How long will users be willing to keep generating advertising and branding materials without getting paid, asks Rebecca Lieb in a must-read Clickz column. Some social sites are starting to pay content creators.
Certainly, she says, the agencies for huge brands like Chevy and L’Oreal can’t be happy when the account goes up for review “and their rival’s willing to work for a one-year supply of breath mints.
Will it be long,” she asks, “before diamonds in the rough emerge from corners of the Web other than the blogosphere and demand to be paid what they’re truly worth?
Have you seen the new sites like LoudLaunch.com? Looks like it wants to connect advertisers with bloggers. Could be good for bloggers.
The problem with paying users to contribute is that their is a risk it will skew the results and the impartiality of their comments. Will people not just want to make a reputation and get kudos for influencing others?
This doesn’t refer to sites where people comment on products or services. This refers to sites where people spend time and money to make professional quality video that is used in advertising and promotion, and for which they are not paid.