Tech blog ReadWriteWeb recently asked 20 ‘top-tier’ tech bloggers and social media consultants how much they were paid. Half responded (on the basis ReadWriteWeb would maintain their anonymity) and what they said is interesting… very interesting…

Now, keep in mind we’re talking about career bloggers here - employees and freelancers who blog for a living - NOT blog owners/founders who ‘get paid’ by how much advertising they can sell, or by information product or affiliate marketing sales.

As far as freelancers go, most get paid on a ‘per post’ basis. Rates vary from $10 per post for very short posts to $25 per post for most posts. Most bloggers are paid $25 per post, although one respondent gets $80 per post and another is paid $200 per item of long-form writing.

ReadWriteWeb says that top bloggers write an average of 3 blog posts in 4 hours, sometimes more. That translates into $75 per half-day, or a little less than $20 per hour, and about $3,000 to $3,500 per month. That adds up to about $40,000 per year full-time.

Employee bloggers seem to fare a bit better, with ReadWriteWeb’s respondents reporting annual salaries ranging from $45,000 to $55,000 (plus benefits), to $70,000 to $90,000 (plus benefits) including bonuses.

These bloggers put in 50 to 60 hour work weeks, often longer, which equates to around $20 to $35 dollars per hour. Some employee bloggers may also get equity in the companies they work for, which ultimately means greater compensation, should such companies ever get bought out.

Apparently, there are a handful of full-time bloggers making six figures, but ’social media consulting’ - which ReadWriteWeb defines to include everything from search engine optimization (SEO) consulting to advising companies on how to set up blogs, use Twitter and implement RSS – seems to be where the highest incomes are.

Social media consultants make at least $150 per hour, with most making $300 per hour, and others commanding monthly rates of $2k to $4k per engagement, which probably amounts to 20 to 40 hours per month.

Not too shabby. Still, I stand by my advice: don’t give up being an entrepreneur!

Source: Marshall Kirkpatrick, “How Much Do Top Tier Bloggers and Social Media Consultants Get Paid? We Asked Them!”, ReadWriteWeb, October 9, 2008

If you’re interested in buying a product - let’s say it’s an information product - do you read the sales letter from start to finish?

Or do you, as Kikabink News subscriber, John H. does, scroll down to the bottom to find the price and then skim the bullet points.

Or do you do something else entirely?

Well, it’s the very fact that different readers approach sales letters in different ways that they - the more effective ones, that is - are structured and written in a way to accommodate different kinds of reader.

There are readers who read every word… skimmers who catch the main points… and ‘pick and choosers’ who look for, and focus only on, the details that matter to them. And there are those who may do any of these depending on the kind of product they’re buying, whether it was preceded by a huge pre-launch campaign of videos, etc, and other factors.

For example, when I bought my first information product in the Internet marketing niche, I read every word of what was something like a 20+ page sales letter. Just recently, when I invested in another - much more expensive - program, I focused only on some of the main points.

The difference for me was that in the first case, I had no familiarity with the product, the company behind it, or what benefits it would bring. I felt that I needed to understand exactly what I was being sold. In the second case, however, I was familiar with - and trusted - the marketer, had experienced an extensive pre-launch campaign, and was really only looking for confirmation that what was on offer was right for me.

Yesterday, I mentioned my view that if you are aiming to sell a product online that would ideally be sold by a real-life salesperson, then a sales letter is probably ideal. Similarly, a sales letter - just like a top sales person - should accommodate as many buyers as possible. It should deliver both the detail… and the salient points… it should allow for people to understand all the features and benefits… as well as convey the overall benefit… it should appeal to the emotions… and also appeal to the rational mind with logic…

The end-result is often a long sales letter. Will this turn off some people who don’t like scrolling? Probably. But, if it’s good, it will capture more people than it loses.

And remember, although YOU may not like reading through reams of copy… it doesn’t mean many of your prospects won’t. Or that they won’t simply skim or pick and choose what they read. As always, your customers (or lack thereof) will tell you whether you need to change how you present your offer.

Occasionally, I see discussions on various Internet marketing forums about whether or not the Internet marketing niche – the market for “how-to” Internet marketing information – is saturated.

In my view the answer is two-fold: yes, the Internet market is saturated with rubbishy, “me-too” products… and no, there is plenty of room for products and services that provide value to the target market.

So if someone plans to enter this niche with yet another low-value ebook, or course, or some other information product that delivers nothing more than regurgitated, out-of-date, or just plain wrong information… they’ll have plenty of competition!

If, on the other hand, they plan to deliver a product or service that is better and unique… there will likely be a market for that solution. The only real issue is how to cost-effectively reach the target market. That’s where traffic generation and conversion strategies and tactics are the keys to success.

Of course, Internet marketers with a low-value product but a few super-affiliates to promote for them - or some other highly effective means of generating traffic, building a list and converting it and so on - can probably still make some good money from their crappy products. But, as in most markets, the “survival of the fittest” rule prevails: over time, the crap sinks to the bottom and the cream rises to the top. After all, there are only so many refunds and complaints a super affiliate will take before they realize that promoting so-and-so’s product just isn’t worth it.

Of course, what exactly is rubbish… and what is better and unique? As you might imagine, it all depends on the target market. What is better and unique to someone just learning about how to build an Internet business is entirely different to what is better and unique to an accomplished Internet marketer.

So even though you may loathe those long-running infomercials promoting the products of certain high-profile Internet marketers and believe that what they’re selling is pure schlock… those products really are delivering value to their target markets. If they weren’t, these guys wouldn’t be running those expensive infomercials year after year.

Likewise, a certain ebook released by a high profile Internet marketer a couple of years ago yielded significant sales… even though it was riddled with spelling and grammatical mistakes. The guy behind it has only grown his business ever since. Which indicates, once again, that, to the target market, the product delivered value.

Yet, even though the quality of a given product or service may be in the eyes of the beholder… there is an objective indicator as well. It’s called: SALES!

And although it’s possible to have a fantastic product or service and still find it difficult to reach your market (in which case your sales may not reflect the quality of your product)… we are talking about the Internet marketing niche here. If you can’t market your own product or service online… is your product or service on how to market online really that good?