Unless this is your first time visiting Grits & Grids, you may notice a little adjustment to our look. Okay, it’s a big adjustment. Fine, it’s a major overhaul. I wanted to take a quick minute to cover what’s changed, why, and what’s coming down the pike.
New feature: Let’s chat more!
For a long time, we had comments disabled. The main reason was that we got hit with a ton of spam which did no one any favors. It was tedious to moderate and a bit dangerous considering the rate of attacks major WordPress websites experience. However, we’ve invested in a fantastic security system to prevent and discourage hacking. We feel we can give this another shot. So, please, add in your commentary as you see fit starting with all new posts!
New revenue streams: Make money money
Look, we’ve done this without any compensation for about a decade. While we still consider this a passion project, we do need to generate some income to cover the costs of running a site of this size. While you may see obvious advertising from our partners at Carbon Ads, there are some other subtle ways we plan to generate revenue. Read on.
New promotional opportunities: Get the notoriety you deserve
This past year we launched a small option on the submissions form where you could pay a little extra cash and get your work reviewed first. This was used a bit by you and so we decided to expand upon it. You can still choose that option, AND we’ve added something new. Now you can select a promotional package that will maximize the exposure your post will receive. For $165USD, you can get your post added to our Instagram Stories, highlighted in the slider on the home page, and have a dedicated email sent to our email list. Combined that will have you reach easily 30,000 eyes. Boom!
Note: Selecting or not selecting this option will not affect whether or not your post is accepted for review and any rejected submissions will have this package refunded. The priority review fees remain non-refundable.
New categories: CBD & Cannabis, Type Tuesdays & Book Reviews
With how fast the edibles and cannabis-related product world is growing, we felt it important to start to cover how design and branding are influencing this burgeoning vertical. So, we launched a new category for project reviews that focuses on all things cannabis.
In the past, we dabbled with Type Tuesdays, but never fully committed to it weekly. We’re going to be shifting to a full commitment and adding in another category: Book Reviews. I, Joseph, read a metric ton of books every year, and while that knowledge has served me well, I never really talk about books I like and dislike anywhere. I believe that reviewing the books will give you some insights into which are valuable and which could be a waste of time. Our goal is to produce great content that you’ll love while opening the door to generating some revenue. Yes, these two categories have a secondary purpose. We promise to not make the sales pitch intrusive, but we do ask that you use the links on those posts to make your purchase whether it’s through MyFonts for TypeTuesdays or Amazon for the book reviews.
That’s just the icing on the cake for this relaunch. We have a lot more instore for 2021 and beyond so stay tuned as we grow Grits & Grids into something more amazing then ever!
