than-hideous visually, so use that. Offer to do some blogging heads videos, get a PR flyer out to C-Span and the cable shows with a head shot and your resume. Include a video interview so they know you are clean and articulate – even if you’re white. You’ve got the history to be a representative blogger, and traffic follows celebrity.
Fourth, use the current and future readers to establish a reader profile that any advertiser can just click on to see who visits this site. Nail down the age, sex, income, time on line and other demographic information so that advertisers who want to micro-target these people can see if this site is a good fit for their ad money.
Fifth, make it easier for advertisers to place an ad on your site.
Finally, as you attract more people you will receive a proportional increase in assholes. Prosecute the crazies, engage the literate dissenters and ignore the pure idiots. This is the rough-and-tumble internet and sometimes you need a thicker skin.
Next time you need advice, you’ll probably be between interviews in Washington. That’s when I’ll start to charge you.
I’m in. I’ll pay.
You’ll still need to drive traffic. Think about giving subscribers first hack at the new posts, move them to the main page after a bit of time has passed. Allow subscribers to rate comments and sponsor new guys for membership. I don’t know if wordpress can do that. You could make the Pub into a members only area with the option to get promoted to the main page or a forum section for members with volunteer moderators. I got all sorts of ideas.
#312 rings true
312 and 313 both show shadows of good models found in Fark, Dig, etc.
But I would still pay to have a little echo… the private side. Too much of jwest’s final point could lead to some level of LGF syndrome.
And, make this too complicated to admin, and Jeff would not have time to post. We will have to get him a staff.
I don’t need thicker skin. I need less assholes.
I would pay $100-120 a year.
Unlikely, for what it is now. More likely, if it’s More Jeff G More Of The Time. But I’m a sucker for textual analysis.
(But what jwest said, at least his first point. Subscriptions are a terrible idea for a website. Never works.)
(Me, though, I hate video content. Refuse to watch it, no matter who produces it. Evidently other people like it, though. Maybe they’re not big on the whole “words” thing, or they prefer listening to reading. That’s exactly the opposite of me.)
I like some-fee/some-free, and couldn’t really handle more than $5/month. Do enjoy this site, but too steep a price would chase away this guy with unemployed relatives…
@316 should be on your pw coffee cups in the pw shop
As a relatively infrequent commenter, but regular reader, I must say the spartan and independent feel of this place is something I’d miss, were some of Jwest’s suggestions adopted. An effort to integrate more closely with the mainstream conservative blogosphere might be lucrative, but it would also take away from Protein Wisdom’s distinctiveness. Prominent advertising and “linkable” articles are easy to find on the net; imagination and wit are rarer treats.
Platinum Level contributor assholes are more correctly referred to as “good customers”.
You’ll want as many of these as you can get.
If you get someone who is not a contributor, is just causing trouble and doesn’t have a legitimate point of view, boot them. But if you have someone who is basically paying for the privilege of arguing, use the thicker skin you don’t need and spend the money on a better quality of wine.
The guy sitting on the dunk tank at the carnival doesn’t compliment you as you walk by his booth, he calls you a pussy. Three balls for a buck, buddy. (It’s a profit deal!)
Amen again to #289!
I’ve never banned anyone for disagreeing. I’ve only ever banned those who’ve made a point out of personally attacking me or my readers.
And trust me: if anything, this site will become MORE edgy under the new arrangements.
#289 and #312 both contain excellent suggestions.
I used to be quite a loyal reader, but only check in occasionally now. The guest contributors are all good (present and past) but nothing unique I can’t get elsewhere. The old Jeff, now that was fun. I wouldn’t pay at this time for this site, but I would consider a few bucks for the old Protein Wisdom I used to love.
Until recently, I worked for a media buying company, and I must say this site probably isn’t going to get anything but remanant ads for quite a while. Even very large online publishers only get premium content for a few of their pages. You definitely need to build your audience before charging for subscriptions.
And sorry, but jwest is right about the thicker skin. Longtime readers know what you’ve had some tough times, but seriously dude, it’s the internet! Nobody likes a martyr and it makes me wonder just how committed you are to blogging. You should do it if you love it, but maybe that time has passed.
