We probably all have had one, or we still have a donate button on our blogs and websites, but are they actually worth the space they take up?
Since starting Blazing Minds I’ve always had a PayPal donate button proudly in place in a hope that someone will show their support and click on it and donate whatever they can, in the time it’s been there I think it’s only ever been used twice.
Don’t get me wrong I am so grateful to the two donations made and they covered my hosting for a couple of months, is there any need to keep the button on the blog in the hope or off-chance that some kind-hearted person will click it and say “Here’s a couple of bucks for your wonderful blog”
I suppose with the addition of readers been able to add their Ads to the blog then this I suppose is better than the donation option as these give something back to the person placing an Ad.
But on the other side of things I suppose doing something like sending a reader to my music project and saying donate whatever you can for your support and get an album for your time, might be an incentive for those to make a donation and help me keep the blog running, even helping increase my bandwidth as the blog gets more popular.
So what do you think? Have you got a donation button? Do you think it’s even worth having one on your blog?
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Tags: charity donations, contribution, fundraising donations, gift, paypal online payments
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Twitter: TechPatio
says:
I don’t have one and I’m not going to, either. I just don’t believe it’s worth it, for my kind of blog. If I had a blog with the main purpose of providing some kind of service/product or a piece of software, I would definitely have a donate button, if my content was otherwise free.
Klaus recently posted..Facebook Simplifies Privacy Settings [Video]
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
Thanks for your input Klaus
Karen recently posted..Aviary Screen Capture, A Handy Chrome Extension!
I think as long as it is done tastefully, a donate button causes no harm to the blogger or readers. It only takes a short while to set up and if people like your content they will donate, no harm done.
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
Thanks for commenting
Karen recently posted..Blogging! It’s Not Just About Posting About Website SEO..
Twitter: Ileane
says:
Hi Karen, I’ve seen “buy me a cup of coffee” on some blogs but at first I didn’t know what it meant. I think it’s a good way for people to show appreciation for the content they find. Hopefully they’ll take you up on the offer.
Ileane recently posted..Buzz Besties – BuzzerList, Bit.ly Quick Tip, Blogger Bon Voyage
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
I’ve seen the “buy me a cup of coffee” links as well, I’m not sure but I think that’s a WordPress plugin to utilise PayPal
Karen recently posted..Music Review: Bleed Electric – So Sick
Twitter: blogswithwings
says:
Use to have one. Didn’t get a cent. Ha! Guess I’m not worth my weight in gold eh?
I suppose like anything you need to work the button to get people to notice it and use it. I think you probably do better with advertising streams and/or selling your own product to make money on a blog.
Blog Angel a.k.a. Joella recently posted..Have You Ever Thought About Flipping Blogs or Websites For Profit?
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
It seems that the donate buttons are a bit of a waste of space, maybe mine might go and I’ll just keep the donate page
Karen recently posted..Blogging! It’s Not Just About Posting About Website SEO..
It’s funny you bring this up. I put in the FAQ of my blog that I was accepting donations, but I never bothered putting the button up, and I don’t know I ever will.
Part of me thinks the donate button should always be up because you never know who will be so generous. And truth be told, nothing can adequately compensate you for the time you invest online. This whole blogging thing is ridiculously hard work, and to show anything for it takes a long while. It’s your right to be open to what is deserved.
ashok recently posted..Abraham Lincoln, “Letter to Ephraim D. and Phoebe Ellsworth”
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
I don’t think people know how much hard work blogging is, it’s not until you actually do blogging almost full time, like most of us do, that you know how much of your day it takes up
Karen recently posted..Rechargeable or Non-Rechargeable, Which Is Best?
I imagine I’ll put up a donate button of some sort when I get a more stable audience. Right now my biggest frustration is that my audience will go “I love your stuff” and not promote any of it. I feel like I should have visitors before monetizing.
ashok recently posted..Abraham Lincoln, “Letter to Ephraim D. and Phoebe Ellsworth”
Twitter: dragonblogger
says:
I used to have a donate button on my poetry blog, I figure donation buttons are good for artists who create art and poetry is an art form. I didn’t get a single donation, I was writing hundreds of free poems and giving them away for people to use for schools, memorials, funerals and the like, figured someone could donate.
I don’t see any harm in it however, and see may people do the “buy me a beer” donation box to entice users. I do believe people should donate to wordpress theme and plug-in creators if they use their themes or plug-ins. I always donate $1 – $2 to any plug-in or theme I use.
I would only add a donation button to my other blogs if I were collecting for a charity.
Justin Germino recently posted..Losing AdSense Revenue from All in One AdSense and YPN
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
Thanks as always for your input Justin
Karen recently posted..Rechargeable or Non-Rechargeable, Which Is Best?
Twitter: AlisonMSmith
says:
Don’t have one. I figure it’s better to point readers to things *they* need.
