I’ve been blogging for over 17 years now, and there’s no denying that the internet has changed a lot in that time period. The reason I’ve been able to “work” 365 days per year is really because this industry is my hobby and passion, so it never feels like work. But ultimately, this blog is also a business (even though it was never the goal when I started writing it), and the way the internet functions has changed massively over the years.
I’m terrible at business and self promotion, because I’d rather spend my time focused on what I love, rather than running some enterprise that maximizes profits at all costs. It’s one of the reasons that I never even entertained selling this site, because I don’t want to have to report to anyone as to what I can write about.
Once in a while, I think it’s also important to discuss things honestly, look at the big picture, and get feedback. After all, it’s thanks to all of you that I’ve been able to make my passion a career.
The truth is that with my mom’s unpredictable six plus year cancer battle, I put off making decisions and having tough conversations, instead spending any extra time that I had with her. But with her having now passed, I also have a bit more time, and am trying to look at things more big picture… which brings me to this post!
In this post:
Making money on the internet keeps getting tougher
It goes without saying that the internet has evolved a lot in the past (nearly) two decades. This is true big picture, in terms of the increasing shift from written content to video content, but it’s also specifically true for people who write content like I do.
A while back, I wrote about the honest state of travel and points blogging, and as I explained:
- As anyone who publishes content online can attest to, search traffic has decreased greatly, due to Google’s AI Mode (and other similar features), which summarizes answers to questions, rather than linking to actual content
- Speaking of AI, nowadays over half of the content produced online is from AI, so the sheer volume of content one is competing with online has increased massively (and the AI content doesn’t involve the same time investment)
- The way that people consume media has evolved, especially with younger generations getting news via short form video on platforms like TikTok, Instagram, etc.
- We’ve seen multiple travel blogs sold, including to huge media companies, venture capital firms, etc.; there’s nothing wrong with that, but their goals are almost always focused around revenue rather than profit, meaning they might spend millions per year buying online ads
- We’ve seen mainstream media news sites get into the travel story and credit card rewards space, as this just has much broader appeal than it used to
- When it comes to affiliate marketing, the space has become much more fragmented, so it’s not nearly as lucrative as many people assume
- We’ve seen all kinds of sites pop up that are so clearly exclusively about SEO, making it hard to compete on that front
To be clear, none of this is specific to OMAAT, but it’s true (basically) across the board for the internet. It’s also why you’ve seen so many sites change their monetization models.
You have more websites than ever before switching to a subscription model, introducing Patreons, etc. Then you have other sites just switching to pure clickbait garbage, since at least that generates page views, which generates revenue. And then you have other sites that are pushing the bounds in terms of the type of sponsored content they’ll produce (no shade, but TPG has sponsored content about how skincare is like miles & points, sponsored by a skincare company, which… is creative).
That brings us to the OMAAT monetization discussion
I’d like to share some things I’ve been thinking about, though before I do, let me say that I appreciate everyone who reads, and I absolutely don’t want to put things behind a paywall, require people to join an email newsletter in order to read posts, etc. My goal is genuinely to make the experience better or more flexible for users, and not worse. Period.
And let me also say that OMAAT is still dong fine financially, and you’re going to be stuck with me for years to come, as long as I’m healthy and able to write. The truth is that while this isn’t as lucrative as it may have been a decade ago, I love what I do, and the volume of content I create helps me make a good living. However, there are some general things I’d like to invest in to grow the site, but I need to be able to justify that, and actually have a plan.
So I’d like to have an open discussion, and I don’t want to just totally fall behind the times due to my own stubbornness. For example, take a look at how airline monetization in the US has evolved over the years. You don’t want to end up like JetBlue or Southwest, stuck in their ways for too long and not following consumer trends, and then having to catch up in a huge hurry.
With that in mind, let me share some things I’ve been thinking about, and I of course welcome feedback. And if that feedback is “just keep things the same way” or “shut up, you’re irrelevant,” that’s perfectly fine too! In no particular order…
Considering some sort of a paid membership
Like I said, I absolutely don’t want to put content behind a paywall, but I’m wondering if there would be merit to some sort of a paid OMAAT membership. I know many people are annoyed by the ads on the site — I totally get it — so that would definitely offer an ad-free experience.
Of course I’d also like to throw in other things, and I’m curious what people would enjoy. We did virtual happy hours back during the start of the pandemic, so would that or anything else interest people?
Look, I don’t want to make the membership sound like one of those hotel “destination fees,” where I add 20 features to the list, with 19 being total BS. But I’m truly open here, and would like to figure out the best way to add value in a way that people would appreciate.
Just to be 100% clear, I don’t want anyone to part with a dime of their hard earned money out of guilt or anything else — I appreciate you reading regardless! I’m just trying to explore if there’s anything people might value.
Taking a new approach to advertising monetization
Currently, you’ll find virtually no sponsored content on OMAAT, and that’s by design. Meanwhile display ad space is sold through BoardingArea, typically as part of larger network campaigns, and they do a great job, within those limitations.
That being said, I do think it’s time to focus a little more on how this can be improved, and the quality of ads displayed (in other words, I feel like there are more efficient monetization opportunities than ads for foot fungus cream, or something).
I don’t know the best way to say this modestly, but OMAAT has a pretty great and highly engaged community. The primary focus of this blog is premium travel. Of course it’s a diverse community, and you have people who read for all kinds of different reasons.
