Is JohnChow the Walmart of Blogging?
Ever wonder why the small businesses in some towns are being eaten away when a Walmart is the new attraction in town? Well, I thought about it and its true, Walmart provides killer deals, has better brand recognition and well has more resources. Recently I thought about this analogy of John Chow being the Walmart of blogging. Although some might argue that the “big dawgs” (being a big dawg is a good thing, trust me!) of blogging are Darren Rowse or Shoemoney or someone other than John Chow, I would say that when it comes to making money through a blog, nobody does it better than John Chow. Also, the fact that John Chow is very open about the income he makes from his blog also helps in making that statement. Now, what do I mean by John Chow is the Walmart of Blogging?
Well, lets take a look at this idea. How many money making blogs are there? You would probably say about a few million. Next question, how many make more than $1000 a month and then the answer would probably be, a few thousand. Im not trying to say that John Chow is eating the competition up alive but then you might argue, what about your blog title? Well, thats just an eye catcher for the most part. Now getting to what I am trying to say, is that the top 1% of money making blogs are dulling the shine of the newcomers in the business. In other words, the more popular you are in terms of familiarity with your readers and in making money online, the more business you consistently earn.
On the other hand of this spectrum are new bloggers who may have great content but aren’t able to stand out of the bunch because the bloggers who have been around a while are still holding their place. Then again, this is the situation in pretty much every industry - its called “first mover advantage.” The concept of the first mover advantage is that if you are the pioneer in a certain field, then it can be safely said that you will still remain in the Top 10 lineup if you maintain yourself. On the other hand, if you are a new entrant into this pre-established field of experts then you will have a harder time getting up there.
Alright, so lets stand back and take a look at this again. Its no joke making money online, its a tough business and there is definitely going to be competition but all it takes to withstand the forces of making money online is perseverance. My main theory is never give up and you have to try something before you throw it out the window. Once again, I’m not saying that John Chow is the newbie killer (he is the panda killer though!) but what I am saying is that it has become harder for new bloggers to achieve fame and fortune in the world of making money through blogging. Hopefully you enjoyed reading this post and I want to know what your thoughts are about the idea that it has become harder for newcomers to make as much money online. Thanks for reading guys!
[Update] - John Chow responded saying
Shouldn’t it be ChowMart?
Well, you got him here. Now let’s see if he links to you
Good job!
Getting a linkback from him would be phenomenal, but I think it would be just as cool to get him to be a regular reader.
if we can get the link, so have huge traffic coming your wsy
Don’t get me wrong, a single link would be awesome, but if he were a regular reader think of how much easier it would be to get multiple links in the future. We all see how often he links to his friends and such.
If you had him as a regular reader, the chances of his seeing a post that interests him would be greater.
I think you will get attention from CHow more…
Yes he is phenomenom now…
ANd we can catch him…
But just follow the rythm..
I freaking love your style of blog and graphics. Will you be my friend?
No joke! Enkay has awesome graphics!
i agree with nick’s point, having john chow daily reading would be cool… and worth more in long run.
If you’re trying to make money through a blog while also talking about making money through a blog, John’s blog does take the shine off a bit.
But John didn’t start off talking about making money online, he started off talking about technology and what was happening in his personal life, and built up readership.
I think the real message to take from his site is to find a voice and be a personality, and then to blog about something you really enjoy blogging about. Sure, put some ads on the blog, but don’t focus on making money online. It’ll happen as your readership grows.
(So says someone whose blog posts are all about making money online
Hahaha.. great comment. I think your blog is a great source of TRUE making money online content! I really wish there was more buzz about your blog!