IF you haven't set up Google analytics yet...do it! (and site meter). Both are free and both provide really great info about where your readers are coming from - how long they are staying and all that good stuff! GA is better than SM - but both makes for lots of info! Site meter - others can click on and see your stats for themselves and I think that kind of honesty when asking people to pay for space on your blog is key in my opinion!

I was trying to go the route of sponsors - but decided for now against it. I'm still needing to promote me and not others. I also was paying on other blogs and felt like I got the short end of the stick in the end...the views were really low considering they have 4000+ viewers! I've tried the follow me and i'll follow you back blog hops - and those never work. I started to realize they weren't coming to read my blog - they were coming to add another number to theirs. Eventually they "unfollow" tons of people they committed to following. I don't doubt as I've gone back through my lengthy list - that I too have cut some off in that same way.

Finding sponsors is hard - it depends on the page views most of the time - not just number of readers. That's why you have to set all that up now so you have your info and your base line to go by.

I want to say it was about $5 for every 2,500 page views (not visitors) per month to charge for space. So when you get up to 5,000 page views per month you can charge $10. But that was an average I found when doing my research. It also is based on "unique visitors".

There's also project wonderful.? There buttons were tacky imho and i decided not to go that route also.

When you think your blog is ready for it - ask a few blogger friends to also sign up for GA and put up their buttons as "test sponsors" and have them let you know how many people came to their blog from yours! It will give you a good idea of what your "customers" are going to get and if the numbers aren't there - I'd wait a little longer!

I like the style of your blog - as long as you keep it real - people will come. I also decided not to do outside giveaways and random product reviews on my site. That's not what I want my blog to be and that's not what Kid Giddy will ever represent. You have to stay true to you from the beginning.

Good luck! - kg

(was that too much?) lol!

Good idea to find someone to do a "test" ad. I have 4300 visits and 6800 page views...which one do I count? I would assume the lower number is the "unique visitor" count, is that right?

edit: I did find another place on GA that showed 3100 unique visitors. Wow, this is all new.

KidGiddy - thank you very much for your honest and insightful answer.  I agree with you -- I'm not interested in giveaways or product reviews.  I simply like sharing things I like sharing.  I enjoy writing and I think I'll just stick to that for a while and see where it leads me.  

Also - the weird clothing line that you can wear a million different ways was called Units.  I was a big fan!  : )

Where do you get Google Analytics and Site Meter?  I've never heard of those.

 ~ Yaya

So, I had GA on my Blogger blog, but I recently switched (okay, I paid someone to switch it for me!) to WordPress, and I can't figure out where to paste the code for GA on my WordPress site. Anyone have advice on that? Thanks in advance!

Just go to sitemeter.com.  There are instructions on how to add it to your blog code after setting up an account.  Same thing with google analytics.  If you are on blogger, the latest feature is integrated analytics with stats in your dashboard.

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Yaya said ...
Where do you get Google Analytics and Site Meter?  I've never heard of those.

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As for sponsors, I've gone the route of selecting a few ads from a couple affiliate networks (just let me know if you want info on those - I don't want to be tacky and leave my affiliate links all over your community).  I haven't made a ton by any stretch of the imagination.  It was much more natural on my bargain blog - it's a little harder to select and work in ads on this homemaker blog without seeming like a money grub.  As for outside ads - I know my blog isn't ready for that.