But a high percentage of readers are those who spend a lot on travel, and want to make the most of it. The primary focus of OMAAT isn’t “gaming,” or “traveling for free” (I detest that term in general, since it makes such a great headline, but always leads to disappointment). For example, I’m always amazed how many people comment who book cash Air France La Premiere first class tickets. I hate the concept of thinking of readers as the “product,” which is part of the reason that I suck at monetizing this site in the first place, because I cringe thinking of things that way.
Perhaps it’s time to have more targeted efforts there. And maybe I’m just totally putting myself out there more than I should, but hey, maybe it’s time to throw out the idea of some travel brand that would like to exclusively sponsor the site or buy out the ad space for some amount of time. I mean, travel brands love to sponsor stadiums and advertise in airports, so is it stupid to think of a similar concept for a website?
To be clear, my hope is that this would all improve the reader experience, by having fewer and higher quality ads. So if anyone is a decision maker at a travel company (or whatever) and is generally interested, you can reach out to [email protected] to discuss.
Dabbling with a unique angle on video content
Admittedly we’ve seen a shift from written content to video content. While I’m not saying I think that’s temporary, I also don’t think that video is the “final frontier” of internet content consumption. And just as blogging was cutting edge 20 years ago, and video was cutting edge several years ago, there will also be the next thing.
Furthermore, I think on some level things go through cycles, and there’s also a generational angle to this. Yes, many younger generations don’t understand the concept of actually reading stuff online, and get all their content via video. But many older people are the opposite, and detest video content.
Personally, I’m not someone who tries to be a “jack of all trades,” and while I’m working on getting back onto social media, I sure as heck am not going to abandon blogging for video content. And the truth is that it’s really hard to get good still pictures and video when reviewing a flight, so I’m not looking to shift in that way.
That being said, I did have an idea that I’m genuinely passionate about. One of the things that makes the airline industry so interesting to me is the characters in it. The airline industry attracts some of the quirkiest and most passionate people you’ll find anywhere. Yet a vast majority of people who follow the industry never really appreciate who these characters are, as they’re hidden behind their brands.
I don’t know how realistic this is, but I’d love to do some sort of a happy hour-style interview series with executives and other characters from the industry. It would be about getting to know their fascinating personalities and perspectives on things, rather than just them reciting their typical talking points.
The point wouldn’t be to get them in any sort of “gotcha” situations, but generally just to have a chat to get to know them. I’m not sure how realistic that is, though:
- I know a lot of people in the industry, and while there are things they’ll absolutely say off the record, getting them to agree to talk on the record in a casual way may be challenging
- I’m sure on a corporate level, the concept of this would face a lot of scrutiny, as they’d probably see more downside to upside
Is it worth giving a try, and am I the only one who thinks this would be interesting? Hey, if industry people aren’t willing to talk to me, maybe some of the more prolific OMAAT commenters could join me for a discussion, so we can get to know them too. 😉
Bottom line
I must admit, writing this post took about as much mental energy as writing 10 other blog posts, because I hate discussing “business” things, and this is way out of my comfort zone. Nonetheless, once in a while I have to put a little bit of thought into this stuff.
I’d really appreciate any feedback that people have. It could be on any of the ideas I brought up, or it could even be other ideas I haven’t thought of.
Let me emphasize that my goal is to not actually change anything about the core of the site. My hope is that through more thoughtful and efficient monetization, I can focus more on producing the content that people enjoy, and less on the content that I feel I have to write to “pay the bills.”
The world changes, and just because something worked for the past decade, doesn’t mean it’ll work for the next decade. Maybe my conclusion from all of this will just be to keep things the way they are, but I’d at least like to feel like I tried to think about it, rather than just wondering.
More than anything, thank you so much to everyone for reading and for the support!
hey ben, count me as someone who would happily pay somewhere between $5-8/month (or $50-80 annually) to subscribe. candidly, i use an ad blocker so ads don't bother me. but removing ads without the blocker, access to a membership community, and general support of OMAAT would be enough for me.
I'm in favor of all of your ideas. I would pay for a paid subscription to both support you and to get rid of ads. If it had a few members only perks that would be icing on the cake.
I'm indifferent if you have a paid sponsorship for the website; if it's better for you, great.
I like the idea of interviews. I would prefer a podcast format. I don't like video. Also, a podcast in general would be cool.
As long as it's affordable, removes the ads, and allows access to maybe a subscribers only area I'd pay a membership fee.
I'm not likely to watch videos, but I'd probably listen to a podcast while driving.
I agree that a paid membership with some type of moderated 'coupon connection' would be most valuable and monetizable.
Paid subscription/community would be awesome. Especially with early access to reviews/deal alerts/etc. and a good community of fellow OMAATers. Would def pay for that.
cicle.io is a cool took I've fiddled around with for building communities.
As a 10+ year reader/contributor, the pop up ads have gotten really bad in the last year with video, multiple windows, etc .to the point that I actually visit less frequently. Especially on mobile.
One of my favorite car culture sites (www.theautopian.com) is completely self-driven and funded through subscriptions. They have a free option and paid options. They did this to maintain editorial independence unlike other sites that have been bought be hedge funds, larger conglomerates, etc. Although they're much larger with several paid writers on staff, they pride themselves on having no AI-based content. Something you can maybe look into?
BTW, what happens to PointsPros?
