The way I figure it, the Today.com Exiles are all those that decided one day to stop drinking the Koolaid. At one point we were all drawn in by the allure of this blogging platform and were being treated nicely. Enough so that we would try to talk others in the forum into seeing that this was one of the best places to write for. Then we slowly saw the light, that the owner was selling out and no longer had our better interests at heart as writers, enough so that we began to wonder if he ever had our better interests at heart.
I signed on a year ago, back when Today.com was still relatively new. I didn't expect to be accepted, but was, and was shocked. It was only much later that I realized that they accepted everyone, and that I wasn't special. Everyone back then made a fairly decent income for running a blog, $5 a post per day, and that was for posting anything we wanted to. I was their first Most Popular Blogger. When others would diss the place I'd tell them this was among one of the better places that I had ever written, as I knew they truly had my best interests at heart. This is despite the fact that a few months later, newer hires were receiving a fraction of the money I was.
It was a great partnership. I brought them a lot of views, and I made a decent income. I was always in the top 20, if not the top 10. The owner of the site and I shared a few messages in my time, and in one he noted if I ever had any problems to let him know, and in another he was even seeking advice for his personal life. I felt I had his respect. I didn't feel I had the other admins respect, as they were reluctant to allow me to share links and work, something that I knew would help me and help them. I was going on vacation and simply wanted to have a few guest writers. I just didn't want my blog viewership to die out, something I'd worked really hard for. I wasn't looking to get paid for those posts, just keep the content moving. I started to have doubts.
Once the blog redesign was brought up in the forum, I had serious concerns. Because of formatting to individual posts, my blog would become unreadable under the design they were suggesting. Much of my viewership is brought on by search engines. People landing on my older posts would no longer be able to read them. No one would answer my question in the forum. Out of several TV blogs at today.com, I was the top viewed. I was afraid the uniform blog design would make mine just like all the others, as their viewers increased and mine decreased. The admins kept insisting all this was to better compete with other blog networks, but that didn't make sense. The other blog networks that operated with uniform design didn't accept every blogger that applied. They only had TV blogs in certain genres, one in each allowed. They had a niche; I didn't. I'd worked hard for viewership in a general genre. Again, no one answered my pleas.
I turned to the man who had pledged that I could always come to him with problems, especially if I felt I wasn't getting answers from his staff. I voiced my concerns respectfully. I was told this blog redesign was going to happen whether I liked it or not, and that he had made the decision. I tried to plead my case again. I stated my numbers and all that I had brought today.com and they had meant to me. I noted how important individuality was to me, and that the financial bonuses might not be as important. I write for simple things like making people feel, think, and laugh. I suggested that for those of us in the top rung, instead of always giving out financial bonuses that he start giving out privileges, such as controlling our design. I knew he was strapped financially. He issued me notice back saying most of the blogs, including my own didn't make the money he was paying out. He stated that we could skip ahead a few weeks and change my blog to one that was PPI instead of per post, as that was a change that was coming to all anyway.
I was flabbergasted. He was threatening me. I pleaded with him to do the honorable thing and keep me along with everyone else and not drop my pay before the others. The man that had once told me to come to him with any problems I was having issued me an order to stop messaging him and told me to discuss this with the support staff. This was Christmas, and I now lived in fear my income was about to be taken away.
I saw the writing on the wall and begin writing elsewhere. I still did my one post a day, but I no longer did extra posts, the ones that brought in all the views. Why should I? My blog design was changed without my consent and my pay was dropped to PPI. Instead of blasting today.com, I thanked them for all they had done and respectfully took my leave. I was blasted in the forums for leaving for such silly reasons as blog design. No one knew the real reason as I chose to take the high road. No one knew it was because I, a top out of 1500 blogger, had been threatened when I stopped drinking the koolaid, and that the promises where then fulfilled.
It wasn't long before I saw the true reason for the blog redesign. Ads began to be sold and many more appeared on the blogs. This was why they were redesigned of course. It wasn't to compete with the other blog networks, as that never made sense anyway. They just wanted the ability to sell more ads. Why not just say that in first place instead of playing all these games? This is why I stopped working full time and chose instead to freelance. I was tired of being treated badly by bosses.
It worked out okay for me. I've picked up other places to write to make up that money. I also took over the website of realityshack.com where I have written for five years. I don't make the same amount of money with it, but at least I have what I originally thought I had at today.com, the freedom. The koolaid may cost me more in the long run, but the taste is much better.
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