How Do I Start Blogging?
by Mark Hall

One of the most common questions asked online is how do I start blogging for cash. Blogging can be a very rewarding pursuit. Some are attracted to the financial rewards from hearing stories of rag to riches achieved through blogging, while others are in it for the leisurely pleasure of sharing an idea or two with the rest of the world. Successful people make five to six figure incomes from it by using certain methods, creating amazing figures.

Today, the blogger will have many choices how he wishes to monetize his or her blog. You can find direct advertising options as well as affiliate offers. If you are willing to search, there are plenty of ways to make money from a blog. There is one ingredient for success that you need to make successful - the ‘big T’. What is the big T? Well, its ‘traffic’; if your blog site doesn’t have enough traffic, you will not earn any money.

Here are some monetization options that you can embark in, supposing that you already have a great traffic. PayPerPost and ReviewMe can be used if you are new in this field. These are easy to start since they do not require you to have a certain amount of traffic before you can get started. For the busy person who still wants to make a decent income from blogs, this is a good method. If you wish, you may write a review for a fee which is an excellent method to make money from blogging.

You can almost guarantee a regular income stream by choosing this option. Do spend some time looking into these points beforehand. The fastest way to failure is to make a post when you have a review to make. The presence of too many sponsored posts makes your blogs less credible; accept sponsors only for product reviews that are relevant to your niche.

You will have more options if the revenue is based on the reader’s actions, purchases, and participation. A good example of this in action is affiliate offers. This option lets you incorporate the offers and links into your actual text. Suppose your blogs are all about repairing credit, make sure that you provide links and advertisements for services associated with credit repair, credit reports, and other related services or products. There are some wonderful surprises to be discovered using this method. NeverBlueAds, AzoogleAds, Share-a-Sale, and Commission Junction are simply havens to find great programs; find some great offers by visiting the website.

Opt for content based advertising if you prefer a less intrusive form. All the advertisements will be created based on the contents of the page. Publisher Networks of Yahoo and Google’s Adsense are some of the most popular players in this particular area.

You can join into the league of successful people making a regular income through this system. Every visitor that visits your blog can increase your turnover; you can expect to earn money from the traffic because these ads are part of the website. Placing those ads will give your visitors extra information.

So forget your hesitancy, just choose which money making idea that appeals to you by selecting the ones that you believe will work. You can notice some similar qualities in all successful bloggers. Your talent can be turned into a money making opportunity online. Make a fresh start by becoming a blogger today.

About the Author:
Mark Hall used his internet marketing skills to get his blog ranked in the Top 10 in Google. View his vemma and Toksee site to check out his case study video.

Building Traffic with Blogs
By Theo McLanahan

Resources:

The Real Secret To Creating Your Own Writing Style

I just read an interesting article on the Build A Better Blog website where Patsi Krakoff and Denise Wakeman talked about the differences between Blogger, Wordpress and Typepad. They suggested that non-techie, business bloggers should use Typepad as their blogging platform. I completely agree. Typepad is an excellent blog that is very search engine friendly out of the box. They then suggested that you use Wordpress.org if you have easy access to a technician. I also agree. Wordpress is a very powerful blog with a huge community of users.

And finally, they suggested that you shouldn’t use Blogger for a business blog. I don’t agree. What most Wordpress and Typepad bloggers don’t understand is the amazing customization capability you have with Blogger. For example, you can remove the Blogger Nav Bar from your header easily. This makes your blog look much more professional and non-Google like. You can also easily accept credit cards on your Blogger blog quickly convert your blog into a business blog. Best of all, Blogger is super easy to use and it’s completely free … unlike Typepad or having to pay for a hosting account with Wordpress.

Now, would I use a Blogger blog for my business? Probably not. But would I use a Blogger blog to set up a blog for my business? Absolutely, especially if I wanted to save money while I was learning how to blog and earn money.

Here’s a really neat trick. Wordpress has a function where you can import your entire Blogger blog to a Wordpress platform in less than 6 seconds. That’s right … less than 6 seconds. This blog was originally created on Blogger and was converted to a Wordpress blog.