I don't have the answers, Ben, but just FYI:
1. Video is useless to me. I have no patience for it. And I don't think it's as engaging as it's made out to be. People watch 10, 20 or 30 s clips; anything more and they click away. But many of your articles take a bit longer to digest. And if I'm not mistaken, the efficiency of information transfer is much lower for video than...
I don't have the answers, Ben, but just FYI:
1. Video is useless to me. I have no patience for it. And I don't think it's as engaging as it's made out to be. People watch 10, 20 or 30 s clips; anything more and they click away. But many of your articles take a bit longer to digest. And if I'm not mistaken, the efficiency of information transfer is much lower for video than for print. That is, compared to reading something, if someone watches a video that conveys the same point, they're a lot less likely to actually get the point, and more likely to be mistaken or confused.
2. Video interviews with industry "characters" are a good idea, but are unlikely to be of as much interest to a majority of your readers as your blog content. I'd watch occasionally if you promoted it in your blog and gave me a good reason to be intrigued.
3. I don't see how adding video in any form is going to monetize the blog. If anything, it's going to cost you more to produce, and if it doesn't succeed, that money's gone. I have my doubts that it's going to somehow be more lucrative for you.
4. If you went to some sort of paywall model, it would be supremely ironic: the best and most knowledgeable points blogger on the internet now wants to charge *money* to view his content?? Seriously, Ben: find a way to make people feel like they're getting a good value by not spending cash for your content, just like we do when we earn and use points for business class tickets. If advertising no longer cuts it, you're gonna have to be creative - but make it consistent with the whole point of the blog, which is "here's an honest take on how you, too, can maximize points."
I would 100% pay for a subscription service if it meant no ads!
Would you 100% use a completely free ad blocker if it meant no ads? 'Cause I don't think I've seen an ad on OMAAT in about 15 years.
Ben, I've religiously read your blog for 15 years and its tracked alongside beginning my airline career, leaving airlines, and now in management at a different airline. I'm still reading and still appreciate your perspective and tone. I would happily pay for your content.
Ben, don’t discount feeding Ford. You so lightly speak about him as a booking agent. I would be happy to see you tie in with him a bit stronger. That reminds me, I need to email him…
A potential benefit you can include part of a paid subscription is an invite only chat for OMAAT readers, where people can share award ticket sweet spots, tips, and other things. That group chat would also be useful if someone was about to cancel an award ticket for a sought after seat (such as JAL F on the A35K), they can post it on that chat so someone else from the group can take up...
A potential benefit you can include part of a paid subscription is an invite only chat for OMAAT readers, where people can share award ticket sweet spots, tips, and other things. That group chat would also be useful if someone was about to cancel an award ticket for a sought after seat (such as JAL F on the A35K), they can post it on that chat so someone else from the group can take up that award seat. Just an idea I had.
Also, just to put it out there, I don't think requiring payment for all readers is a good idea, because that will limit the amount of new readers you get in the future. Rather, I think paying to get rid of ads would be a good idea.
Start an OMAAT credit card with a high annual fee to help your bottom line. Provide a meager welcome bonus for all new signups, then offer multiple statement credits (eg, $1 for every 25 articles read, divided into $0.25 reimbursement per quarter, up to a maximum of $1.25, but only for articles published on the third Tuesday of every month) to offset the annual fee. Watch as readers come running to score this amazing deal!
Back in the day, when you had many whirlwind trips around the world, I was basically living through your blog!
My health was very poor, and so were my finances — you gave me a nice escape from my grim reality.
I'm pretty sure others had similar feelings.
More trip reports would probably motivate more people to use your affiliate links as a way to thank you.
As I won’t be...
Back in the day, when you had many whirlwind trips around the world, I was basically living through your blog!
My health was very poor, and so were my finances — you gave me a nice escape from my grim reality.
I'm pretty sure others had similar feelings.
More trip reports would probably motivate more people to use your affiliate links as a way to thank you.
As I won’t be around for much longer to witness the course of the blog, I wish you all the best and much success!
I think paywalls are a pretty bad idea in general because they shrink your user base, rather than growing it.
You said video isn't your wheelhouse, but a lot of Tiktoks are just a floating head narrating over a series of screenshots. You could very easily turn your amazing trip reviews into Tiktoks - those are directly monetizable in some cases, or you could "push the limits" by using affiliate links to drive more revenue.
...I think paywalls are a pretty bad idea in general because they shrink your user base, rather than growing it.
You said video isn't your wheelhouse, but a lot of Tiktoks are just a floating head narrating over a series of screenshots. You could very easily turn your amazing trip reviews into Tiktoks - those are directly monetizable in some cases, or you could "push the limits" by using affiliate links to drive more revenue.
Tiktoks might not even take up all that much of your time - you've already done the research, taken the photos, written a whole script... you're just narrating it on camera and posting!
Even if Tiktok itself doesn't drive $ directly, it can push new viewers to the website.
Something to think about!
Would you consider adding an advice service to your website ala LALF? Would love help travel booking (and know a few people who could just use an experienced hand in setting up mileage transfers, boosts, etc).
Longtime reader here — would definitely agree that a paid tier would be something I’d chip in for. And since you produce so much content, would be ok for some of it to be “bonus” for subscribers.
Exclusive ads are ok but please don’t do sponsored written content. One idea might be to do a collaboration on a physical product (travel or electronics?) that you actually use and recommend. Food writers I follow like Deb...
Longtime reader here — would definitely agree that a paid tier would be something I’d chip in for. And since you produce so much content, would be ok for some of it to be “bonus” for subscribers.