Plus, sometimes the comments are the best thing, and I personally wouldn’t be so into an echo chamber, especially if I had to pay.
I wish you the best regardless.
Haven’t read Dante lately but where do the tedious “Jeff is a thin-skinned Hamlet” types go? They do nothing but unintentionally reinforce the obvious fact that some people merely come here to take a shot at someone they’re just soooo over. Wherever would Jeff get the silly idea that a large number of assholes do indeed exist?
Towards the money, I wonder if it might not work if people simply had to pay anything, if only a penny? That gets them to the point where they have their wallet open. Then, most would probably give a buck or two rather than a penny. Would that make the bare minimum amount Jeff needs? I don’t know, I’ve just heard a few negative stories about subscription models in the crazy new age of Everything’s Free.
“I have to admit. I don’t come here for Jeff so much anymore. I want to, it got me here, and I’ll continue to hit the tip jar, but Jeff ain’t around so much anymore. I come here for you guys. This little community has turned into something great. Dunno what the hell you’d call it, but it’s good. Regardless of particular political bent (’cept for trolls) this joint has managed to attract the cool, the grounded, the knowledgeable, and the funny.
And, PW is like a speakeasy. Most don’t know where it is and, if they do, don’t know how to get “in” (which is a fucking blessing if you ask me *see HotAir). Darleen and JHo keep it going. We miss Jeff and get all slap happy when he shows up. Retards, trolls, and mouth breathers get spanked pretty quick, and the ones that hang around get shamed daily.
I’d pay to a be here, but I don’t want the change.”
Lamont,
That was beautiful man, (sniff sniff) ya big dummy (rubs eyes, blows nose)
Sigivald, I think most people in here prefer “words” to video, but Jeff has a decidedly obvious talent for video, too. I’m thinking, should he have the time or the inclination, of the video being more for entertainment purposes. His man on the street stuff. Nothing can replace Jeff’s written word. That’s why we are all here.
Jeff –
If it wasn’t for the little weasel in the White House, I would not think twice about saying “yes”.
However, at the moment, I can’t even afford the gas to drive home. I never thought that I would start to agree with the Jehovah’s Witnesses!
Not my cup of tea, but it does make me wonder.
Global government? As soon as this little ass wipe (Obama) destroys the dollar, we have a global government. The beginning of the end.
And, by the way, if anyone needs me to clean toilets, I am ready! THERE ARE NO JOBS, ANYWHERE!!!
How cool is it to go from $50 an hour to ZERO/Hr?
PISSED, I am!
Charging admission to opinion and humor is the easiest way to end your site here. You’re famous. Well, semi-famous, anyway. How can you charge people for making you famous?
Why not create, along with some other non-hotair, non-pjmedia, conservative/libertarian sites (ace.mu.nu for one) a competing “blogmajog” to compete with pjmedia, et al? Combine, create a publishing ‘group’ you can sell advertising to.
In addition, create an ‘exclusive club’ level that we can join by purchasing a certain thing that you get a percentage of thus paying your bandwidth and hosting fees. Firearm of the month club or somesuch. T-shirt of the month club. Cool baseball cap of the month club. I feel much more comfortable spending my dollars on tangible threads than on bits and bytes and opinions.
Oh. And BTW…
PammieQ has it right.
If you can’t deal with your blog, nobody else will do it. I came here because of Jeff G. Your stand ins are very good, but the reason people come here is to hear from Jeff G.
We hardly ever do. Have you noticed? A job is a job, and I would kill to have the charisma that you have, and to have your blog. Why don’t you use it? We are all here because of Jeff G., not because we have nothing better to do. I don’t mean to put down any posters here (I still come here almost every day), but you are the man who started this, and who made it a cut above.
Accept it, Jeff. You are the Fire Starter.
Whatever…
Use your powwer, Jeff. You DO have it…
I’m not. I’m committed to writing and teaching. I used blogging as a tool toward those ends.
Once it got to the point where people began expecting free shit, and judging me on my tenor in producing it, I opted out. Hence the new model.
Which will either work or it won’t. But what I won’t do is come back under the same conditions.
