So with the pay-per-post reformation happening as we speak, spreading to all four corners of the blogosphere, some of you might still feel uncomfortable shilling for a company, even if you do disclose your shilling sugar daddy. If that’s the case, there may be a service that you can get involved with that can sooth your blogging conscience: GetThemBlogging.com

It was brought to my attention yesterday, and perhaps yours, if you hiked your pants and waded into the comments of my posts section, particularly the one on ReviewMe.com
As far as I can tell, it acts as a go-between companies and PR firms who want to create Buzz for products or services, by getting bloggers to blog about their products. Like ReviewMe.com it doesn’t put stipulations on what you write, so you’re welcome to write positive, negative, or neutral reviews. However, unlike companies such as ReviewMe or PayPerPost, bloggers get no financial compensation. What they do get is a chance to review and test products they otherwise wouldn’t (swag per post?)

The process for bloggers involve signing up and filling out a fairly lengthy survey (lengthy for me anyway — its about 3 pages), so that GetThemBlogging.com can compile a database that PR companies and businesses can select from.

What happens after that?

It sounds like they’re launching in the next couple of weeks — and unfortunately I can’t give you any more than that since its really open only to American bloggers (or those with American addresses). Since I am not (and don’t have one), I’ll be keeping an eye out for other more complete reviews on the service.

(Or, of course, you’re free to post them below)

Which leads me to another thought / meme: there is all sorts of influence in everything we write. In the grander scheme of things, even adsense affects what we blog, because ultimately the topics of your content affect those ads, and for many, its a strategic choice to try and blog about high-paying keywords (mesothelioma, any one?)

All high ranking product or service reviewing bloggers get free swag; traditional pubs have been getting them for ages anyway, so its an age old dilemma, that perhaps, isn’t one, after all. Sure, if you get free swag there’s a chance it could influence what you write, but in the scheme of things, its probably a helluva lot less than if someone shove’s money in your (paypal) account.

If anything, GetThemBlogging.com tries to even the playing field, since it gets long-tail bloggers the opportunity to do reviews — not just A-list bloggers who are “important” enough to deem a comp(limentary) product. Not all of us have the Engadget’s juice. f course, the benefit to long-tail blogging is that they get to add quality content in the terms of a real review, since they’re able to evaluate it at length, and with the full product / service.

Win-win for everyone?

I guess the cynic would say that its a cheap way of doing what ReviewMe is doing but without actually paying anyone for anything — sort of like getting free inbound links [on the other hand, they don't specify that you need to provide a link at all].

But I guess the flip side is that it surely must be a more ethical way of blogging. If that sort of thing bothers you anyway. Well, no need into going any further pompous tirades. One thing’s for sure. GetThemBlogging will certainly fill a niche that certain bloggers will find appealing, and at least provides an alternative to its other pay-per-post bretheren.

[Not that any one is keeping score, but I wonder if Google's watching all of this -- and keeps track of whether or not those links are paid for in anyway, or, are not. Are 1000 paid in-bound links worth the same as 1000 "organically" produced ones?]