How Nomadic Matt earns money to travel

Foreign currency and coins. Photo: Philip Brewer / Flickr

It's the dream of many backpackers: to express our creativity through stories and photos on our travel blogs, and make enough money to keep traveling.  Nomadic Matt is one of the more notable examples of people who have achieved this goal. In a recent post, he reveals the details: How I make money and afford to travel.

Throughout the piece, Matt addresses head-on how a blogger and his readers can clash over the thorny issue of monetization. The sad downside of success is that the bigger your audience, the more likely you are to attract critics and detractors.

Just like you read magazines with ads, you'll find blogs with ads. If you think I do this as some sort of insincere way to make money, I think you've found the wrong website to read. I love what I do and the ads help me do it just like the ads help keep National Geographic running.

Turning a profit from publishing content is nothing new, as Matt points out.  I think the main issue at stake is it's easier to resent an individual vs. an organization.  If your local bank makes a lot of money, it doesn't bother you.  But if you have a neighbor who constantly flaunts his Ferrari, platinum Rolex watch, and Neiman Marcus clothes, that might tick you off more.  We react to personalities more than institutions.

There will always be self-proclaimed purists who insist that commercializing any form of expression will ruin it.  If readers buy a blogger's products (such as e-books), it gives the blogger real support and assures continued writing output.  At the other extreme, some web publishers lose their way when "sponsored posts," free press trips, and ad revenue gain priority over delivering value to readers. Is money the problem, or the love of money?

What's your stance on bloggers making a living from their blogs?  Please share your thoughts in the comments.