People like PammieQ might get that if they posted under their real names and were catalogued in search engines as racist homophobes.
After all, it’s the internet! Where’s your commitment to character assassination being status quo?
Because I have no interest in doing that.
I have a unique perspective, style, and brand. It’s that I’m offering. Either it sells or it doesn’t.
PammieQ —
Did you do media buying because you loved it?
Jeff,
How is the shoulder? Did you try any of the exercises I recommended?
Boss,
I forgot to mention above, but I’m in at the terms you outlined in 252.
Yes, I did love it. Advertising makes lots of the internet free, and I love that as well.
Unfortunately, it’s not a good time for print or interactive advertising.
I never loved telemarketing. I feel terrible, years later, that I never really committed to selling subscriptions to the Washington Times.
The problem with a “free” internet is that, from a content standpoint, sooner or later you’ll begin to get what you pay for.
Jeff,
What if someone (or a consortium of someones) gave you $10,000 per year, plus hosted your website – assuming all expenses for the server, maintenance, etc.?
On top of that, what if this same entity gave you a piece of whatever (if any) income they could generate from said website?
Would an arrangement like this free you to channel your creativity on a daily basis?
Can you write your material when it is displayed next to feminine hygiene products and cock enlargement pills?
Jeff, if you haven’t watched Harlan Ellison’s “Pay the Writer” clip on youtube – do yourself a favor and go take a look. It clocks in at under 3 minutes
.
Got a link, BS?
jwest —
Depends on the someone and the specifics. For instance, I wouldn’t work for PJM were they to offer me twice that. Because I can’t trust them, and though I need the money, I’d rather get naked and wrestle alligators for tips.
=^D
here’s a sort of attitudinal swedish girl in a box, Spiny
now at the pw shop – wrestling alligator vids
Finally I can help!
Ahem…If there’s one thing I’ve learned from wrasslin’ alligators in the internet, it’s to tape your tallywhacker to your leg. Else you lose the tip.
True story.
Found the Ellison vid. Good stuff.
Jeff,
I would pay just to watch you piss off the likes of SEK, Caric, and Gleens. Yes. I would very much like to pay to read you taking that fistfull of assholes to the retorical woodshed (everyday I hope). Also I believe, as you have written about on a number of occasions, that conservatives have a problem using language and that all of the major problems we face as conservatives stem from that. I would surely pay for more Jeff if you continue to push the importance of language. $5-10?
I like the idea of a free section (you could call it “The Public Option”) and a pay area…..I like the pub as well. I came here the first time with morbid curiosity (frischgate) and stayed becouse you were on point and brought your A game daily. In addition, the commenters and community was top notch. I know that some of those folks have hit hard times and I would suggest grandfathering some of them in so that they can be a part. Like I said, I came for Jeff and stayed for the community.
I also like the idea of having several contributors…even ones that might disagree with you. I liked Dan Collins and Darleen is as good as ever. I also like the military info brought by Maj. John in the past. All good stuff.
Also I like the idea of a yearly option as well. Count me in.
i still like the pay-to-comment approach. at least trolls would have pay to voice their stupidity. and this way your stuff isn’t stuck in an algore lockbox.
I am guessing it wouldn’t be very practical, but it would be pretty funny to charge $.02 to comment.
Per word, make those “wall-o’-text” guys bleed.
I would pay 5 dollars a month, with a 10% discount for an up front payment. However, in exchange you would have to maintain the current qualities of the blog.
I’d pay $5 a month and would prefer monthly billing. If Jeff returned to the site I’d subscribe tomorrow.
I’m late to the party! I continue to lurk, but would become more active again, Jeff, if you re-emerged from the shadows. I’d certainly pay 10/month or more, though I’d rather make larger, less-frequent payments (quarterly or annually). I oppose pay-per-comment (admittedly, I haven’t read enough of the thread to know if that was suggested tongue-in-cheek).
The model at 252 looks pretty workable to me.
“I am guessing it wouldn’t be very practical, but it would be pretty funny to charge $.02 to comment.”
just some additional programming can make it happen. how about $0.75 for 800 words. seems to me at the bar they charge a cover for the entertainment but you still have to buy the beer.
