So the other day I ran across (for the Nth time) a blog that had some stuff labeled as a “PayPerPost” post. I’ve heard of this before, but thought I’d actually poke around for more info.
According to the site, basically you:
- Apply, demonstrating that you have an active blog.
- Once accepted, you accept “opportunities” for a defined amount of money to blog about a particular product or service.
- Write a post based on the requirements in the opportunity. Let PayPerPost know.
- PayPerPost approves (or disapproves) of the post.
- If an approved post is still up after 30 days, PayPerPost sends you the money.
Now, this is full of all sorts of pitfalls, the biggest of which is full disclosure. PPP says that all blogs must clearly note their relationship either with a sidebar note or with a PPP note in the post itself.
If I were do to something like this, please rest assured that I would (a) be honest, and (b) exercise full disclosure. This blog isn’t intended to be a money-making opportunity, but if I can earn a few bucks without compromising my principles, I’m not sure why I shouldn’t.
Anybody have a problem with that?
Well, a few people do, in general at least (and usually with passion). Part of the criticism is that, until the FTC got into the act,
PPP wasn’t requiring disclosure — which, I agree, was a huge issue. But to some folks, even with disclosure, being a “paid sponsor” is corrosive to the trust that readers should have in a writer. I think myself of the times when I’ve seen Joe-Bob Aging Star shilling for some company on late-night TV. Is that the same thing here?
There are also concerns that Google (since this is, in addition to whatever the value of word-of-mouth is, potentially gaming Google’s system) might devalue posts, or even full sites, that do PPP stuff. That’s moderately worrisome.
So … any thoughts?
I wouldn’t object, but that’s only because I know you well enough to know that I can trust you to post an honest review. When I see a washed-up TV star hawking something, I do not by any means accept that they believe everything they say about the product. I’d expect you to list the drawbacks as well as the attractions of anything you reviewed, as you do in your book/comic/movie reviews. I wonder if they have any products good enough that they’d pay for a totally honest review.
In reading further, I see that PPP does allow advertisers to require a positive review. I can certainly say that I would not review something positively that I didn’t care for positively (and if I couldn’t write a positive review for something, I would either not review it, or I would not do it as a PPP review).