My conclusion is this, if you want a serious business blog and you have the money and time to learn how to do it right, go with Wordpress. If you want a serious business blog and you don’t have the time or technical expertise to keep it up to date, pay $15 a month and go with Typepad. If you’re just starting out, go with Blogger. Once you learn  how to blog on Blogger, the others will be a piece of cake.

In the future, the most successful real estate agents will dominate communities with the help of the Internet. Success will not be based on the size of a marketing budget, but on the level of the relationship. There is no easier or more effective way to build relationships than with the help of the Internet. Consider Active Rain.

Here are 21 reasons why you can dominate a community with a blog.

Communication

The tool that makes a community website stand-out is its ability to allow potential home buyers and sellers to easily communicate with you and each other. Blogging software including Wordpress and Blogger, the free website tool from Google, gives everyone in the community the opportunity to participate by making comments and posting to your blog. And as you know, communication creates customers.

Ease of Use

Building and maintaining a community website couldn’t be easier. If you know how to get on the Internet and make your way around a word processor, this will be a piece of cake. Honest

Fun

At first I thought building a community website was going to be work, but I quickly found myself enraptured with every article I created. If you enjoy writing and creating value, you’re going to love the time you put into your community blog.

R.O.I.

If you’re talking in terms of money, you can not find a better return on your investment. Why? Because the cost to create and host your community website is completely free. That;s right, it’s free. You can’t say that about postcards, TV, print advertising or radio.

Relationship Building Capability

A community website is all about building relationships with the people in the community. It allows you to easily communicate with homeowners through your articles, the comments section on your site, email and even over the telephone. A community website done properly is a hive of activity with you at the center.

Pass-Along / Send to a Friend

How many times have you come across a great website or article and forwarded it on to a neighbor or friend because you thought they would find it interesting? How many times have you done that with a real estate postcard or print ad?

Ability to Know What Your Neighbors Are Thinking

Wouldn’t it be nice to know what your neighbors are thinking when it comes to their thoughts on home pricing, home selling or the value of their home? It’s easy to do with a simple poll on your community site. All you have to do is ask.

Demonstrate Your Technical Marketing Skills

You don’t have to persuade homeowners in the community how you use the Internet to sell homes, show them on your community site. Use things like slides hows, Google maps, narrated video tours, full property websites with Postlets, printable brochures and more … all of which you create yourself. Let your site do the selling for you.

Reciprocity

Reciprocity is a psychological principle used in selling every day. If I help you succeed, you will want to help me succeed in return. Use your community blog to promote the people in the community you’re farming. They won’t forget you when the time comes to sell their home.

Time to Market

If you’ve ever produced a postcard campaign you know the value of getting your information out to the community quickly before the situation changes. With a community website you can get your information out in less than an hour. That’s fast.

Free Page Ranking

Advertising is expensive. PR is free. The local media is much more likely to do a PR piece on your community website than they are on your real estate business. And every time someone goes to your site it’s another opportunity to sell them on your service.

Search Engine Optimization

SEO stands for search engine optimization. When you create a community website, search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN and AOL are very likely to push your community site to the top of the search results page. That means when a potential home buyer looks for information about your community, they are very likely to find your community site. Real estate websites can’t compete. This is a huge bonus.

Sell Advertising Space on your Community Website

This may be something you’ve never considered, but it’s worth looking into. Once you’re community site is up and running with the majority of neighbors subscribing to it, you can easily sell advertising space. Hint: Don’t sell ad space to another real estate agent, no matter how much they offer to pay you.

Ease of sending home buyers and sellers to your website

Homeowners don’t read postcards and jump to their computer and go to your website. It’s too much effort. It’s much easier to click a link to your website once their on your community blog. It’s as simple as clicking their mouse button.

Longevity

TV spots and radio ads last for a few seconds. Newspaper ads, postcards and real estate reports might last for a day. Magazine ads last for a week to a month but an ad on the web lasts forever. When you have your own community website you can advertise your homes until they sell.

Marketing Costs

If you’ve ever attempted a postcard campaign you know it can be expensive. You must pay for the copy and design, paper stock, printing, postage and the mailing list. TV, radio, newspaper and magazine ads can be even more expensive. The cost to create and publish a community website on the other hand is absolutely free. Here are some ways you can get the word out and market your community blog.