I don’t visit blogs that make you register to comment much less make you pay to comment. And honestly, you’re way to hit and miss to pay for and honestly, and it kills me to say this, you’re the only one here who’s ever really made me laugh.
but i was aiming this more towards Jeff’s premium section because if you can’t access it how do know it is worth buying?
“I don’t visit blogs that make you register to comment much less make you pay to comment. ”
mr glenn reynolds doesn’t let you comment do go there?
you >go
So I can mark you down as a “maybe” then, Timmer?
Oh. And comment registration is DEFINITELY coming. People using multiple user names and IP proxies to get around bans? Done. Dissent is fine. But you’ll be putting your single screen name and workable email address to it, and if you begin with the personal attacks, you’re gone. No discussion, no refund.
Like LGF, only I’ll be a benevolent dictator.
this thread has three hundred sixty-three comments
this thread has three hundred sixty-three comments
this thread has three hundred sixty-three fucking comments
Timmer?
Jeff’s the only one who’s made you laugh?
hmmmm ….
sounds like a challenge:
okay … here goes
Man walks into Church, looks at the priest and goes Say Father, Why does the Jesus Clock always read 14 to 3?
no, not funny?
okay … knock, knock…
who’s there
knock, knock
who’s there
knock knock
WHO’S THERE
knock knock
GODDAMMIT …
Knock …
Oh, Miss Keller, Sorry I didn’t expect you here this early.
……….. Knock
no?
Well, then, how about the winning joke from the Lefty Scottish Fringe Festival – a peer-reviewed panel tested entrant from among 10,000 jokes submitted to the competition. Here goes:
Hedgehogs. Why don’t they just share the hedge?
.
seriously, that was the winning joke.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/8216991.stm
“Like LGF, only I’ll be a benevolent dictator.”
il duce is there good eytalian restaurant near by
“this thread has three hundred sixty-three fucking comments”
what’s the price point to reduce the signal-to-noise ratio
I love you for getting that joke
364 comments, at a quarter apiece, that’d be $90 in the till. I’ll bet Jeff would write about ten pieces a day for that sort of coin. Probably rub you to fruition for another tenner.
Good, but who is going to play Sharmutta?
swiss cake rolls for 100 alex
single screen name
Souffle!
Who cares, as long as I get to play me…
Would you be willing to pay a monthly subscription fee for protein wisdom?
No, but thanks for the best laugh I’ve had all day.
I don’t think he’s going for the “unemployed and unemployable” demographic, Mike.
But hey, good luck with your own blog. I see that one of your posts actually has a comment! Baby steps, baby steps!
Mike is beclowning the Schilling name.
do read “the good soldier svejk”
here
oh for the days of swiss cake rolls or little debby
You’re welcome, Mike.
And I don’t doubt you haven’t had many good laughs today. After all, your reading list includes Balloon Juice and LGM, which, were I to read those sites consistently, would almost certainly make me a miserable bastard, as well.
By the way, how many folks would pay to subscribe to your site, do you think?
Jeff –
I agree with all who have said to keep the content in the open. I would pay a reasonable sum to be able read the thoughtful comments from your readers even if I normally do not comment myself. Sans trolls would really make my day.
The most odious of the trolls will be gone — or, if they sign up, will be identifiable, and their comments subject to removal if their attacks become personal.
At one point, the blogosphere could accommodate open comment sections. Now, with proxy servers and a generation of online users accustomed to being able to attack strangers without consequence, the medium has changed.
It’s sad, really. In fact, I made mention of that in passing today: revisiting some old posts on race, culture, and language, I was struck by the names in the comment thread. Many of my early readers and supporters are now bigshots in the leftosphere. And yet, I haven’t changed my positions.
Go figure.
*Can you write your material when it is displayed next to feminine hygiene products and cock enlargement pills?*
Shah. It helps my writing.
I’m glad I happened by today. I’d kick in $10 a month just to know you’re out there, whether I have time to read or not.
