Love for sale

This blog has been a labor of love since I launched it on October 9, 2005.  But even love needs a helping hand in paying the bills, so I am accepting advertising from now on.

You must have noticed the VinoClic logo over the past couple of weeks. This is an advertising syndicate started by Filippo Ronco, a young Genoa-based entrepreneur and wine blogger. From October 2, there will be ads in them thar banners.

So Mondosapore will accept ads, other ads too – but with some guidelines that I have borrowed from my friend in Verona, Giampiero  Nadali,  alias  Aristide.

* Mondosapore will not, for now, accept ads from wine producers or firms that own wineries. This is something that we – Filippo, Giampiero and I – have discussed at length.  What's left?  Plenty -- regional wine consortia, tour operators, glass manufacturers, restaurants, lodgings, etc., etc.

* Mondosapore will do everything possible to avoid conflicts of interest. Which means that freedom of expression, of opinion, will continue to be valued above all things. What good is a blog that the reader suspects is tainted by such conflicts?

* This blog will accept ads from those who do not have a financial interest in any wineries. Same and obvious reasons.

My Italian fellow bloggers and I hope to maximize our efforts through a true collaboration and a single focus: stay true to ourselves (and our readers) while giving our advertisers a congenial editorial environment for their messages.

 

Comments

[Fredric Koeppel]

well, what else are you supposed to do? I've kept http://www.koeppelonwine.com going for almost two years with a handful of subscribers and lots of outlay on my part on wine, design and design changes and so on. Every time I post a page I lose money. AND I'm launching a blog (food, wine, restaurant criticism and commentary and industry issues) in a few weeks. Yes, the blog will have advertising. And eventually, the website will have to also. I like your guidelines and will follow them. The point is, these things cost money and they can't remain hobbies.

[Gourmet]

me too!!! ;-)
ciao carissimo!!Manca 1 mese al ns arrivo.. ,-)

[Terry Hughes]

Thanks, FK, and the best of luck on your new blog (and revised site). I'm sure you'll attract some terrific advertisers.

Cara, non vedo l'ora! NYC vi aspetta. E ho visto che ci hai il logo di VinoClic, brava!

[Terry Hughes]

By the way, you can thank Giampiero (Aristide) Nadali for the original formulation of the guidelines. I did soften them a bit, I admit, "for now" and so on. As I told him, "I don't want to die with a piece of chalk in my hand."

[Richard]

"From October 2, there will be ads in them thar banners."

Them thar - I reckon you must be spending too much time in Virgina, or with Virginians!!

[Terry Hughes]

Hey, Yankee, them's mah kinfolk yer dumpin' on!

Actually, wasn't "them thar hills" something that the pioneers of the old west used to say? At least in the movies.