Blogs have become extremely popular over the years and allow marketers to get their thoughts out quickly and easily using very affordable blogging software and plugins that are widely available. If done correctly, you can get the attention of all the major search engines and have your pages indexed extremely fast. After you’ve added a good amount of quality articles, you can then start implementing ways of monetizing your blog for some extra money. Once your readers grow to a point where the blog is self-sustaining, you can really explode onto the Internet with a site that truly helps people and, in turn, earns you an amazing return in advertising dollars.
Which blogging software should I use?
I recommend using WordPress Blogs. You can sign up for a free account at www.wordpress.com or use the method I prefer, which is installing the WordPress script itself on your own web server hosting plan. The software is easy to use and comes with an installation program that guides you through the process. The other very cool feature of WordPress Blogs is the fact that you can use add-on plugins that extend the capabilities of your site. Go to wordpress.org/extend/plugins/ to search for them.
What should I write about?
That’s the fun part – you can write about anything! Choose a hobby or something you’re an expert on or have a passion for. My biggest tip for your success is just that; make sure you write about something you actually enjoy and never create a blog for the sole reason of making money online. If you start a site just to earn extra money, you’ll most likely fail because you’ll be more concerned with income generation than writing good quality content that actually helps someone or provides entertainment. Pick a topic you love and could imagine writing about everyday.
How often should I write posts?
This depends on how motivated you are to succeed, but the most important thing is to be consistent. Consistency will make or break your blog success. This is so important because search engines like Google and Yahoo love continually updated web pages and especially blogs. If you can write a great article every single day, then do it and never look back. As I’ve said, even if you do every other day or every few days, make sure you’re consistent and never stop…keep going and going and pump out that content.
How do I advertise my blog?
There are literally tons of ways to get your blog out there and known by the public, so here’s a list of some of the more effective ways:
- Talk to other bloggers that write about the same topics as you and form a link exchange or relationship with them. Become friends first, then and only then ask for a link or the chance at being a guest author on their blog.
- Use SEO (Search Engine Optimization) tools and techniques to get a much higher ranking in the search engines.
- Leave comments on other similar blogs with your name and web site link to receive lots of incoming links, which will help grow your audience.
- Submit articles to Article Directories like this one to get the word out with a link back to your blog.
- Write quality content that engages your audience and give them a reason to subscribe to you and keep coming back for more.
Once you’ve been around for several months and have compiled a nice list of quality articles with a fair amount of traffic coming in, you can start to think about implementing various ways of monetizing your blog. The most common are adding banners or small ads in the sidebar area of your site that advertisers pay for per click or on a monthly basis. Additionally, you can have in-line text ads that will underline certain key phrases that, when clicked on, will open a small ad for a sponsors site. After awhile, you can even write review on your blog for affiliate programs or products and get paid a good amount of money every time.
Really, the possibilities are endless when you want to earn extra money on the Internet with blogging. You just need to be disciplined and consistent with your articles, never stop getting the word out about them, and add lots of value for your readers. If you can do these things over and over again, you’ll ensure a great blog that will make you a wealth of money and success!