I am actually sorry you are banning the kooks. If the wacko government lets the financial institutions go free range, why don’t you give the online kooks the same pass?
times change from svejk
“Svejk said saluting. Humbly report , I once read that there was a great battle in which a Swedish king fell together with his faithful horse. They sent both corpses back to Sweden and now they both stand stuffed in the Stockholm museum.”
“If the wacko government ”
downsize the wacko gov’t first
“Many of my early readers and supporters are now bigshots in the leftosphere”
so many of those folks are deranged lunatics drinking heavily from the delusional left. ’cause after algore, climategate, obama, reid, pelosi,clinton, acorn seiu I DON’T DO BULLSHIT ANYMORE
Nor do I.
And cynn, I’m not banning the kooks. I’m banning the people who use proxy IPs and multiple user IDs, the people who attack me personally and add nothing to the conversation.
I would spring not more than $25 per year to read Protein Wisdom on a subscription basis. The group bloggage, while fun to read and write, was always something to help fill space in between Jeff’s posts. People tuned in to see Johnny Carson, not Joey Bishop. Keep the pub up for us in the bullpen, I say.
And out of curiosity: why are there no ads here anymore? Surely the traffic could be swiftly built back up to draw some revenue that way?
Jeff, I wouldn’t pay for the access to proteinwhatever because too often you explode into moronic diatribes. I encounter enough of those already at the coffeeshop. You have a certain
gift for self parody. While your political and societal positions are most likely illegal in civilized countries none the less you deserve the bandwidth to corrupt whomsoever chooses that
path. Good luck and bon chance’. I enjoy the view you provide into a world so completely alien. Thank you.
Jeff, ” before enlightenment washing dishes after enlightenment washing dishes”. I have to wash my dishes.I have only a small amount of time each day to read.I have to do the dishes, clean my apt., shave,work on my putting stroke.Can’t do any of those things while reading.Bring a valuable thing into my life and I’ll pay for it.Talk radio ,sports radio, music lets me maintain a productive life and still be informed, entertained ,enlightened.That’s one of the ways they bring value into peoples lives. 30 to 45min. podcast discussion, You teaching, would be valuable to me.1,000 listener subscribers at THREE beans a month.Value.I would love to sit at your knee.(in the old sense of the expression)
That’s a good point, Bruce.
Jeff – if teaching, and not necessarily blogging, is what gets you up in the morning, then teach! I can only speak for myself but I imagine that most anyone who would pay to read you would also pay to listen to you for 30-45 minutes. You could do interviews to illustrate your points. You could have guest
leftistspunching bags. I bet, per Bruce in #389, that a lot more people would be willing to pay for something that could accommodate a busy schedule better than reading can. Protein Podcasts would be all I’d listen to in the car on my daily commute 45 minutes each way. To hell with traffic reports – more traffic jams means more time for Jeff.Careful, you let a little too much truth slip out there.
What about his sexual positions? GPS positions? Yoga positions?
Seriously, if you were here, daily, putting out something, I’d think about it. But your track record’s about as good as Rachel Lucas’ or Michele Catalano’s. Oh cool, they’re back! Wait…they haven’t posted in a week. WTF? Oh crap, they’re gone again.
I wouldn’t pay for the access to proteinwhatever because… you work in a fucking coffee shop. Again, I don’t really think he’s going for the “unemployable” demographic.
I encounter enough of those already at the coffeeshop.
So you’re saying that majoring in Self Esteem Studies was a mistake?
While your political and societal positions are most likely illegal in civilized countries
“Civilized” and “Stalinist” aren’t actually synonyms. Just thought you might want to know. Also, in your soi-disant “civilized” countries, useless eaters such as yourself are always the first ones sent to the camps.
bon chance’
That’s “bonne chance”. No accent, feminine adjective to agree with the noun. If you’re going to be a pretentious twit at least get it right.
I’ve never posted a comment here, but this lurker finds this straight shooting site worth supporting.
Listening to a podcast while on the treadmill would be pretty fucking awesome. Really.
Jeff,
you are a huge draw and your regular contributions would be welcome. I relish when you show up. However, i see $10 per month as the absolute upper limit for a subscription model.
I mean, I lisetn to Paul Finebaum podcasts.
