Blog Ads, Are They Worth It?

There's a feeling shared by many bloggers and blog readers that to sell ads on your blog is to sell out. The whole business of advertising is associated with sleazy practices and annoying distractions (pop-ups, anyone?), so why would one voluntarily pollute their blog with ads?

Bloggers that sell ads often have to justify making a profit to their readers and other bloggers. It seems in essence that bloggers are not expected to make money off of their work; that their blogs should stand as a sort of art for art's sake. But is it really practical to ask bloggers to live as starving artists to preserve the purity of their work?

Obviously, it's not really worth it to sell ads on your blog if you have very few readers to begin with. One must build up a loyal readership before it's possible to make any sort of profit. Still, for those bloggers who have already created a following and are moving up the ranks in Google, there's a chance that selling ads could make a significant difference in their income. Take for example, Dooce.

For those not familiar with Dooce, it's a blog written by Heather Armstrong, who became famous after being the first person to be fired for what she wrote on her blog. That was two years ago. Now, she supports her family by selling ads on her blog, which is ranked as one of the most popular blogs on Technorati. Obviously, her decision to have ads hasn't hurt her readership too badly.

Recently, tech blogger Robert Scoble questioned whether selling ads on his blog would be a good idea. The response from his readers was mixed, with some encouraging him to make a profit and others expressing concerns that his blog just wouldn't be the same with ads. It seems that Scoble was/is also considering donating part of his profits to charity.

I personally am not opposed to bloggers selling ads, so long as the ads are tasteful and unobtrusive. By unobtrusive, I mean they don't pop up, make noise, or flash repeatedly in a strobe-like manner. Yes, I know that ads are meant to be seen, but that doesn't mean they have to induce seizures.