Reaching Home Buyers

When you farm a community with postcards and real estate reports you’re only reaching potential home sellers. When you build a community website with Google Blogger you’re not only farming for home sellers in that community, but home buyers who are interested in moving into that community. If you want to target home buyers for a community, create a website about that community

Status

Traditional farming techniques position you as a salesperson. When you host a community website and take the opportunity to share home selling tips and home improvement ideas along with real estate reports and home listings you’ll quickly be viewed as the real estate authority in that community. Home buyers and sellers would rather work with real estate experts than salespeople. Become the expert.

Interest level in Your Marketing Piece

The majority of neighbors are not interested in receiving a postcard about a home you just sold? They are however interested in learning about an up-coming neighborhood meeting or event, a crime alert, the status of a hot community issue, the local real estate trends and home improvement tips. When you farm a neighborhood with a community website you are giving your target market what they want, including real estate related topics.

Tracking

The extent to which you can track a postcard campaign is limited to how many postcards were delivered and how many people responded. The things you can track with a community website and blog are limitless. For example:

* How many people looked at your community blog?
* Who looked at your the community blog?
* What pages of your blog received the most attention?
* What pages of your blog received the least attention?
* Where did your community blog visitors coming from?
* What time of day did they visit your community blog?
* What topics did they comment on?
* What was their opinion on each topic?
* Did they tell-a- friend about your community blog?
* How did they find your community blog?
* When are they planning to sell their house?
* Who requested a home valuation?
* Who requested a real estate report?
* Who followed the link to your real estate website?
* And much, much more

How could you use that information to sell homes?

Branding Opportunities

As I mentioned earlier, if you want to brand yourself and your company you have to get in front of your prospects frequently, and frequently can be expensive especially with postcards, reports, print ads and radio/TV spots. On the other hand you can get in front of your prospects as frequently as you like at no cost to you with your community blog. Best of all, you’ll be branding yourself as the community real estate expert rather than just a real estate salesperson looking for business.

What in the world is a blog and why would I want one? This is the burning question millions of people are asking themselves everyday. Sometimes three and four times a day. If you’re one of those people, relief is on the way.

To start, a blog is nothing more than a website on steroids. It looks like a website, it acts like a website but it is so much more. The two biggest differences between a blog and a web site are the blogs capacity to allow people to communicate with the author easily and the cost. Web sites cost money and blogs are free. You’ve got to like that.

In the past, blogs had a reputation for being nothing more than on-line journals. People wrote their thoughts to a blog and posted them on the Internet using a very simple text application. Since that time humans have become much more creative with how they use their blog. And with a little help from technology companies like Google, blogs can do so much more than just text.

How are people using blogs today?
There are currently tens of millions of blogs on the Internet today with thousands more going up every hour. People are using blogs to:

Journal their thoughts and ideas
Record their dreams
Post their photography
Create an interactive community where people can collaborate on their projects
Promote family reunions
Position themselves as experts in their field
Write books and have their material critiqued by interested readers
Sell their products and services
Promote themselves and their projects
Survey their readers
As a substitute for newsletters and bulletins
Sell sex. You knew that was coming
And a million other things.

With a blog you can do virtually everything you can do with a website. The difference is you can do it by yourself and you can do it for free. It’s that easy, thanks to tools like Blogger from Google.

The most amazing aspect of a blog is that you can create a web presence that would have cost you thousands of dollars just a few years ago. And I’m talking about a web presence that is loaded with technology. Here are just a few of the things you can do to jazz up your blog.

Blogging Software
When you’re ready to create your blog, the first thing you must do is set up an account with a blog hosting company. The two biggest blog platforms are Wordpress and Google Blogger. I use them both. But when it comes to ease of use and cost, nothing comes close to Blogger. Blogger is completely free and it does not require a technician to set it up. Once you get your free Blogger account you have a blog on the Internet in less than four minutes.

Video
With your blog you can do amazing things. For example, Google makes it easy for you to add video to your Google Blogger blog. If you have a digital camera, all you have to do is upload your video to your computer, edit it using the free Movie Maker software on your Windows operating system and upload it to Google Video. You can even upload it right from your blog.

Slide Shows
This is my mom’s favorite thing to do. She uses slide shows on her blog and sends them to her children and friends. The new slide show software is fantastic and it’s free. Your photos look more like a slide video than they do a slide show. They include music, voice over and more.

