Since the advent of paid posting (hell, for that matter since the advent of advertising) Selling Out has been a big issue. There’s a current post at Skelliewag about Hot not to sell out. Granted, my view of selling out isn’t the same as your view and your view isn’t the same as ShoeMoney’s. I’ve done all kinds of paid blogging and I’ve run all kinds of crazy ads on the site.

There was a point where I was blogging several times a day (about three or four) on whatever “topic” I was assigned, whether or not I had any experience with it or not and whether or not I thought it was a good product or not. Since then, I’ve matured a little, the ads are beginning to produce more revenue than the posting and I’ve begun to be more selective in my “paid” posts. Occasionally I will do a blatantly obvious paid post for a product or service I believe in and use.

Personally, it isn’t “selling out” if you write about things you use and know. I use and know Wordpress, it isn’t selling out when I tell people that its the best blogging platform available. Likewise, its hardly selling out for placing a “paid link” in a post I was going to make anyways, as long as the link fits.

The Skelliewag post does point to the need to continue posting for yourself and not your readers and the point that you should post for creative purposes and not to follow the traffic spikes. It would be pointless for a blog about cooking to post about the recent iPhone 3g release or about the traffic on the turn-pike. However, on a blog that runs the gamut, it might fit a little better. Post about what you know. Post about what you like. Don’t worry about your readers, eventually they’ll find it and who knows, they might like what you have to say.

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