Dear readers,

This blog started as a hobby for me. It is a place where I choose to spend my free time and do what I enjoy most — click-clacking away at a keyboard. Years later, it is still a hobby, but it is now a fairly expensive hobby. As a result, this blog does accept payment in exchange for advertising space as well as editorial space. I use the income generated to pay for website hosting, domain name ownership, development and graphic design services, and cute shoes. Preferably Fluevogs.

Below is a summary of how:

Direct Advertising: In the right-hand menu of my blog, a company or individual person can buy a 290 x 180 advertisement space. I only accept advertisers that I feel are compatible with the interests of my readers. This does not mean I personally endorse every product they sell, but I do take the time to research and undertake due diligence before saying “yes.” I prefer to only sell these spaces on a 6-month or 12-month contract to lessen my own administrative burden. The more admin = the more you will need to pay for a space, but generally speaking, the price per ad space ranges from $75-100/month. As traffic to Coffee with Julie rises, so do the rates for advertising.

Advertising Network: I am part of the SheBlogs advertising network, and these are the ads you see in the right-hand side of the blog that change from day-to-day, minute to minute. Similar to being a part of a network like Google Ads, the SheBlogs network serves the ads to my site and then tracks how many impressions/clicks they receive and compensates me accordingly.

Sponsored Guest Post: This is when a company or individual person wants to have editorial space on the blog itself. The difference between a “guest post” and a “sponsored guest post” is that I receive payment in exchange for the space on my blog. Again, I don’t personally endorse the products a guest poster may be offering necessarily, but I do try to ensure that it is information that readers would be find either interesting or useful, such as this post on supporting your young adult if they choose to volunteer abroad. This generally ranges from $150 – $250 per post, depending on how much work is involved on my part. (Please note that I follow Google’s Webmaster Guidelines and use a rel=nofollow attribute on links in sponsored guest posts.)  I no longer offer “Sponsored Guest Posts.” All posts on this blog are now authored only by me, unless it is a guest post by someone I know or a fellow writer I respect (i.e. not a company or brand).

Sponsored Post: This is when a company or individual person wants me to write a post on their behalf. Generally the topic is something of mutual interest — like essential products for a family road trip — and the post will include a link back to the website of their choice. Again, I don’t personally endorse the products a guest poster may be offering necessarily, but I do try to ensure that it is information that readers would be find either interesting or useful. This generally ranges from $250 – $350 per post, depending on how much work is involved on my part.

Review Post: Often companies or organizations would like to have bloggers review their products or services. As a result, I am frequently sent free samples of the product or service so that I may be able to review it. I choose only to review the products or services that I might actually purchase on my own. So, for example, you won’t see reviews for microwaveable meals on this blog because our family doesn’t happen to eat them. But you might see some for theatre performances, tech gadgets, or even expensive cereals. Generally speaking, the free sample product or service costs a minimum of $100 before I will take the time to review it.

Press/Media/FAM Trips: PR Agencies are increasingly recognizing that most of us do our travel research and planning on the internet, rather than via newspaper articles. As a result, bloggers are often invited to locales in order that the blogger can experience what it has to offer and, generally speaking, write about it too. These trips are interchangeably called press, media or FAM (familiarization) trips and offer the blogger/writer some or all coverage for the following costs: travel, accommodation, meals, excursions, and tips. To date, I have participated in press trips to the Saguenay region of Quebec, Smuggler’s Notch Resort in Vermont, and to Beaches Boscobel Resort in Jamaica. Although no payment exchanges hands, the costs involved in sending me to a locale can range anywhere from $500 to $5,000.

Please note: If you are a company or brand looking to work with Coffee with Julie, this might be important to you:

• I always disclose any of the above types of posts to Coffee with Julie readers.
• I follow Google’s Webmaster Guidelines and use a rel=nofollow attribute on links in sponsored guest posts.
• An overview of my readership demographic can be found here.