How can you support the blog?

(image via gfycat)

This was originally posted on June 23, 2018.

One thing that has crossed my mind is asking for your support, which can come in many ways. So if you don’t mind, please indulge me as I discuss some ways you can help Touch the Banner become more successful.

FIRST OF ALL, WHY SUPPORT THE BLOG?

Here are a few reasons to support TTB in one way or another:

• Running a business costs money. First and foremost, what I do isn’t free. Servers cost money, tech support costs money, and then there are the plain old costs of domain fees, taxes, licenses, etc.
• I have my eye set on site improvements. I’m not 100% satisfied with the blog design and would like to make some tweaks. Tweaks take time and money, but I want to improve the user experience, especially when it comes to discussion and the message board.
• This is the best free site for Michigan football and recruiting information. Maybe I’m living in my own little world, but a lot of Michigan sites have come and gone, while TTB keeps chugging along. There are generally at least two posts per day, almost all of which are centered around Michigan football and recruiting. There’s no other site – free or not – that literally covers every single Michigan offer and tracks all 250-300 offers in every recruiting cycle, right up to or beyond National Signing Day. There are offer boards for every cycle and individual profile pages with highlights, measurements, notes, etc. That’s not to say every post here is superior to every post on the other sites, but you get more of it, and it’s often in more depth. Not only that, but I do my best to respond to readers’ individual questions and requests.

So here’s how you can make it happen:

TELL YOUR FRIENDS

This sounds simple and maybe even silly, but I greatly appreciate new sign-ups, new commenters, new readers, etc. If you tell two new people about TTB and they each tell two new people about TTB, then the popularity of this blog expands. And if more people are here to discuss new posts, news items, recruiting developments, etc., then it’s probably more fun for everyone. How can you tell people? Post a link to a recruiting update on your Facebook profile or group. Retweet one of my tweets, or better yet, put a site link in a tweet where you talk about how awesome TTB is. If you see an article you think would be interesting to readers on The Fort, MGoBlog, The Michigan Insider board, etc., post a new thread with a link.

TURN OFF YOUR AD BLOCKER

Advertisements can be annoying. I will admit to using an ad blocker on my browser for general internet browsing, but I turn off my ad blocker for sites I visit regularly. The internet has made people think that they can get everything for free (music, movies, content, etc.), but there are people out there trying to make a living by creating content for you and me. If you truly want to support this blog – or any site you appreciate – and make sure your favorite sites are sustained, then make sure to turn off your ad blocker.

COMMENT

Commenting on articles you like – or even ones you dislike – leads to increased traffic and discussion. This is why a site with an active message board like MGoBlog can help sustain itself so well, because some people visit the same threads over and over and over again. And when they comment, the pages and ads get refreshed for more impressions. Sharing information and opinions can lead to increased knowledge and understanding for everyone involved.

BUY STUFF ON AMAZON

You can get anything and everything on Amazon – electronics, books, clothing, decorations, gifts, toys, anything. You’re going to buy stuff on Amazon, anyway, because everyone does. Why not use the link(s) provided on TTB? It doesn’t cost you anything extra, and meanwhile, the blog makes anywhere from 4% to 8% commissions. I practice this myself by visiting MGoBlog when it comes time for me to go on a shopping spree.

DONATE

The thing I dislike the most is flat-out asking for donations, which I try to do only when there’s a specific need for upgrading the site. For example, your donations helped fund the site redesign back in 2015, and they helped pay for a new server (Flywheel) when the old one just wasn’t getting the job done. That being said, donations are always welcome. If your ad blocker is just too near and dear to your heart, consider just donating a few dollars every once in a while.

As always, thanks for reading and for any form of support you can give!

You need to login in order to vote