Exclusive ads are ok but please don’t do sponsored written content. One idea might be to do a collaboration on a physical product (travel or electronics?) that you actually use and recommend. Food writers I follow like Deb Perelman have done this (in her case, collab on a Staub braising pan) and seem to be successful.
i would definitely sign up for a paid subscription.
also agree that even though the travel blogosphere skews more affluent generally, OMAAT seems to skew that way substantially more than the average travel blog, so this is a consumer segment that could conceivably be more lucrative for higher-end brands rather than run-of-the-mill Boarding Area ads.
don't necessarily love the idea of an exclusive brand sponsor of the site (even if temporary/seasonal), as it risks the...
i would definitely sign up for a paid subscription.
also agree that even though the travel blogosphere skews more affluent generally, OMAAT seems to skew that way substantially more than the average travel blog, so this is a consumer segment that could conceivably be more lucrative for higher-end brands rather than run-of-the-mill Boarding Area ads.
don't necessarily love the idea of an exclusive brand sponsor of the site (even if temporary/seasonal), as it risks the appearance of bias and could damage the site's credibility.
podcast/video interview series does seem interesting.
Your blog has become something of a rarity: (Almost) no clickbait, no videos I have to endure, just text and photos and information - very old school.
I really value that and my guess is, thats one of the reasons you have so many "seasoned" travelers who fly in premium cabins and visit your blog.
I hope you can continue with that format, even though it may seem outdated. And even though the money...
Your blog has become something of a rarity: (Almost) no clickbait, no videos I have to endure, just text and photos and information - very old school.
I really value that and my guess is, thats one of the reasons you have so many "seasoned" travelers who fly in premium cabins and visit your blog.
I hope you can continue with that format, even though it may seem outdated. And even though the money isn't there anymore.
As for future ideas: I actually enjoy reading sponsored posts sometimes. They have to be clearly marked and be relevant and true to your site - but as long as they are, I think you should lean more into that.
A paid membership should only ever come as something extra.
Ben,
Actually I support a subscription service. One of my most favorite airline themed subscriptions was to PlaneBusiness Banter hosted by the great Holly Hegeman. She had a daily Banter blog which I believe was free, but then had a subscription based weekly newsletter which I looked forward to every week. She wrote in a humorous, irreverent style similar to you which I found enjoyable to read. I’m not sure if that formula would...
Ben,
Actually I support a subscription service. One of my most favorite airline themed subscriptions was to PlaneBusiness Banter hosted by the great Holly Hegeman. She had a daily Banter blog which I believe was free, but then had a subscription based weekly newsletter which I looked forward to every week. She wrote in a humorous, irreverent style similar to you which I found enjoyable to read. I’m not sure if that formula would be successful for you but it’s something I think you should explore. A paid site may also make it easier for you to feature additional contributors; I really miss Tiffany, Andrew and the others! It could really allow you to branch out. It’s obvious you love what you do, but you’re getting older, you’ve got a family now, and you need to find ways to keep doing what you love, while growing with the ones you love.
Ive been reading you ever since I turned 16, back then as a young kid, now as someone who is averaging around 130-160 sectors per year. I love the blog the way it is. And you reviews are - by far - industry leading.
Nowadays I dont even bother reading anything else anymore...
How about cutting a deal with all credits cards that sponsor you and add free access to your blog as a perk? For example, when you pay for an Amex Platinum annual membership and get a bunch of stuff I rarely use, maybe having that card included access to paid content on your site? It might be a long shot but who knows? Paying to read your blog? Not, sure, it will depend. I love...
How about cutting a deal with all credits cards that sponsor you and add free access to your blog as a perk? For example, when you pay for an Amex Platinum annual membership and get a bunch of stuff I rarely use, maybe having that card included access to paid content on your site? It might be a long shot but who knows? Paying to read your blog? Not, sure, it will depend. I love reading it, sometimes I comment on it, but different than 20 years ago when I came here to learn about your experiences because I was flying the same airlines, at this point of my life I rarely fly much for work so reading your blog is more of a hobby than a need. Just the other day I thought about how many things I subscribe that I don't even know and are automatically charged to my cards. That model is a nightmare if you don't pay close attention to it.
Agree . (By the way , no preening videos .)
AMA! Video content can potentially take up a lot of your time and energy, but a monthly/bi-weekly AMA where you do very little prep would be very easy. Record it via video and podcast. Grow the viewing and listening audience and ad revenue might amount to something. Or include AMAs in the paid membership, maybe adding occasional meet-ups (or virtual happy hours as you mentioned) to the paid membership. AMA is an easy foot in...
AMA! Video content can potentially take up a lot of your time and energy, but a monthly/bi-weekly AMA where you do very little prep would be very easy. Record it via video and podcast. Grow the viewing and listening audience and ad revenue might amount to something. Or include AMAs in the paid membership, maybe adding occasional meet-ups (or virtual happy hours as you mentioned) to the paid membership. AMA is an easy foot in the door to video/audio content. Once you have an audience, you can potentially expand content.
Interviews with airline execs and/or others (with a different perspective than you) in the points/miles/luxury travel space could be interesting. Conduct interviews virtually to keep cost down and anything you release in video, also release in podcast form. Instead of a website sponsor, you might find a video/podcast single sponsor after you build a bit of an audience.
To increase membership, you could regularly give away (to a lucky paying member) a trip or opportunity to meet you.