I would pay $5 monthly for a site that has more posts from Jeff. $10 might be pushing it. Would prefer to be billed month to month….The ideas of progressive content subscriptions might not be a bad idea. $5 gets you basic content and $10 is juicy.
I just wanted to say 400. I haven’t even left 400 comments total my entire life. There seems to be some kind of market for your stuff. I think you’ve got a good idea cooking, go for it.
I’ve been toying with the idea of a kind of weird podcast / tv show — essentially, you’ll spend some of the day with me, no matter what I’m doing. Something no one is used to.
Timmer, Yackums, et al. — I’m only even posting on this because I’m looking for a way back in that doesn’t make me miserable. I leave after a little bit because I get worn down dealing with trolls, personal attacks, blogging politics, etc.
Behind a pay wall, I can say fuck it to the whole dirty business of the “blogosphere” and do what I want, when I want, so long as I can keep subscribers. That’s the way I’ve chosen to go.
romanwalls —
No offense taken. I’m sure I wouldn’t want you foaming my macchiato, either.
But I’d really like to stay “Lost My Cookies”. I’ve gotten used to it. Besides, when it’s spelled out phonetically, my real name means “Lost My Cookies” in a couple of little known sub-Saharan dialects. And my IP changes with the hotel… and I might use TOR or something similar to browse from certain networks… and there’s my phone(s)…airport wireless…and some places I can’t use cookies which was my whole problem to begin with… you’ll figure it out, I’ll adjust.
Oooh, foaming my macchiato. That’s code for something. SEXIST!!11!!!! RACIST!1!!!!!1!! MILKOPHOBE!
or a good name for a band, as Dave Barry would say.
All you need is a camera, and a white board baby. I assume you draw like the guy in the UPS commercials.
Video twitter. Good God, man, that’s genius. We can only hope that you use your powers for good.
It would be more like audio Twitter — I don’t have anyone to follow me around with a camera — but I like the idea. Long silences.
I think the with a subscription you would have a login and password and it wouldn’t matter what computer service you were on at the time.
Yeah, I know. But some of Jeff’s stalkers do some crazy ass shit and if there’s some kind of IP filter, like hey, this guy says he’s LMC but he’s not logging in from his basement, the IP’s wrong and I can’t hear Yo Gabba Gabba in the background so let’s lock LMC’s account. (I do that with my personal ftp when I give someone access).
On the other side of things, if (let’s say) I (or someone who looks a lot like me, but isn’t me. Really. I mean it.) log in from somewhere that technically I shouldn’t be able to and have to log in to see content, that would be a lot harder for someone like me
to cover up. Hypothetically, I mean. Doesn’t matter, like I said, I’ll adjust.To be clear, I don’t want a Lizard Nation. Mindless sycophants kneeling at the knob of Charles Johnson’s cock with their tongues at the ready (quick aside: is it possible to wear a jazzy ponytail on your pubis?).
No. Instead, I want Outlaw Nation.
— You know, mindless sycophants kneeling at the knob of MY cock, but not being afraid to give it a nip every now and then. Independence. That’s the key.
I’d pay 5 or 10 for a while and see how it goes, but, unfortunately, I think putting up a subscription wall on a current event-related site is just a slow way of shutting it down. You certainly know more of the history of such moves than I do, but has it ever met with success? You lose the links, the exposure and whatever influence you have (for example, I think you arguments about the use of language are sinking in, even if few are willing to concede you were right), and are competing against reams of free content. Even the NY Times had to crawl back from this decision.
Could you try some fundraisers, with the understanding that if a specified goal isn’t met you would need to shut the site (or let it proceed without you)? I’d throw in a hundred or so for that.
Well, Dan, I’m trying to work it out so that there’s free content, but extra for subscribers. I may have to compete with a lot of free shit, but hopefully what I produce is more valuable to enough people than much of what they’re getting for free. If it ain’t, it ain’t, and I’ll have to find something else to do. But you never know your market value until you give it a go.
and you won’t mind a little teeth? I gots small lips.
