Beginner Basics for Making Money Online Using Blogs

photo credit: gordonwatts

Almost everyone I talk to these days, when I tell them that I am blogging, asks me, “You making any money on that?”  While Darren Rowse may have moved on from calling himself a “Blogger” to calling himself a “publisher,” there are still many people who instantly think “money” when they hear the word “blog.”

It could be that you have been blogging for a while because you enjoy writing about a specific topic.  Maybe you’ve wondered, recently, if you can make money doing it.  You could be at the other end of the spectrum:  maybe you are new to blogging, and want to blog solely for the purpose of making money.  However it is that you got here, and no matter what your background is in relationship to blogging, if you’ve never made money online using blogs there are a handful of basic principles you need to follow:

1. Traffic is Key.  The amount of money you make online using blogs is directly proportionate to the number of eyes that see your blog on a daily basis.  20 or 30 sets of eyeballs isn’t going to do it;  in most cases, 200 or 300 sets of eyeballs isn’t going to do it, either.  You need thousands of eyeballs zeroing in on your blog to make money.
2. Content is King.  I’ve said it before.  You’ve heard it before.  Good content is indeed the “holy grail” of blogging.  Good content is what separates your blog from all of the other millions of blogs out there, and good content is what will keep people coming back again and again.
3. Knowledge is Crucial.  There are a bunch of different ways to make money online using blogs, but not all of them will work for your blog.  You’ve got to be familiar with the different types of monetization strategies available, from context ads to direct advertising to affiliate programs.  You’ve got to know your options well enough that you can try them all out, and see which ones perform best.
4. Patience is a Necessity.  The cold hard truth is that making money online using blogs takes time. Most bloggers quit blogging, or at least quit trying to make money online using their blog, within just a few months, long before there is any real potential there to make money.  It can take six months, a year, or even more for a blog to begin making money.  It can take significantly longer than that for the amount of money a blog makes to become a reliable source of income. However, if you can stick with it blogging through those lean seasons early on, you are more likely to reap fat rewards in the long run.

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