Release short videos (also release in podcast format) of card reviews - either newly released/refreshed cards and/or your favorite cards, which will drive affiliate $$. Just do it in a way that you can legit be excited about discussing the card, regardless of what it's earning you.
Consider a very part-time business manager or partner who aligns with your vision but has a better perspective on monetization than you do.
Regardless of platform/format, you might grow your audience with more family-travel-focused content. I understand why you do most of your review trips solo, but you have a great opportunity to tap into family travel content. You might hire a part-time writer focused on this - gear, how to book suites both via points/miles and via travel agent (Ford), more focus on long-haul economy for 3+ people, etc.
Unlikely - but find a bank interested in your audience and release a OMAAT travel credit card that contains every feature you want, and hype the heck out of it :)
Best of luck, love the content!
PS - if you're interviewing airline execs, the most useful content for your audience is info about recent and upcoming changes. As you say, they may not want to talk about that. So find topics that would interest them and the audience. How did they get into the industry? What have been their favorite trips? Favorite seat on their favorite plane?
They may also be eager to put you in touch with some of...
PS - if you're interviewing airline execs, the most useful content for your audience is info about recent and upcoming changes. As you say, they may not want to talk about that. So find topics that would interest them and the audience. How did they get into the industry? What have been their favorite trips? Favorite seat on their favorite plane?
They may also be eager to put you in touch with some of their most loyal customers - IE interview a lady who flies a million miles a year on Air France, etc.
Longtime reader and ditto what others said - your longevity, passion, and independence are what make it such a solid blog that I check out daily. I've probably learned the majority of what I know in the miles and points world due your writings. When I do a google search for something in the space, I often include "OMAAT" to see if you've written about it already (and often I knew you had and just...
Longtime reader and ditto what others said - your longevity, passion, and independence are what make it such a solid blog that I check out daily. I've probably learned the majority of what I know in the miles and points world due your writings. When I do a google search for something in the space, I often include "OMAAT" to see if you've written about it already (and often I knew you had and just need to find it again).
Anyway, like the others, I'd be happy to "join" a membership, Patreon, etc. Some ideas...
Ad-free seems like an obvious part of it
Your video idea I like, but I could even see them being blog posts.
Maybe behind the scenes posts, bonus posts of review trips, etc.?
Some other new content that only members get?
Member Q&A periods?
You could create special badges for comments who also support the site. Maybe it's time to have a devaluation of member tiers and introduce a premium level above Platinum :)
You have a connection with Point.me, right? Discounted subscription if you're an OMAAT member?
Chance to win going on a review trip with you? (Maybe that's your worst nightmare...)
Out of curiosity, will Tiffany or other past writers make an appearance in the future, too?
This is going to be harsh, but you would definitely need to uplevel your content significantly in order to get a paying subscriber base.
Today's landscape has dozens upon dozens of points and travel blogs. A lot of your content has now become cookie-cutter, copy-paste content, reusing the same article over and over with minimal editorialization when it comes to news, deals, and credit cards.
At any given time close to half of your home...
This is going to be harsh, but you would definitely need to uplevel your content significantly in order to get a paying subscriber base.
Today's landscape has dozens upon dozens of points and travel blogs. A lot of your content has now become cookie-cutter, copy-paste content, reusing the same article over and over with minimal editorialization when it comes to news, deals, and credit cards.
At any given time close to half of your home page is exactly that, just re-printed articles of the latest CC SUBs, miles sales, how to use a credit on a card, etc.
You would need to do some more deep research and analysis on lesser known programs to provide value to incentivize memberships. For example, instead of talking about how Lufthansa is "creatively selling miles" every other month, you need to actually go in, examine their award system, analyze availability, fees, etc. for that to be useful content.
In other words, be more like Frequent Miler.
My gut is that although a paid membership would work, long-term, an interview podcast format would be more lucrative. You interviewing industry people interested in like travel subjects. My guess is you would be rough (to listen to) in the beginning, but would quickly improve after a year or so. When I go back and listen to some of my favorite podcasts in the early years it's pretty bad, but then they get running legs...
My gut is that although a paid membership would work, long-term, an interview podcast format would be more lucrative. You interviewing industry people interested in like travel subjects. My guess is you would be rough (to listen to) in the beginning, but would quickly improve after a year or so. When I go back and listen to some of my favorite podcasts in the early years it's pretty bad, but then they get running legs and the quality really goes up. No one IMHO is really covering the space you cover in this type of format and it could be an opportunity. For context I check your blog 3 or 4 times a day, and read at least a couple articles. Looking forward to see what you do Ben.
I’ll pay, but you have to change the comment section. Login required to post (no guests), ability to block/hide posters if we choose and a proper quote function please.
I second this!
I do think some sort of audio/video venture would serve you well, as that is how many people prefer to consume content now. A paid newsletter with exclusive content could also work. Perhaps those venues are where you consider some sort of sponsorship, while keeping the site mostly the same. I always think it's better to create new things rather than trying to change the more established channel.
Long time reader who really values OMAAT in an exceedingly noisy and race to the bottom space. +1 to a paid membership and I would offer two ideas:
1. Low cost to just eliminate ads. Some of the pop ups and banner ads really drive me nuts on small screens and I'd be happy to spend < $5/mo to eliminate them for good. This might even been an interesting play at the BoardingArea level to...