“You lose the links, the exposure and whatever influence you have”
Links lost? As it is currently, links back here are few and far between, ranging from Crittenden to Maggie’s Farm to RSM to a vanishingly rare Insty to the occasional JoM and AoS, throw in Ric’s Rulez and POWIP now and then. I haven’t kept a rigorous account, but in all honesty, Dan S is speaking of something that mostly isn’t right now.
Seems to me that saying and writing something true, particularly where addressing issues no one else is addressing, gets the attention of those that seek such sayings and writings. That ought to be enough.
Although I would not pay a subscription fee (because I’m a spoiled free internet hippie), I would be interested in purchasing any (self-published) books that you might put together; particularly one on literary theory, as I don’t believe I’ve yet come across one written from a classical liberal point of view. Perhaps something along the lines of Bill Whittle’s Silent America, a collection of essays? A single-themed tome on Intentionalism? An admixture of essays, jeremiads and short stories about American political discourse today? Plopping down on my comfy recliner with a hefty block of dead trees is really the way I prefer to ingest my edifying material, so if you do go down this route, count me in.
Adios.
It’s actually on its way, Tyrone.
My rocket screaming across the sky.
Re 414: I agree there don’t seem to be many links now. There will be fewer if content is locked up.
Preaching to the choir is fine, and may be a viable business model. But, although society as a whole seems to be trending the other way, it would be better if “truths” got broader exposure than just to those that already agree with the speaker enough to seek out, or even pay, for their opinions. The opinions that do not so limit themselves tend to propagate more freely.
For example, I think the debate between Jeff, Paterrico, Ace and others regarding Rush’s “failure” quote, for all its heat, was very beneficial in the long run. If Jeff walled his opinions off, we would have lost the strongest voice arguing against the “groupthink” seen from most other blogs. A net loss for everyone.
All that said, I want this site to succeed, and, if business concerns dictate, I’ll subscribe. I’m just not optimistic about the outcome.
Perhaps I mistake the ultimate disposition of the blog in respect of its walled-offedness. I guess I don’t conceive a hermetically sealed container of opinion with a gravity so strong no thoughts can escape it.
I’m certainly not one to have anything to say on groupthink as such, it being as it is a product of itself, to speak loosely, to such an extent I don’t really consider it at all.
I heartily agree about the book! It’s almost like your in my mind.
I guess I don’t conceive a hermetically sealed container of opinion with a gravity so strong no thoughts can escape it.
Neither do I, but I do accept that first it must be created before it can be made public.
Exactly how best to accomplish this? Who knows, it sounds like at least some content will remain public, and there is nothing that says what is behind the firewall cannot be moved out into the public at some later date.
Let’s face it, some of us like to be in on it when it is going down, and people like that are most likely to be willing to pay for that privilege. But finished product still has potential value, it can still inform and shape thought, and can also serve to attract others who may want to join in on future doings.
Jeff –
I have been lurking around your site for probably 5 years. I even try to make a contribution whenever you have a fundraiser. I am not big on commenting on blog sites, but I have been thinking about your post (and the comments it has generated for a few days). For what it is worth, I would pay $50/year for your written content (emphasis on the fact it needs to come from you). If you were doing regular podcasts, I would go up to $100/year.
Thanks.
I’ll be doing some kind of podcast / show, though it may not be something people will like (because it’ll be something different from what other people do). I’m also thinking about doing some self defense / training vids, if people seem interested.
JD can tell you about my forearms.
Popeye
I’d support a subscription model.
So, how much will Jeff be paying us to comment on his site?
Hi Jeff,
I’m a long-time reader, though I don’t know that I’ve ever commented before – though I read the comments. I’ve contributed to a few of your fund-raisers and I would be willing to subscribe.
If so, how much would you be willing to spend ($5, $10, $20, more / less)?
Up to $10/month definitely, immediately. I would maybe be willing to pay more, but only once you start writing more.
Would you pay for a yearly subscription up front at a discounted rate, or would you prefer a month-to-month model?
I would probably do month-to-month to begin with and then if I was happy with the content move to yearly-with-discount.
Do you like the multiple contributor model?
No offense to the other contributors, but I prefer content from you. I would be OK with occasional outside contributors – Kate at Small Dead Animals generally has guest bloggers when she’s away – I find that that’s a good model.
