You can blog your way to a healthy income if you discipline yourself to consistently blog valuable content.
To be absolutely up front with you, blogging can take months, sometimes years before you begin to see any reward for all you dedicated hard work. But if you approach this line of work in a way that has a clear future view, there is every possibility that you’ll have a business that you’re passionate about and that gives you back what you give to it.
Choosing a Profitable Niche
This first step will reflect the success for the rest of your blog’s life so you must have a clear plan. Without one, you’re heading into the writing world blind and will very likely finish up giving up your goal because of the lack of passion you feel for your niche. So make it work for you.
There are several thousand niches to choose from and a great place to begin looking for it is Google. Type in your interest. Let’s say its candles. You can get a pretty good idea about how the globe feels about them by looking at google trends where you’ll find a host of information.
Pinterest is another good place to check how where the money making niches are as is Facebook. You’ll have an idea as to where your target people are if the niche is strengthening or listing and it will save you a headache when you’re further down the line.
Starting A Blog
Making money from a blog requires self-hosted WordPress which is one of the most popular content management systems (CMS) because it’s easy to use. We suggest you also use BlueHost who are offering web hosting at $2.95 per month if you sign up for 36 months or the first month and then $7.99 per month plus a free domain and site builders. You also get support 24/7.
Choosing Your Domain
There are several easy alternatives for choosing a domain name and it doesn’t involve trying to think of one yourself. Lean Domain Search is one of the easiest, no fuss, name generators online. It spits out a host of names from a word you’ve chosen, and you can then choose one provided or be inspired by what is generated. Many non-technical people associate a .com with the internet, so Lean Domain will spit out only dot com domain names; it will check its availability and also if the name is available on Twitter.
Choosing A WordPress Theme
You’re almost there. You’ve registered your domain name, you’ve paid for your Bluehost hosting, and now it’s time to log in to your BlueHost account so that you can install WordPress on your hosting. You’ll have received an email from BlueHost with all the relevant details; your domain name and password.
Just go over to ‘Website’ click on Install WordPress, and you’ll set up quickly so you can get started on your blog. A WordPress theme is a template that has been pre-designed and which you can customise. You can either run with a free one or pay for one, but the choice is entirely yours. Just ensure your theme is in tune with your niche and your goals. So for example, if you’re writing a music blog you’ve got more freedom of showcase your expertise. If you’re more professional, keep it formal and clean. Also using a responsive design will allow the layout of your blog to be viewed on different sized screens like mobile phones and tablets.
Once you’re happy with your theme, it’s time to fill out the details on the About page, the social media links and other content that is all relevant and important. People want to know who is behind the scenes here and with an about page, they learn a little about you which is the bedrock for the trust foundations.
Bring On The Content
Without it, your blog is dead. You must always remember content is king, and that is summing it up in three truthful words. But beyond great content is visual. If you care about your reputation, you’ve got to care about your posts. Ensure they’re:
- Well formatted
- Contain relevant images
- Entertaining
Here’s a link to 17 Amazing Free Stock Photo sites that will give you a head start with your images. There are some stunning photographs here that will have you trying to decide which ones will fit your niche. There’s plenty there for everyone.
Building Your Audience
Write about what you love to do. Your hobbies, how you succeeded after several failed attempts. People will find you. That’s a fact. Whether it’s through Google+, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn or Facebook, your readership will grow. But you’ve got to promote it too. You can’t just let it sit there waiting to be found. Get it out there in front of eyes.
Differentiate between platforms. If your blog is professional, you might aim at LinkedIn or Google+ or both. If it’s a visual blog, get it on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest and focus primarily on those platforms. WordPress offer different plugins, so you’ll be able to put Share buttons on your posts to make it convenient for your visitors. Just remember to keep the number of plugins to a bare minimum. They tend to slow the blog down.
Marketing Your Blog
If you’re not sure where to start, you can begin with The Beginners Guide to Online Marketing which is chock full of information written by a reputable blogger who is passionate about his craft. 17 Insanely Actionable List Building Strategies is useful for learning how to build an email list and a cheat sheet for Social Media Image Sizes.
Monetizing Your Blog
You’ve got the foundations for getting your blog out there and when it is, if it is delivering high traffic volumes then Google advertisements can be the road to a steady passive income. If your blog is maintaining visitors who linger on your pages, then you’re set to go. Just check to see if your country allows you to run Adsense ads. If you’re not, head over to Google AdSense alternatives or info links.
Sponsored Posts
This is a well-paid arrangement wherein you may be asked to publish a post for an advertiser or even write a post that gives them or their product a mention. Usually, you can receive between $50 and $500 depending on the amount of content. So long as you advise your readers when a blog post is an advertisement, you will be okay.
Affiliate Marketing
If you’re interested in affiliate marketing (there’s a broad difference between it and referral marketing) you might consider signing up with an affiliate network. Shareasale and ClickBank will give you direction toward finding offers to promote.
Offering Your Services
If you’re creative, if you can write or design, then you might offer your own services on your own blog rather than freelancing. When you promote your own services you’re in a position to ask a higher rate than you can on a freelance network such as Upwork.
Wrapping it up
We’ve covered some ground, but with a little research, you’ll uncover a lot more. Just ensure your niche is your passion, that your content is relevant to your blog, that your images relate to what your blog is about.
Make it super interesting, expect nothing groundbreaking to occur overnight but expect that it will happen, and you’ll be earning those extra dollars as a reward for your dedication.
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