Long time reader who really values OMAAT in an exceedingly noisy and race to the bottom space. +1 to a paid membership and I would offer two ideas:
1. Low cost to just eliminate ads. Some of the pop ups and banner ads really drive me nuts on small screens and I'd be happy to spend < $5/mo to eliminate them for good. This might even been an interesting play at the BoardingArea level to introduce a paid ad-free tier across all their blogs.
2. Medium cost to introduce some type of community review concept. Say $5-10/mo gives me ad-free + the ability to contribute my own review of something OMAAT has reviewed and also view other community reviews. The value add here is that OMAAT reviews serve as the foundation with community reviews building on it to provide more recent data points. This enables reviews to stay more relevant without needing for OMAAT to make another trip. Keeping the community reviews (not OMAAT reviews) behind the membership for viewing and contributing would provide an incentive to subscribe.
First: I'd sub to a Patreon for you even if it didn't come with any perks. I subscribe to ~3 creators through Patreon and almost never engage with the Patreon platform itself or any subscriber perks. The way I see it is that they provide at least $60 a year of entertainment to me ($5 / month), and I want to enable the continuity of that. I am realistic towards the state of the online...
First: I'd sub to a Patreon for you even if it didn't come with any perks. I subscribe to ~3 creators through Patreon and almost never engage with the Patreon platform itself or any subscriber perks. The way I see it is that they provide at least $60 a year of entertainment to me ($5 / month), and I want to enable the continuity of that. I am realistic towards the state of the online content industry and understand that right now its either sell out in some format, become obnoxious, or struggle to stay afloat. Your independence is one of the greatest strengths of this site.
A good example of a creator who threads the needle of sponsorships and impartiality is the cooking youtube creator Internet Shaquille - who is one of my few Patreon subs. He only puts ads at the end of videos after all of his content is finished and always opens with "[company] has paid to be mentioned in this video"
Second point: I know (think?) you and Brian Sumers hold eachother in high regard and I feel like he has mastered monetizing niche industry journalism. Admittedly he has a different angle than you (and after doing one review of La Premier was talked out of doing a subsequent Cathay first one - even stating that was the domain of OMAAT), but I feel like a hybrid between his premium content and your accessible content is a natural fit for your 'fireside chat' idea.
I actually don't see any issues with some sort of focused ads. For example, in the past you've mentioned the type of carry-on you use and why you like it, and I wouldn't see any issue with a brand like that sponsoring your site for 1 week or so. It'd be more annoying if suddenly you start liking all kind of random stuff (e.g., nonstick pans, skincare, yoga pants, etc., you get the idea) just...
I actually don't see any issues with some sort of focused ads. For example, in the past you've mentioned the type of carry-on you use and why you like it, and I wouldn't see any issue with a brand like that sponsoring your site for 1 week or so. It'd be more annoying if suddenly you start liking all kind of random stuff (e.g., nonstick pans, skincare, yoga pants, etc., you get the idea) just for the sake of plastering your site with ads.
The video idea sounds quite cool! I mean, I'd love to see you chatting with industry people, pilots, etc. If you happen to have the connections, you'd become the Oprah of the aviation world. Importantly, you have the credibility that so many others lack (we have fresh evidence of this). So we all know you wouldn't be asking your 'PA' to send angry emails to others, asking them to meet in 'neutral places,' etc., etc. You say you're shy and everything, but YouTube desperately needs someone who's NOT screaming and whining and saying 'OMG' in 100 different poses and from 100 different camera angles.
BTW, @Ben, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeease think of creating something which you can use to let us actually know what you think of the so many places you're able to visit. I'm not thinking of the already saturated market of '10 reasons why you should visit Tokyo ASAP!!!!!!!!!!' but instead your own takes about cities, hotels, restaurants. You know SO MUCH of the world and it'd be nice to sort of travel 'with' you and your family.
I love your content, and have been a daily reader for the last 7-8 years. Id be open to a paywall if I was getting some next-level content. Maybe some consults or award booking help or alerts or something.
Doing exclusive, paid online interviews with industry folks would be a pretty big value add if you want to keep the audience small. Stream on YouTube and Twitch if you are OK with a larger audience and want "super chat" style tips.,
Since you want to avoid the more business-y ways to monetize this blog that include seeing readers as the product despite that being lucrative, I would say dig into those traditional tried and true approaches of creating products that really fit you that you maybe haven't been doing. Digital products and videos that you could sell and even monetize through other platforms if you're that kind of person. With your angle and approach, I feel...
Since you want to avoid the more business-y ways to monetize this blog that include seeing readers as the product despite that being lucrative, I would say dig into those traditional tried and true approaches of creating products that really fit you that you maybe haven't been doing. Digital products and videos that you could sell and even monetize through other platforms if you're that kind of person. With your angle and approach, I feel like short courses would actually do a lot better than many other blogs that try to do the same thing. That's just a bad example but the point is that I would just dig into the different types of products one at a time alongside the paid membership or whatever. Your quality comes out in your product and I would just leverage that.
Absolutely yes to videos! They’ll keep you ahead of the curve, reaching longtime readers with blog posts while connecting with a whole new generation.
I’d also love to see more of you in the content. The times your blog has sparked real-life conversations for me were when you shared personal stories. Be it about your mom, your kids, Egypt chasing you like you chase Shawn Mendes. You’re every bit the travel personality as any airline...
Absolutely yes to videos! They’ll keep you ahead of the curve, reaching longtime readers with blog posts while connecting with a whole new generation.
