The Indianapolis man is one of just a few bloggers in the country who've managed to turn their hobby of spouting off online into an actual businesses.
In just four years, The Bilerico Project has grown from a Web site about Indiana politics and the gay community to a national blog with 50 contributing writers and guest posts from the likes of presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton.
The blog is drawing national advertising. And last month, Browning and his business and life partner, Jerame Davis, decided to form Bilerico Media LLC to invest in the blog and launch others.
"We're actually starting to handle it more like a business," Browning said, "rather than, 'Wow, look. We're a really cool blog that took off and people are giving us money.' "
Most bloggers make less than $10 or $20 a month from advertising, experts say. To bring in more than that, bloggers need to attract a readership of thousands, day after day. Three thousand visitors a day, for example, may equal $900 a month.
Browning wouldn't say how much money he makes off The Bilerico Project. The site gets about 2,500 to 5,000 visitors per day, he said, and about 150,000 page views per month.
It is quite fascinating to watch just how much the blogosphere has transformed how people get their news, particularly in this latest presidential election. It almost seems as though the blogs are waiving the tails of the national media instead of the other way around. The Bilerico Project, in particular, did a good job at nailing down where the Democratic presidential candidates stood on all the issues of importance to the GLBT community. Congratulations to Bil, Jerame and the others at Bilerico Project for successfully transforming their Indiana blog into a truly nationwide blog.
I second that wholeheartedly as both a contributor and avid reader. In "going national", however, Bil and Jerame are not forgetting their Hoosier starting point, and are in the midst of formulating a special edition just for Indiana GLBT items. Their main site will be talking about it in the near future.
ReplyDeleteEven though I don't agree with much Bil Browning writes, from one blogger to another - Congrats on a job well done.
ReplyDeleteNot often do bloggers on either side get mentioned in the MSM.
Thanks for highlighting this Gary. While the reporter and I were talking, I made sure to mention you as another Indiana blogger that deserves more exposure. Let's hope that they do. I'd love to see a regular feature that gave some exposure to those of us out here in the blogosphere.
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