Blogging for $$$. Need experienced advice.

[plain and simple]

Originally Posted by Three Wolves In Snow

Find your niche. You would be amazed what can be considered "interesting". But it has to be unique. I would suggest you start looking through a whole bunch of blogs, at random, before you think you're doing something original. Most of it has been done a thousand times over.

However, it doesn't mean you can't find your niche, just be aware.

Start blogging simply because you enjoy writing, NO other reason. If you start because you think you are going to make a lot of money off of it, you are going to be disappointed. You need to write posts that are well written, (spelled correctly, correct grammar used), basic, (the more flashy, the less people want to go there unless they are 12 year old girls), write with substance. Every entry is a story even if it's just about an experience you had that day...so, beginning, middle and end.

A photo to go with your entry usually gets people to notice. Make sure it fits the story.

Participate in any comments you get. If people take the time to comment on your blog and you ignore them, they may not come back. People like to feel that they have a connection with that blogger. (This is true in most cases for people who are not professional writers.)

Post every day. Not once a week, not once a month, every day. (This is why it is so important to find your niche...it should be EASY to write about something every day.)

Visit other blogs. Do not visit and leave in comments, "Hey! Great site! Come check out MY blog!" You'll just **** those people off. Go to other blogs and talk to the bloggers in comments just as you hope people do with yours.

Reciprocate links if you think another blog is worthy. Don't just link anyone and everyone if you want to be taken seriously. Link only those you find to be of high value.

Eventually, your traffic will build. Eventually you will have a lot of visits per day. When you get to about 10,000 visitors or more a day, THAT is when you can start making some money.

But don't count on that happening over night. Just blog because you write well and want to share your stories. If it's good, the money will come.

Very good advice that a lot of bloggers should read. It agrees with a lot of what I've been learning.

I just bought a great point and shoot digital camera for pics and short clips. Personally, I don't like blogs without pictures. They're so generic looking.

I'm definitely participatory in the comments.

Do not visit and leave in comments, "Hey! Great site! Come check out MY blog!" You'll just **** those people off.

Even when I'm just lurking, I hate comments like that! I think, "Seriously? You think your careless, non-sincere quip is going to attract people to your channel/website/blog/etc.?"

Reciprocate links if you think another blog is worthy. Don't just link anyone and everyone if you want to be taken seriously. Link only those you find to be of high value.

I'm a firm believer in that. I refuse to come across as desperate and will only link to, or recommend, etc., sites that I enjoy or think my readers would. Doing so for the sake of getting my link out there with anyone and everyone? Nope. Never.

I'm still up in the air as far as how many times a week I'll update my blog. From the polls and research I've done, many people think every day is too much. They just don't have/make the time to catch up every day.

Personally, I want to update every day. I want to get to the point where readers want daily content. So, quality, creativity, sincerity and originality of voice are a big focus in my writing.

As for the part of your post that I put in bold, this is the conclusion I've been rounding the corner towards. However, I'm a big believer that a little forethought can prevent unpleasant hindsight! It never hurts to do a bit of research to optimize your efforts!

[plain and simple]

As for finding my niche, I'm can't be bothered with that. I'm not taking that approach because it's too stressful and absolutely not me. Instead of finding where I fit in, I'm the sort to dash it all and make a place for myself! Not forcefully or like a bull in a china shop, mind you.

Here's how I look at it. I know my voice. I know what I want to say and what I would like to accomplish. That's what I'm going to do the best way I know how. If it's good content, the readers (like the money) will come.

So, I'm going to be me and not cater to a target audience, a niche or market strategy. Individuality and one's own sincere voice are the new "originality" because there aren't (m)any original ideas left out there to blog about. However, none of them have been done by me so that will test my mettle.

[plain and simple]

Originally Posted by SOON2BNSURPRISE

Let me add that you can become the expert on something that you know very well and others that have an interest will seek you out. Don't discount anything that could be of value. Many times what we think will be boring and not so interesting others have an interest in. I know with what I do as a locksmith I have had Doctors ask me questions and find it interesting. Other coworkers think it is amazing that I can open a lock without a key. One director says that nothing is sacred with me in the room. I do love what I do and have thought about writing in a blog as well about the security industry and how people can protect themselves and their homes, belongings and other things. I could say that no one would want to read about that but I would bet that many would want to read about that especially if it was interesting, to the point, and written in an entertaining manner. If it can be used to explain products so much more better, especially if I can get some money by either selling that product by way of the blog or using the blog to feed a website where the products can be purchased.

Remember that even the things that you see as normal and non interesting others have an interest in and may follow your blog if they are getting something out of it.[/quote]

You just confirmed what I've been learning, but doubted. I doubt no more! The things I considered uninteresting, or even common sense, have been the very things that the people around me are so forceful with me in their request that I start a blog. And, apparently, there's a huge interest in it. Go figure...