Credit Cards
In the past it was a hassle to accept credit cards on your website. Today, thanks to Paypal, you can accept credit cards on your blog with no start-up cost, no merchant cost and no monthly fee. All you pay is 30 cents per transaction and 3% of the sale. It’s so simple you can do it yourself.

Maps and Directions
Do you want to create a map to direct people to your business? If so, Google Maps is the answer. With Google Maps you can create both a map and written directions to your business from anywhere in the world. Once you create your map it’s just a matter of adding it to your blog.

Games
After cartoons, games are the second most common reasons people visit blogs and websites. Google offers another service know as Google Gadgets and it is loaded with games like Tetris, Chess, Sudoko, Frogger and many others that you can add to your blog to encourage visitors. It’s addictive.

I’ve only scratched the surface with what you can do with a blog. If you have a computer with an Internet connection and the ability to read and type, you can create a web presence that will make you proud. Give it a try.

Blogger is a fantastic stand-alone blogging platform. But when you consider the more than 20,000 addons available from Google, it becomes outstanding.

Google and other service providers offer some of the most useful and interesting add-ons you can imagine. And the vast majority are free and simple to use. Let’s take a look at how you can use them to enhance the value of your blog.

Where to find Google Blogger Addons

The mother lode of Blogger Addons can be found on the Google Gadgets website. To find this site, go to Google and search for ‘Google Gadgets For Your Webpage.’ You do not want to go to ‘Google Desktop Gadgets,’ because you won’t be able to use those gadgets on your blog. As of today, there are 22,119 gadgets available with more being added every day. Here are some of my favorites.

Fun & Games

Games and humor are two of the top reasons that visitors come back to the same blog and you can add tons of both with Google Gadgets.

Games include PacMan, Bowling, Tetris, Checkers, Hangman and virtually every other game you remember playing at the arcade. With respect to humor, you can add cartoons like Garfield, 9 to 5, SpongeBob, Bloom County and the Cartoon of the Day. Google offers dozens of gadgets to add lighthearted and comical information to your blog. Some of my favorites are Funny Cat Photos, the Bart Simpson Phrase of the Day (what does that tell you about your author?), Horoscopes and This Day In History. Your biggest problem will not be finding engaging gadgets for your blog, but knowing when to stop adding them.

News

On a more serious note, you can find gadgets that have to do with the news. These are some of the more common gadgets on both websites and blogs.

When people come to your Blogger blog they can see a gadgets that shows the local weather, breaking news, tropical storm warnings and even traffic reports in major cities. These are great gadgets to add if your blog is targeted to a local audience.

Tools

If you want to offer your visitors useful tools, you won’t be disappointed with Google Gadgets. Many of my blogs are populated with these gadgets and I find myself going to them regularly.

This is a great place to find calendars, world clocks, dictionaries, driving directions and maps. You can create and add a video message to your blog with one gadget in as little as a minute. The list of useful tools you can add to your Blogger blog is amazing.

Communication and Technology

For those of you who enjoy the more technical side of the Internet, these gadgets are for you. Add a gadget that gives instant access to Google Talk, Yahoo! Messenger, AIM Messenger, Hotmail and your Gmail account on your blog. You can add a Desktop Chat gadget and communicate with readers while they’re visiting your blog. I’ve seen this tool used on some of the better customer service sites and it’s great.

If you’re interested in space, Google has a gadget that shows images from the Hubble telescope, NOAA satellite images, current moon phases and daily astronomy pictures. These gadgets are quickly becoming as limitless as the universe.

Lifestyle

This is big. These gadgets are the equivalent of People Magazine. This is a great place to find the top five movies at the box office, Jon Stewart’s quote of the day (always funny), music, bible verses, National Geographic photos and even live TV.

Sports

I’m a sports fan. I especially enjoy baseball and NCAA football. Thank goodness there are gadgets to keep me posted on the sports world. You can add gadgets to your Blogger blog that will show the BCS standings, live sports scores, body building tips, boxing schedules and what your resting heart rate should be. There is even a gadget for you to keep track of your workout routine, assuming you have a workout routine and aren’t just an armchair quarterback like me.