I’d also love to see more of you in the content. The times your blog has sparked real-life conversations for me were when you shared personal stories. Be it about your mom, your kids, Egypt chasing you like you chase Shawn Mendes. You’re every bit the travel personality as any airline exec, and it’d be amazing to see more of your life: parenting in Miami, your favorite restaurants, those behind-the-scenes moments.
That’s the kind of authentic, bonus content I’d gladly pay for!
I think having targeted sponsored ads makes a lot of sense. I also believe you've avoided having airlines and hotels sponsor trips (as you don't want it to affect your reviews), but I think as long as you're clear with airlines/hotels that you won't guarantee a good or bad review and you put a disclaimer that the trip was sponsored, that'd be absolutely fine in my book. I definitely trust you to give honest feedback...
I think having targeted sponsored ads makes a lot of sense. I also believe you've avoided having airlines and hotels sponsor trips (as you don't want it to affect your reviews), but I think as long as you're clear with airlines/hotels that you won't guarantee a good or bad review and you put a disclaimer that the trip was sponsored, that'd be absolutely fine in my book. I definitely trust you to give honest feedback of your reviews regardless of whether or not you got paid for them.
Thanks for writing this post, Ben! Long time reader.
I agree with JF's post above. I value OMAAT above all other travel blogs because of its candour and honesty, and ability to write about topics that us av- and travel-geeks appreciate but under a monetisation-first system would likely get scrapped. I think the way it is currently structured works well and I don't find the ads structure or content distracting. I personally wouldn't be tempted...
Thanks for writing this post, Ben! Long time reader.
I agree with JF's post above. I value OMAAT above all other travel blogs because of its candour and honesty, and ability to write about topics that us av- and travel-geeks appreciate but under a monetisation-first system would likely get scrapped. I think the way it is currently structured works well and I don't find the ads structure or content distracting. I personally wouldn't be tempted by a subscription service - I read almost all articles but I can't think of a subset I'd be willing to pay for for access at this time. I think leveraging more video content is a great idea - people tend to like that (especially for flight / hotel reviews) and you can monetise them more with ad breaks.
I used to be a huge fan of The Points Guy and I've been dismayed by how much they've sold out over the years - it's generic content now that is neutered of having any real opinion and caveats everything so heavily that I never read it. Thanks for doing what you do, I've found such value and nerdy camaraderie in OMAAT!
- Jake from London, via SF
start a fake airline scheme, then funnel investor money into the blog. Next question please
I would not mind paying a small fee for content. Please make it a simple annual fee - one and done. I hate monthly charges.
Keep up the good work. Still watching for a stats update at the bottom of the OMATT page.....
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I would absolutely pay for a subscription, particularly if i reduced the ads.
One concept is that you have a very defined audience. On one hand, they are incredibly valuable because the common thread is, obviously, the love of travel. This would certainly appeal to airlines/hotels/luggage brands, etc...
On the other hand, your audience is also drawn by the concept of maximizng ROI, not exactly great for the margins in the aforementioned verticals.
The middle...
I would absolutely pay for a subscription, particularly if i reduced the ads.
One concept is that you have a very defined audience. On one hand, they are incredibly valuable because the common thread is, obviously, the love of travel. This would certainly appeal to airlines/hotels/luggage brands, etc...
On the other hand, your audience is also drawn by the concept of maximizng ROI, not exactly great for the margins in the aforementioned verticals.
The middle ground might be to offer an "OMAAT Platinum" membership, where travel providers would either give minor benefits (points, promos) or discounts in exchange for the exposure. You could then charge your readers who choose to opt in who would get the benefits provided by the travel-focused companies and see reduced ads.
I am among what I'm sure is a significant group of long-time OMAAT readers who has received immense knowledge, value, and enjoyment from the site, I would much rather pay directly, even with few additional benefits, than see low quality paid content mixed in the mix. While convincing "customers" to pay for something they're used to receiving for free is among the scarier business pivots, here the product is best-in-class, and a loyal readership will...
I am among what I'm sure is a significant group of long-time OMAAT readers who has received immense knowledge, value, and enjoyment from the site, I would much rather pay directly, even with few additional benefits, than see low quality paid content mixed in the mix. While convincing "customers" to pay for something they're used to receiving for free is among the scarier business pivots, here the product is best-in-class, and a loyal readership will stick with the site through change.
I can't imagine a world where I would pay for content related to points and miles but to each his own. With that said: I have learned a great deal from this blog and I appreciate what you do.
Long time reader here. What makes OMAAT great is that Ben isn't owned by anyone. We get unfiltered, honest takes. I can't say the same for the vast majority of travel bloggers and content creators. Going the sponsored content route may impinge upon this. I know Ben would give us disclaimers and warnings as he always has, but there's still a subconscious pressure to not lose any revenue. I'd be happy to pay for access...
Long time reader here. What makes OMAAT great is that Ben isn't owned by anyone. We get unfiltered, honest takes. I can't say the same for the vast majority of travel bloggers and content creators. Going the sponsored content route may impinge upon this. I know Ben would give us disclaimers and warnings as he always has, but there's still a subconscious pressure to not lose any revenue. I'd be happy to pay for access if it meant not seeing Ben knot himself in a pretzel to avoid angering subscribers with honest product reviews or controversial news. As for the video content idea for interviews with industry leaders, I would love to see this. Even a podcast format would be great too.
