I am having mixed feelings about this whole Entrecard paid ads thing. As I type I have a mere eight EC credit purchased ads waiting to run and a whopping 56 paid ads. Bear in mind I have not accepted every ad that has come across my dashboard. I do not permit ads that may be offensive or link to a site that may be offensive, and I do not approve ads of a business type nature that could present an element of risk to my readers.
Over the past week or so I have watched the controversy unfold and read the frustrations and opinions of the writers of the blogs I frequent. Up until this point I have truly enjoyed being and Entrecard member. I do not blog for money. I do it for the fun of sharing information. I have not earned any money from my blogging minus the few posts I wrote for SocialSpark and PayPerPost. That got all crazy, and I quit doing it just about as quick as I started. Entrecard seemed like a wonderful way to connect and share with other bloggers. Now I am not so sure about things.
I like the connection part of Entrecard. One used to get out of it what one put into it. Now I almost feel like I am working for free. All of these ads coming across my dashboard are time consuming. Where were these people before? Why am I taking the time to evaluate these blogs for the owners of Entrecard? Since when did I start blogging to make someone else a buck? I don't mean to come off too negative here, but I have a bad feeling in my stomach. It just doesn't seem right to me.
Other Entrecard members have made the decision to not accept paid ads at all on their blog. Some have elected to require that the advertiser purchase an EC credit ad before allowing them to purchase a cash paid ad on their site. Some are selective as to what ads display on their blog, and still others let everything run. I have seen drop strikes, experiments, and bloggers leave Entrecard all together.
Personally, I am not sure what I am going to do with my Entrecard membership. I do not feel good about showing the paid ads on my site. Now that I have accepted them it seems dishonest to cancel my 50 plus ads waiting. However, it does not seem right to me that blogs that are showing their widgets on my site have to share 50% of their air time and still pay the full EC credit price. Half the air time for the same price just has a big bubble of wrong around it in my book.
I was uncertain as to whether I was going to chime in on this and write about it, but I am interested in the opinions of my readers. I would love to know what you have decided to do. How are you handling your relationship with Entrecard? For me, it feels very one sided right now. My FOUR inquiries on as many subjects remain unanswered to this day. One used to hear back in a very timely fashion; not anymore. While I wait and ponder I would love your input. What do you think? What are you doing? What are you not doing? Please, do tell!
