I have to admit that my interest in maintaining my Web sites really waned a bit during the time I was writing my book in 2004. Then last year, amidst the separation, coaching and other pursuits, I still wasn't that interested. I never stopped keeping up with news and such, but I didn't feel inclined to re-do things.
Working a full-time job this year has not only helped me move toward something of a more stable financial state, but also put me in the middle of smart people. That was the biggest reason I didn't want to do consulting stuff, no one to learn from. While the work doesn't apply much to something like CoasterBuzz, combined with all of the exciting things going on with Web apps lately, it's inspiring to do something new.
And the time is right too. The audience is pretty solid and trouble-free. I remember the early years where people would do something violating our terms and get banned, then tell everyone on every other site about how we censored their opinions (because you know, I really give a shit if you don't like some park in the middle of North Dakota, and I'll ban you for it). I used to take offense to that in 2002, probably because I was unemployed and not in the world of contracting joy yet.
The audience is so consistent as well. There is still some growth, but I think overall it has leveled off. I can accept that the market is only so big, and being at the top of it is nice. It's funding my HD toys at least, and I'm thankful for that.
Where I really feel most obligated is with the club members though. There's a group that's very loyal, with an amazingly high retention rate. I think if I gave them something more compelling, they'd recommend to friends and the club could really be a lot bigger. ACE manages to have thousands of members with virtually no value proposition, so certainly that's something to think about.
I've been doing it now for almost seven years, or almost nine if you count Guide To The Point/PointBuzz. That's crazy. It doesn't seem like that big of a part in my life, but it's crazy to think about the longevity. I never guessed I would've been doing it for so long.
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