Ever considered joining a blog network? Well, then you will probably like this edition of the Bloggers Face-Off. Those bloggers created two of the biggest blog networks on the Internet.
Jeremy Wright is the founder of b5media, a very successful network that includes some flagship blogs like Problogger.net and Copyblogger. Nandini Maheshwari, on the other hand, is the mind behind the Instablogs community, a blog network that is growing very fast. Enjoy!
 Jeremy Wright |
 Nandini Maheshwari |
|
|---|---|---|
1. How long have you been blogging? |
4 glorious, heartbreaking, wonderful, fun-filled, tear-jerking years 😉 |
1.5 years |
2. How many blogs does your network have? |
We’re at about 200 now, give or take |
133 blogs and growing |
3. What is the main advantage of joining a blog network? |
It takes most of the stress of blogging away (design issues, software updates, finding advertisers, etc) |
Great community, traffic, exposure, higher revenue potential, and technical expertise |
4. How much money does the average blogger on the network make? |
With our new pay system, most of our bloggers will earn 150-250$/month doing 4-5 hours work a week |
Instablogs, being a large community, it varies a lot from person to person |
5. What is your favorite social bookmarking site? |
To be honest, I don’t use any social bookmarking sites |
Stumble Upon |
6. What is the main revenue source for the network? |
Banner advertising through premier partners, without question |
Private Ad sales |
7. Do you think AdSense units make a blog look unprofessional? |
It depends. But even the “most professional” AdSense unit will rarely pay as a low-end inventory banner (50c-1$) |
Yes, if you overdo them |
8. Does the network invest money into promotion? |
We invest back into our bloggers. We have 2 people full time (Shai and Darren) training other bloggers |
So far, we have not spent any money but in coming days, we are planning few ad campaigns for our upcoming community features |
9. How many RSS feeds do you read daily? |
Probably 40-50. But I spend a lot of time on TechMeme |
200+ |
10. If you could give one advice for a novice blogger, what would it be? |
Find your passion and never lose it. No matter what anyone says, if you’re having fun and expressing yourself, that’s what matters |
Go read Problogger.net. However seriously, best advice would be to have patience, be consistent, and network with fellow bloggers in early days |
11. If you could read only one blog, which one would you pick? |
No question, it’s Savage Chickens |
My own (http://www.bornrich.org) |
12. What is the secret of your success, expressed in one word? |
Community |
Passion |