Would you prefer more dedicated content from me?
Yes, definitely, that’s what I want and that’s what I would pay for.
Would you be amenable to a part free / part “insider” content model?
Yes. I think you have to do that in order to attract new readership.
In response to some of the comments in this thread, I don’t really think that “pay-to-comment”-only is the best model, since I don’t comment, and I would bet that a lot of people are like me. Also, if you publish a book, I will buy it. And having book recommendations and the whole Amazon partnership is a good idea. I have often bought books recommended (or authored) by my favourite bloggers.
I hope this works out because I want to see more content from you.
Stephanie
I understand the miserable part. I stopped blogging over a year ago. Should have quit when PJM started up and almost immediately became what it was set up to counteract. Good luck with the venture and try to have some fun.
So, how much will Jeff be paying us to comment on his site?
He’ll pay us what they’re worth, of course.
Sorry, Jeff. I enjoy much of what goes on here, but in all my years of wandering about the intertubes, I have yet to find a site that I would would pay for, including this one. I have encountered more blogs and other websites than I can count, including those which pertain to my favorite hobbies and interests. Many of them are now gone, for a variety of reasons. Everything in life is, ultimately, ephemeral. Enjoy it while it’s here, but be prepared to move on.
Best of luck, Jeff. For what it’s worth, the bit about “dolphin love stink” is forever engraved on my psyche…
No worries, greginsewa.
Some writers will forever give away things that become engraved on the psyche of others. Gratis. Me, I’m no longer among them. As Harlan Ellison would say…
Honestly, I don’t blame anyone who isn’t motivated enough by what I have to offer to sign up. That’s why there’ll still be some free content here. As I’ve said several times now, if the market doesn’t support what I have to offer, I’ll have to make a decision about what to do going forward.
Roger that. Personally, I thinks those pricks in D.C. are gonna fuck up the ‘net to the point of abject irrelevance anyway. Glad I kept my library.
“If Bin Laden’s dead who’s feeding his kittehs?”
This guy, for one hf.
Oops, sorry. Him, I meant.
I get an error on that link sdferr.
Oh, never mind.
Jeff, what would a lifetime subscription cost?
Also, I had enquired before about commissioning your wisdom on certain topics. Would that fit in the model?
As to raising cash, you could also sell naming rights to comments, threads, blogrolls, etc…
Charles. If you have ideas, send them along. I’m emerging from a fog.
I’ll put some thoughts together and e-mail them separately.
All these positive thoughts and suggestions should at least warm the cockles of your heart.
Another lurker… checking your site is part of my twice a day blog check routine. So in effect I’ve enjoyed the wit and wisdom found here at no cost. TANSTAFL! Sure, count me in. Frankly I’d rather pay annually than be bothered with a monthly payment… $100 – $120 a year sounds about right to me.
BTW no offense but, in your absence I’ve come to look forward to Darleen’s insights and when you post it has been a bonus. Credit where it’s due.
I could probably swing a fin per month, although I wish I could do more. I’d hate to have to quit you Jeff.
“My economy” is bad but I would spare $5.00 per month. You just have to keep going. I’ve added your site to my widget for sites I visit.
If you can judge your prospective clientele numbers based on commentary writers here, you could set a price of $5 a month, or about a $1 a week, or perhaps have a graduated scale of Protein Wisdom access for the really demanding subscribers who want it all, not just a hoi polloi or rabble roused section as Chrissy would say.
Basically, no. I enjoy your coposters here, but not enough to pay for their writings. I enjoy your writings enough to pay for them, but have too many doubts about your level of commitment to producing them, to actually lay out money for some amount of writing to be delivered later. You seem to find, all too easily and all too often, reasons to withdraw, and that track record is the biggest issue in the way of what you propose, from my perspective.
Well, Anonymous, the idea here is to give me some incentive not to withdraw. The fact that commenting will require registration, and so I won’t have to be chasing around trolls with multiple user names and proxy IP servers helps; but what helps moreso is knowing that I’m being paid a very modest sum for my time and whatever abilities I might have.