Blogging for Dollars
“Make the iron hot by striking it.” – Rita Mae Brown
No one has been more skeptical of blogging as an income opportunity than yours truly.
I listened to the hype. And I shook my head in disbelief as I watched so-called Internet Futurists stumble over themselves explaining its wonders. But then I experienced Blogger.
I went to the Blogger website, set up a blog, enabled Google’s AdSense, and soon received my first (tiny) check.
Hey! It works!
Even if you never make a dime with it … I think you’ll like Blogger.
In fact, you’ll probably get hooked!
And if you follow my strategy for generating traffic and getting your blog noticed in the “blogosphere” (I’m not kidding – that’s what it’s called), you’ll probably like it even more.
It only takes a few minutes to set up and post a blog on the Blogger website. And if you think that’s great … you’ll love this. It also only takes a few minutes to set up Google’s AdSense on your blog, so you can start making money immediately.
What the Heck Is a Blog?
A blog is an online log or journal. It’s like a website, but you can update it instantly and dynamically. What’s more, other people can post comments on your blog – if you want them to. You can post images, music, and videos, too.
According to its latest quarterly survey, blog-tracking firm Technorati says there are more than 100,000 new blogs created every day. The reason blogs are spreading like wildfire is because they require almost no technical knowledge or programming skills to set up and manage.
Another reason blogs have become a mini-revolution is because they can be hosted free of charge … and there is practically no maintenance required.
I’ve discovered the secret to making money with blogs, though you might not like my approach. My blog strategy may even be contrary to everything you’ve heard. But if you want to make money with your blog, you at least need to listen to my spin on it.
The Secret to Making Money With a Blog
My advice is based upon a clear principle of direct marketing – one Michael Masterson has explained to you before. But it’s so important, it bears repeating.
It’s this: If you’re trying to sell something, it’s a lot easier to sell it to people who have already purchased something similar. It’s even easier to sell to repeat buyers. And if you aim your marketing efforts at repeat buyers who paid about the same price as what you’re selling your item for … that’s better yet.
Let me explain.
If you were going to sell vitamins directly to consumers via direct mail, you’d need a list of qualified prospects to mail your sales letter or catalog to. Selecting random names from a phone book or from a list of people who purchased a bottle of vitamins five years ago is not going to work.
The BEST list would be people who recently purchased vitamins via direct mail … preferably multiple times. What’s more, your ideal prospects would be those who bought vitamins that cost approximately the same as the vitamins you are selling.
In direct-mail marketing, selling products to people who have purchased the same or similar products in the past almost assures you of success. And the same principle holds true for blogs that run Google’s AdSense.
Some blogs are more popular than others, and receive a lot more traffic. And in order to make money with a blog, you’ll need lots of traffic – targeted traffic. So why not start one that already has a built-in demand and “naturally” attracts people who have specific interests?
Technorati features the Top 100 Blogs in the “blogosphere” on its website. When you review these popular blogs, you’ll notice that the three most popular sectors are: social topics (politics, gripes, news, and dating), technology (programming, anything Web-related, and software development), and personalities.
If you want to launch a blog that attracts a targeted audience quickly, stick closely to those three areas.
That doesn’t mean you can’t launch a blog about your life, business, interests, etc. You can launch hundreds of blogs if you want to – and Blogger will host them for FREE. But if you want to launch a blog that’s going to make a profit, base it on one of those three popular subjects: social topics, technology, or personalities.
A Blog Traffic Secret
You can attract more traffic by submitting your blog’s URL into Google and hundreds of other engines and directories. And here’s a little secret that will increase your traffic even more: When naming your blog, try to match popular search terms in Google, Yahoo!, and MSN.
Recently, for example, the five most popular search terms in Google’s “Health and Family” category were:
- weight loss
- nutrition
- parenting
- medicine
- babies
These terms have been searched tens of millions of times on Google.
All you need to do is tie one of these search terms (together with one of the aforementioned popular sectors) to your blog. You might, for instance, name it something like Weight-Loss News.
When people are searching Google or the other top engines for “blog spots” or blogs that match specific interests, your blog could appear prominently in their search results. And when your blog appears prominently in the search results of the major engines – and you start receiving targeted search traffic – you, too, will be Blogging for Dollars!
Obviously, you’ll need to have Google’s AdSense running on your blog – or a similar program that pays you every time an ad is clicked.
How to Get Started
Go to the a blogging website and set up your blog.
Be sure to select the “Google AdSense” option.
You’ll be blogging in 10 minutes or less!
Once you have a blogging domain, you can submit it to all the top engines. If you prefer to hire someone to do this for you, try Whiz Kid SEO (run by a 14-year-old entrepreneur). He’ll submit your blog domain into 210 search engines and directories for only $250. You can reach him at imaxxman@gmail.com.
There are also hundreds of blog directories that you can submit your domain name to. Here are three of the most popular:
When your blog starts receiving traffic and people click on your AdSense ads, Google will cut you your first “tiny” check.
[Ed. Note: Marc Charles is editor of Profit Center Dispatch, ETR’s weekly e-letter that alerts you to the best business opportunities in the world. (This article was adapted from a recent issue.)]