As you can see there are more Google Blogger addons than you can imagine and they’re remarkably easy to place on your blog. Just select the gadget you want to use, copy the code generated by the gadget and add it to your Blogger blog under the HTML tab. If you would rather add the gadget to your sidebar, you can do that too and it will show up on every page of your blog. You’re going to love Google Gadgets and so will your readers.

A blog is an incredible tool, the kind that only the second generation of Internet technology can offer. Since the technology arrived in the early 2000s that allowed blogging to become a household activity, the opportunities offered by the medium have only continued to expand.

One of the most incredible and underused opportunities present in blogging is the ability to make a profit. Of the 85 million blogs currently in circulation, only a small handful makes any kind of profit, yet the opportunities are everywhere to do so. After all, with millions of readers across the globe advertising, and product placement opportunities, a new businesses need only take a few simple steps to tap a potential gold mine.

1) Sell Advertising

When Google purchased Blogger a few years ago, the opportunities immediately made available to millions of existing and potential Blogger users multiplied tenfold. Using Google AdSense, users can quickly and easily integrate advertising into their blogs. These pay per click ads operate the same as they do on any other major website or search engine. Google targets the ads to match the content of your blog, so if you decide to devote your blog to short articles about cycling opportunities in the North Carolina area, AdSense will display ads related to cycling and North Carolina.

When a visitor reads your blog, they will see these ads alongside your article. If they choose to click on an ad, you receive a percentage of the money that Google makes from that click. The actual amount varies significantly, but if you can create a large enough reader base, you can earn hundreds of dollars each month off of advertising alone.

2) Sell Products

What better way to make a little extra money than by selling someone else’s products and earning a commission. Nearly every business on the Internet has an affiliate program of some sort. Amazon for example has an Associates program. Bloggers can sign up for Amazon’s associate program and then create specialized links and images to place on their blogs. These links feature products from Amazon and when a visitor to your blog clicks on the link, you receive a commission for any sales made to that visitor within 24 hours – even items other than the one featured on your blog. If you write about film, books, electronics, or any other products, sign up for an affiliate program and try to sell those products through your blog.

3) Donations

Bloggers with devoted readership are Internet celebrities. If you create a substantial niche for yourself and a devoted legion of fans, your blogging may begin to earn the financial accolades of those fans. While it is not a good idea to demand money in return for your daily writing, you can place a small “Donation” box somewhere on your blog. Think of it this way – if someone on the street corner plays a beautiful song on their guitar, passers by will donate spare change to their endeavor. If you can wow your readers, why not make it possible for them to do the same?

4) Sell Services

The Internet is not all products and advertising (as much as it may seem to be the case). A blog is a great opportunity to write about and promote services you may provide both online and offline. Say for example you work for a copywriting company. Your blogging is a great showcase of those talents. Even if you do not work as a writer, you can write about what you do offer, whether it is a motorcycle parts company or a floral arrangement business.

5) Grow an Existing Business

For many businesses, blogging has become the next frontier of advertising and interaction with potential customers. A blog allows a business to appear both genial and spontaneous while offering an array of new information for potential customers. Whether you own a small business or work for a large one, blogging can be a great way to connect with existing and future customers alike.

6) Paid Blogging

Recently, there has been a growth in the industry of paid blogging. Companies such as Pay Per Post or Blogitive hire on bloggers with existing blogs and pay them a set fee for writing about a company, service, or keyword on their blog. You can sign up for a paid blogging job with your free Blogger account and make money with no investment. The general minimum for paid blog posts is $5. However, if you can raise your Page Rank by growing your search rankings and being linked to by other bloggers, you can receive as much as $100 for a paid blog post.

7) Merchandising

Why not make a little money with your natural creative talents? Bloggers have turned to companies like Café Press in recent years to create t-shirts, mugs, and bumper stickers that allow blog readers to show off the name and image of their favorite blog. When you build your loyally devoted fan base, selling a few items with your blog’s name on them can be a fun way to make a little money on the side.

There are seemingly limitless opportunities for bloggers who have the inventiveness and entrepreneurial spirit necessary to take advantage of them. The best part is that in less than 15 minutes you can sign up for Blogger, create your first posts and start making money from advertising or affiliate programs.