Entrecard is Still a FREE Service
On September 22nd, Entrecard announced they would be implementing a sponsor ad program.
Now, some people like the idea of being able to pay to opt out of the ads, some loathe the whole paid ads system, and others simply just don’t care. I’m in the last group because like I said, the company behind Entrecard HAS to make money in order for Entrecard to stay alive. It’s a BUSINESS people! And the service is still free! They aren’t forcing you to pay $50 to continue using the system. So what if there are a few sponsorship ads in between ads you’re receiving credits to run?
Right now, Entrecard’s only source of income is from the ‘Earn EC’ section where you can earn credits to fill out offers or from purchasing credits. They do not make enough from that to stay alive.
And to those who are criticizing the staff because they are just trying to make money- so are you! You use Entrecard to earn credits and promote your blog so you can gain readers and traffic in order to make money from your blog through CMF Ads, Adgitize, or private advertising. Even if you didn’t set out to make money from blogging, you’re still trying to anyways. So, give them a break because they are still providing a free service to bloggers that may never have been noticed without Entrecard.
I’m accepting the sponsor ad program because Entrecard is still a free service and I understand that to run a site and service like Entrecard, it requires a lot of staff and money. They have to pay for staff to deal with customer service, coding, and adding new features. Server bills for a large site such as Entrecard are expensive as well. I think this would never have been an issue with members if the sponsorship program was implemented from the get go, instead of waiting a few years to finally add something like this, because members would have been accustomed to the idea of Entrecard using some of the ad space for sponsors.
So, it’s either Entrecard shuts down or Entrecard takes a small bite from your ad views.
Posted in Rants
I agree with you, though they probably make money from advertising too.
…also they should have thought the business model through at the start!
I’m not against Entrecard making money. They can make all they want. My problem is the part of sharing a widget and taking away from the ec paying advertisers.
yeah, I don’t know why others are getting mad about the new system. anyway, I don’t really know what’s the difference from the past admin to now. I’m happy that I get about 80 visits a day from entrecard, so that’s okay.
I like entrecard as its simple and easy to get traffic.
I still don’t think it’s free because in order to advertise, you have to earn (work for /wage for/pay for) the credits to buy ad space. I;m one of those who will really leave Entrecard once they charge me for opting out the sponsored ad system.
They really lack a business plan. Not only that, their Support staff are rude and arrogant.
They can make money in some other ways while protecting their “free system” so to maintain the bloggers who give the site their lives.
In the first place, why bother for claiming and building Entrecard as “free” when they intend to make money so to maintain server/hosting fees. If they really intended this for free, they should have studied and foreseen the risks of putting up a “free advertising system.” It’s like free classifieds. You’re not charging the people who advertise for free , because they also encourage others to advertise on their own sites for free…..it’s built on reciprocal traffic and exchange of credits, then why charge if it’s reciprocal.
They should have a business plan before embarking on this.
Def, I ‘d be out, once they charge me. It’s not worth it anyway. Adgitize is way much better. And also CMF.
I hope you’re not calling clicking on Entrecard widgets as “work”. Also on your blog you’ve plastered ads on it to pay the bills too right? So what’s the difference with Entrecard doing the same?
Some members are definitely very passionate when it comes to EC. I’ll wait and see how it goes. I owe it to EC for my traffic, helping me to reduce my Alexa Rank. While my bounce rate may be high (didn’t bother to even find out) but I appreciate any kinds of exposure I can get.
But… But… But….
We LIKE to complain.
We especially like to complain about the “rude and arrogant” support staff that volunteers to help maintain the forums and answer questions. (It’s okay to be rude to them, but how dare they be rude back…)
Sorry – I just had to say…
I love Entrecard for the traffic and exposure I have gained. I won’t be leaving, though I will be watching carefully to see what kinds of ads they put through.
I fail to see why so many are complaining. In my opinion, EntreCard is the best out there and if it means accepting sponsored ads, then I don’t mind. It’s kind of funny in a way to see some who are complaining gladly accept ads from other services without the ability to choose who advertises.
I agree.
Who’s complaining anyway?
I’m not complaining.
And anyone who says that Entrecard’s services are still free needs to have his/her head examined. It isn’t free, it is very costly, dropping 300 cards daily, spending 3 hours a day, just to get credit to advertise for 1 day.
Anent to my comment. Entrecard services is not free because it gets a 75% tax from the members for running an advert–the highest tax rate in any economy, real or virtual.
In my opinion, the services could only be free if it is also tax-free. But it isn’t.
http://entrecard.com/blog/?p=1363
Really? No ones complaining?
And it IS free. They aren’t charging you to join their site and use their service. Sure you have to drop cards, but then again, you don’t actually HAVE to. It’s your choice whether you decide to spend 3 hours a day dropping cards, personally I don’t spend nearly that much time.