Should You or Shouldn't You ~ Try to Make Money with a Blog?
I have been around the internet marketing world for more than 5 years now. Things come and go, tactics work and then they don't. What I have found is this. If you want to drive traffic, build a list, communicate with your prospects, build relationships, convert readers to buyers a BLOG is THE way to go.
Blogs allow you to do so much. You get to express yourself. Be creative. Once you have some regular readers it will allow you to get into relationship with them. By you sharing of yourself you will be a trusted source of information. People will trust your recommendations. People will buy based on your recommendation.
Building a blog for traffic and dollars does not happen overnight. I think this is where most people fail. They go into building a blog as a way to make quick money. That just doesn't happen. You have to stick with it. It may take you six months to build a quality content blog that will be easily monetized and make you some money.
It may happen quicker for some, and it may take longer for others. The point is it is NOT a one week thing. Blogging is also a hands on business, at least for a while. Don't expect to throw up a blog and then walk away from it and for it to still make money.
If you can accept these blogging facts and are still ready to get blogging, here's my first gift to you.
This is a free ebook, that really should cost you at least 47 dollars. It will lay out a blueprint for your blog. This includes finding your niche, getting the right mindset, and so much more. Read this ebook and you will know if you really have what it takes to build a blog that will take care of you.
Getting started with your blog
I had this great blog going over at wordpress.com. I was posting every day. One day I logged on and there was a big RED BANNER across my blog. It said I had violated their terms of service. (which was true) I had affiliate links on my blog, and I hadn't read the TOS very thoroughly. I quick quick made an XML copy of my blog, I didn't know if they were just going to delete it or what~ I scrambled around look for hosting so I could keep my blog going. My blog was not deleted, but it was a huge hassle and now all the hard work I did driving traffic to that blog is worthless, because I had to move it.
Just beware. Free platforms certainly have their place. If you are a mom and want to keep the rest of the family up to date on the little ones, they are awesome for that, if you are keeping a journal, great for that.
If you want to MAKE MONEY from your blog. They are AWFUL for that.
I have heard stories of Blogger randomly deleting blogs, publishers just show up and their blogs are gone.
You do NOT want all your hard work to go down the drain, poof. That's why if you are interested in making money from your blog I seriously suggest you make the investment to host your own blog.
I know, I know, that's what everyone told me too. I blew them off and almost paid for it dearly.
In my research I found this hosting company and I recommend them. Lunar Pages Hosting. They offer everything you will need to host your blog including one click uploading through Fantastico. They have C-panel as well. Those are the two big things everyone says to look for in a hosting company for your blog.
Customer service is great. In fact I called them numerous times during this debacle, and they answered my questions, even the dumb ones, and helped me in every way they could.
Do yourself a favor. Host your own blog.
Learn how to drive traffic from Ed Dale
Here's Ed's video about driving traffic from last year's 30 day challenge.
Thirty Day Challenge - Day 16 - How We Get Traffic
curated content from YouTube
Great Blogs to Learn From
- Internet Marketing Tips
- Great tips for driving traffic to your blog and internet marketing in general.
- Blogging Tips for Beginners
- ProBlogger's tips for beginners. A great series.
- How to Make Money From Your Blog
- Steve Pavlina.com Personal Development for Smart People TM
Make Money from Your Blog
This is what is known as an RSS feed. It is a feed that will allow you to see all the posts made on a specific blog. You can get a blog's feed through google/yahoo and many other places. Sometimes you will even be able to get it through your email. When looking for an RSS feed look for the Orange Button. They come in a few different styles, for example: 
and usually this:
You will notice this lens even has an RSS feed.
If you sign up for the feed of this lens you will get updates each time I update the lens. :) Pretty cool huh?
Below is a blog giving you tips on how to make money from your blog.
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byMore tips to drive traffic to your blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byJoin a Mentoring Program
If you are serious about making money from your blog it might do you well to join a mentoring program.
I highly recommend Yaro Starak's Blog Mastermind Mentorship Program. Yaro is making over $5000 each month from his blogs. He knows what he's doing.
His Blog Mastermind Mentorship Program is a week-by-week mentoring course in which he show you, step-by-step, how to:
1. Set up and customise your Blog,
2. Build your readership
3. And make money.
What more could you ask for. A seriously successful blogger taking you by the hand and guiding you through the whole process.
I call it a jumpstart ~ to getting where you want to be. It's a small investment for long term gain.
Click here to join the Blog Mastermind Mentoring Program
Are you getting enough traffic to your blog?
Feel free to leave your questions here. I will try to answer them. Also, leave a link to your blog. It's a great way to drive some traffic. :)
Affiliate_Biz_News wrote...
Hey! Good lens, I five starred it! Once you have the niches, IM gets MUCH easier if you have a system - hence I recommend my Secret Affiliate Code review page as a perfect combination.
Check it out and leave a comment!
This is also a great example of a Squidoo Lens that newbies can use as a great example!
Simon
Posted June 16, 2008
