Should I Stop Posting On TMP?

 This morning I was visiting another blog, one that I follow frequently, and the topic of monetizing one's blog came up. I don't mind if other bloggers want to monetize their blogs with Blogger, but I choose not to for various reasons.

Say What?

However, there was a comment by another fellow in the Comments section, in which he indicated that he stopped following a certain American blogger (no name given) because he posted too many TMP topics of the "here's what I'm doing on my blog today" entries. He thought that this was a scheme to direct traffic to my blog in order to get paid by Blogger.

This could not be any further from the truth.

I do not know if this comment was directed towards me, but I do post on TMP to bring attention to something that I have posted on my blog that day. I don't do this for every TMP posting, but I do this from time to time. Usually I post one picture from my blog and a link to that particular blog post so that people can see what I am doing. In most cases, I am highlighting a post that has lots and lots of pictures and I feel that TMP is not the place for me to post ten pictures, etc. TMP has a viewing tracker for each topic posted. For example, one of my posts might generate 400 hits on TMP by TMP viewers. That would seem to indicate that people are interested in what I am posting so I keep doing it.

Who's Paying Who?

Let me start by saying that the only money changing hands comes from ME to both TMP and to the owner of the Fife and Drum Miniatures forum - Proboards. I do not get a penny from Blogger because I haven't monetized this blog. "Monitizing" means that the blog owner allows Blogger to post advertising on his blog.

1. I am a regular advertiser on TMP. I pay TMP every month for the daily banner ads for Fife and Drum Miniatures.

2. I pay Proboards a monthly fee for the amount of storage capacity on my forum. This payment currently exceeds $100 per month and it all gets paid for out of MY POCKET.

3. Do I sometimes promote Fife and Drum and Minden figures on TMP? You betcha! Let's review, I pay TMP not the other way around.

Why Do I Post New Threads on TMP?

For starters, I operate a business that sells wargame miniatures that people apparently want and need. I am a business. If I don't promote my products then sales decrease and if sales decrease over time, then I go out of business.

Secondly, I created my Der Alte Fritz Journal because I wanted to have a place where I can post pictures about my gaming activities, be it painting figures, making terrain, or playing in various war games with my friends.

I take a great deal of pride in the content that is posted on this blog and in other forums. I spend a lot of time setting up a picture, creating little vignettes and hopefully providing some inspiration for other war gamers. And yes, I do like to have people look at what I do and I do like to show off a bit. Does that make me a bad person?

I post threads on TMP because they are targeted to a specific audience and TMP delivers tangible and measurable results for my business. Again, let's review. On October 5, 2021 I posted a topic about me new Punic Wars Project using 54mm plastic figures. I am really geeked up by this project and I wanted to share my enthusiasm with other war gamers. That post has generated (as of today) 607 views and 17 comments. My related blog entry that day was running at about 25% of the number of viewers on TMP. As of today, my blog viewer count for that post is comparable to that of TMP.

And finally, the proof is in the pudding, as they say. Looking at viewer counter for my blog in the upper right corner of this page. Over 1.8 million viewers would seem to indicate that there is some kind of interest in what I do.

Am I doing something wrong here? Please give me your opinion in the comments section below. I would appreciate your feedback.

Respectfully Yours,

Fritz