I started using the microdonation service Flattr back in September.  I like it better than advertising because it doesn’t clutter up websites with annoying ads and better than Paypal because it’s far more flexible (and principled).  What do I mean by flexible?  In addition to making one time microdonations through Flattr, you can subscribe and give microdonations for a specified number of months or you can donate a specific amount instead of giving a microdonation (a slice of your Flattr ‘pie’). It’s even possible to Flattr things in the flesh!

While I’m not exactly making big bucks on Flattr, I am doing a little better than breaking even: I give away 2 euro a month to support content I think is awesome (like Sita Sings the Blues), but I make a little more than that through microdonations on this blog. Considering that I only get about 40 visitors a day, I think that’s awesome. I imagine bigger sites do much better than a couple euros a month. Which brings me to the problem I’ve had with Flattr from the beginning – it still hasn’t been widely adopted by English sites. The blogs and news sites I read every day still don’t have Flattr, and neither do the artists, authors, or musicians I love.

The barrier to entry is very low – just 2 euro. Even if you choose not to keep using Flattr, the money is donated to charity, so you can at least walk away with the warm fuzzies. If you have ads on your website, I suggest replacing them with Flattr, especially if you’re a little blogger like me – I’ve made more in the 4 months I’ve been using Flattr than I ever have using Google ads or Amazon referrals.

Related articles

• Flattr Rolls Out Direct Donations, Wikileaks Likely To Benefit Greatly (techcrunch.com)
• Flattr micropayment app arrives in the Android Market (downloadsquad.switched.com)
• WikiLeaks continues to fund itself via tech startup Flattr (eu.techcrunch.com)