Alison Moore Smith recently posted..How to Create Compelling Content that Ranks Well in Search Engines
Twitter: danalingga
says:
I think people is hard to donate naturally — but they may buy product if we offer it. Unfortunately, the blog post (writing) usually is not considered as product.
Dana recently posted..Needed To Create not so Short and not so Long Blog Post for Product Offering
Twitter: colleenlane
says:
I think a donate button should be standard on every blog whose purpose is to make money online. The link should be obvious, and should open in a new window. Karen, your link could be a little more obvious (like next to the ‘Please Vote’), and should open in a new window so you do not lose visitors. Just bought you a coffee, or whatever you are drinking this morning, btw.
Colleen recently posted..Homes for Sale in Cottonwood Springs Kennewick Washington
Twitter: BlazingMinds
says:
Thank you for the advice and many, many thanks your wonderful donation for a cappuccino, you know it’s very appreciated
Twitter: DennisEdell
says:
Colleen, you know I like you, try not to take my comment below personally.
Dennis Edell recently posted..The Future of DEDC – Part 2 – This is Part 1 Simplified
Twitter: 1stblogger
says:
There is no problem to put a donate button on our site, sometimes it could be helpful.
Rakesh Solanki recently posted..Download Free Ashampoo Home Designer With License Key
Twitter: worthytips
says:
I don’t have any and I don’t think my tech blog will ever get that. I think it depend on niche. Usually personal blog and free service blog have that button and that’s fare enough.
Arafat Hossain Piyada recently posted..Watch Megaupload hosted video without downloading it using Mustreamer
Twitter: DennisEdell
says:
Sooooore spot! Oh you gone and hit it now, haven’t ya.
I BLASTED bloggers for many years with their damn donation buttons. GREED nothing more. Period.
ANY blogger OBVIOUSLY making money by other means, especially MMO’rs with links and banners plastered everywhere. It just ain’t right.
I have somewhat thought differently in recent days. Two examples are OK:
1. As Justin says, you’re not making a dime in other ways and not even trying too.
2. Your blog makes money, BUT the donation button is totally out of the way, nowhere near IN YOUR FACE.
One blog I frequent has the button at the bottom, right over the copyright. Anyone that comments can see it…that’s fine. I’ve been sorta thinkin’ about it myself.
Dennis Edell recently posted..The Future of DEDC – Part 2 – This is Part 1 Simplified
Twitter: jronaldlee
says:
I’ve often wondered how much came through those buttons… I’ve never used one, and this post (and its comments) tend to confirm that thought.
James recently posted..Detroit Airport
Twitter: Roezer
says:
They may look pointless but are still worth a shot, As you said it paid for your hosting for one or two months.Donations work with tutorial type sites or maybe blogs that tell people where they can get free stuff because the reader has saved money from your information.
roezer recently posted..How Twitter Can Tell you the Topic of your Next Blog Post
I have ‘NEVER’ donated to a blog with such a button. I have donated on forums when someone was in ‘real trouble’ and also donated via some twitter links when a friend recommended a cause. I have ‘considered’ donating for ‘useful freeware’ but have never made one.
I don’t think these type of button make a lot of sense on blogs, it’s better to have some ads or referral links, tell your readers that you make money via these links and I am sure they will still use the links and buy stuff.
Twitter: money_whisper
says:
As long as it does you no harm I don’t see why this button shouldn’t be there. If you already received donations that helped you to pay for your hosting for a few months I say it is ok. Every penny counts after all
I have never donated to a blog before, and therefore would not expect anyone to donate back in return.
Victor recently posted..Flavors of Ice Cream in San Francisco
Twitter: ChptsOfMyLife
says:
i dont have one either, what do you suggest? let me know.
Twitter: homepageheroes
says:
I don’t have one on our site, but the entire site generates donations for charity. It’s a nice way to generate donations without costing anyone additional money. Also, there are numerous click to give sites that earn a small (very small) donation just for viewing ads. You should check those out also
Erica recently posted..Their Work- Our Food – A Fair Trade
Twitter: DungeonBrew
says:
I don’t use a donate button on my blog. The issue is simply this, I created my blog, Dungeon Brew, to create and share free content with my users for some of their tabletop gaming products.
Costs of keeping the site going, permissions for art mostly, and trips to conferences, are a big pain, and I’d love to get some dedicated hosting for the site…but, to ask for money from my patrons seems to deviate from that mission statement and promise I made when I first started it.
Recently I started putting ads on the site, Dungeons and Dragons Online, that sort of thing, BUT, I’m not sure how much that will net me. Funding your site is a difficult process, and right now it comes out of my pocket.
I think, for my other blogs that I’m starting, I may use a donate button, but as you stated in this post, it doesn’t really do much to alleviate the operating costs.
Francis Bousho recently posted..Volin Krober from “Murder in Oakbridge”