While I certainly would be happy to make a montly Patreon contribution for access, I think the problem is that so many people wouldn't that the volume of comments on stories would drop dramatically - and reading the comment is at least half the fun. Besides fun reading lots of comments, once in a great while someone with greater knowledge pipes in and give real insight. It could be a pilot, FA, ATC employee and...
While I certainly would be happy to make a montly Patreon contribution for access, I think the problem is that so many people wouldn't that the volume of comments on stories would drop dramatically - and reading the comment is at least half the fun. Besides fun reading lots of comments, once in a great while someone with greater knowledge pipes in and give real insight. It could be a pilot, FA, ATC employee and more. Small changes can have unintended consequences. I was a member of a hobby blog starting about 15 years ago and the operators, a Canadian for profit, changed software and broke the password system. Overnight, half the posters lost access and never returned.
As someone who visits your blog multiple times per day, I'm already in. And I really like the idea of you interviewing people in the industry. You have the type of credibility that might lend itself to these leaders realizing they can take those risks. Many interviews are conducted by good journalists who aren't experts in a particular field, and that can sometimes lead to awkwardness, whereas you are an expert in the field and...
As someone who visits your blog multiple times per day, I'm already in. And I really like the idea of you interviewing people in the industry. You have the type of credibility that might lend itself to these leaders realizing they can take those risks. Many interviews are conducted by good journalists who aren't experts in a particular field, and that can sometimes lead to awkwardness, whereas you are an expert in the field and seem to approach situations like a level-headed columnist. I think it could work well.
I would easily pay $9-10 a month to read this. I read every article a day on this site and have been doing so for the last 10 years
I think there’s a balance on a sort of membership. I for one would happily contribute to support your endeavors. Others may not be able to, so as long as there’s a way to balance things I don’t think you put yourself at too much risk.
Hi Ben, I've been reading for many years and have rarely if ever commented. My advice would be to provide white glove advising services. Helping people manage and organize their miles, proving booking advice on a per-case basis, tailored itineraries for destinations based on a quick interview with the traveler. Basically, leverage your deep well of knowledge.
The other idea is to run your own LLM on site as a "OMAATGPT" where anyone can...
Hi Ben, I've been reading for many years and have rarely if ever commented. My advice would be to provide white glove advising services. Helping people manage and organize their miles, proving booking advice on a per-case basis, tailored itineraries for destinations based on a quick interview with the traveler. Basically, leverage your deep well of knowledge.
The other idea is to run your own LLM on site as a "OMAATGPT" where anyone can query and ask questions and your LLM answers based on the site archive and history. This again leverages your asset of years of blog posts.
Im happy to assist you in setting these ideas up, as an unpaid volunteer. There ate other readers of yours, I am certain, who are much more qualified than I am to assist.
Maybe Ford could help with booking advice (and actually do the booking too).
I would pay for a (reasonably priced) subscription lol. Something that would be great as part of that would be to take reader questions - you reply in the comments occasionally but a true mailbag type article once or twice per month would add real value I think
Hi Ben, I read this blog daily and would be happy to pay a modest subscription fee to keep content and editorial standards similar to what they are today.
I love reading your content and have since the FT days! I would much rather pay you directly and have an ad free experience.
On other topics I am a member of podcasts paid discord/Patreon feeds and would also be interested in a OMAAT version.
Always appreciate your transparency!
I would pay for a subscription. I have been reading this blog for about half my life and not a day goes by without me checking your take on the latest news, or airline reviews, etc. I’m glad things have stayed pretty consistent over the years, but I don’t mind some evolution, as long as it’s nothing too radical.
I wouldn’t mind paying for a membership, something like YouTube channel members. I want to read your blog, not watch videos. Reading helps me staying focused, it’s a welcomed distraction from reality, and it is part of the OMAAT-charme.
I agree. I really do not want videos. And the amount of written work Ben creates each day is definitely worth the escape from life and politics.
Yes to paid membership and yes to video interview with execs that would be super interesting. Otherwise keep up the great work
A good approach would be to create video shorts of each blog piece and put it out on monetization platforms and link them in your blog.
It gets to people who dont normally blog or have lost the ability to read a long post.
You will get broader distribution from the monetization platforms. You can point to the blog for greater details.
Assuming you dont have a problem creating videos of yourself!
I love your reviews Ben. I'm not sure how much you make through credit card sign-up referrals but imagine that is a decent source of revenue that would get tough if everything goes behind a paywall. I do think you have the best flight reviews in the business. Maybe some short videos about your premium cabin experience could be good. A bigger video opportunity in my mind is hotels - especially for expensive hotels &...
I love your reviews Ben. I'm not sure how much you make through credit card sign-up referrals but imagine that is a decent source of revenue that would get tough if everything goes behind a paywall. I do think you have the best flight reviews in the business. Maybe some short videos about your premium cabin experience could be good. A bigger video opportunity in my mind is hotels - especially for expensive hotels & resorts. Having a longer 10-20 min video tour would be great to watch on Youtube and some others do this today, but obviously you have the community here and know what travelers like us are looking for. Having the ability to read your hotel review but then also watch a video (thinking of lux resorts) would be quite nice. I'd be down to watch some interviews to your point as well (would pay PPV $ for you and Tim D...).
Speaking of money (and this goes to anyone), but I suggest you go to missingmoney.com as you (may) have some unclaimed money lying around.
I would pay for a subscription. I value your work and sometimes disagree truly appreciate all the content you create. You provide so many posts per day and give me a break from politics lol.