Another potential way to make money is to have companies pay you to talk about their products. You have to make sure you check with your states laws and regulations though. Don't want to have to owe more in fees and fines than you are making because someone thinks that you are making money from your blog. Always have to be carefull there. Also as far as I know if you are getting paid to talk about a product you have to disclose that information as well. So be carefull.

This is something I'm considering but need to learn more about. Apparently, I'm an expert and trusted reviewer by those who know me and by reputation. I've been told I could sell a pair of dirty shorts! I thought that was funny!

However, if a company pays me to review their company, or a product, I'm not swayed by the money to automatically give good reviews. I'm strictly honest.

Perhaps a few bad reviews and companies would think twice about hiring me to review them/their product!

[plain and simple]

Originally Posted by windsinger

I had a movie blog once. Didnt make squat so I switched to paid search advertising/paid traffic. I made some money doing that but of course that uses far less SEO and more money/risk. Blogging to me was such a grind. You really have to LOVE doing it. That is the key. If you dislike it, don't do it.

I could never be a movie reviewer! I hate Hollywood! LOL I don't even own a TV! Movies today are all fluff and rely on special effects. Good stories are rarely ever told anymore. People want the car chases and visual stimulation. Ugh. Brain death.

Fortunately, I love to write. I love everything about the process, so, blogging should be a fun time for me. I love the challenge of being creative and original. Oddly enough, I also thrive on deadlines. (School papers were always done the night before - even term papers.)

[plain and simple]

QUESTION: I plan to make my blog very user friendly and easy to navigate. It won't be cluttered but it will be pleasant to the eye. It will include pictures and occasional videos. (One or two videos a month... maybe? What do you think?)

- Which blog host site offers the most space for bloggers and is reliable and media-friendly? Is there anything I need to consider when it comes to using lots of pictures and some videos?

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Originally Posted by plain and simple

I'm still up in the air as far as how many times a week I'll update my blog. From the polls and research I've done, many people think every day is too much. They just don't have/make the time to catch up every day.

Personally, I want to update every day. I want to get to the point where readers want daily content. So, quality, creativity, sincerity and originality of voice are a big focus in my writing.

As for the part of your post that I put in bold, this is the conclusion I've been rounding the corner towards. However, I'm a big believer that a little forethought can prevent unpleasant hindsight! It never hurts to do a bit of research to optimize your efforts!

If your blog is good, you WILL have visitors who want to see you write something every day.

I've been blogging since 2003. I have regulars that have been with me since that time. Sure, you'll gain some, lose some, but if you write well, if what you are doing is interesting, (and it will be since you found your niche and you enjoy it, (that's the key right there)), those people will come to your site everyday or multiple times a day. Especially if you interact in comments or regulars start getting to know each other.

I want you to look at some random blogs. I want you to notice something. One blog will write, "My cat just choked on a piece of food and almost died today" and there will be maybe 3 comments. The exact same thing can be written on a blog by someone who normally writes great posts, has a following and that post will have 200 comments.

You don't have to write perfection every day, it is ok to throw out a fluff piece once in awhile especially after you have gained a following. It makes you more "human". People eat that crap up.

Some of my BEST entries, (where they were visited and commented on the most), are the ones that I felt were fluff but were very real stories because they showed my human side. People love that stuff. BUT, again, it MUST be written well. It must have a point. And like I said earlier, it must have a beginning, middle and end.

You'll see a lot of blogs that look like FB status. "I ate some cereal this morning, it was so good." Bleh.

You, the gifted writer, can make an entire entry about that cereal and people will beg you for more.

I'm sure you've heard the saying, (horribly paraphrased here), that some people are so damn interesting, they can read the the side of a cereal box out loud and have the audience riveted.

That is what you need to be. If you love writing, if your writing skills are on par, and if you write every day, and what you write is interesting, you're going to get a following. You may go a year with nothing but crickets chirping but then, one day, someone just happens on your site and they spread the news. The next thing you know, you've got 1000 people coming to your site where two weeks ago, 3 people visited on a daily basis, one was you, one was your mom.

Also, should that happen to you, do NOT get crazy about it. Continue on, writing like you have been, enjoy the numbers, enjoy the feedback, enjoy meeting new people but do not get all uppity, (not saying you would, just know that some have and they tend to fall fast and hard not too long after), do not get shy, do not feel overwhelmed, do not get stage fright.

Just write.

I do not agree with the "planned" writing because I don't feel it's genuine. But, again, it depends on the topic, what your niche happens to be. I will tell you this, when you make it personal, (not every skeleton you have, just personal and personable), people are more apt to keep coming back over a blog that tells people how to do something. Boring! I can find how to do something on YouTube. Why do I need to read your site? Unless you can find a way to make it far more interesting than any video I can find on YouTube. You have to be a damn good writer to do that.

But personal? Personal stories, personal observations, personal experiences, (again, not everything about you...some things do NOT need to be shared with the entire internets), get you the audience who cannot wait to read more.

Oh and no matter how well you write, if you use white letters on black background? No one is going to want to read it. It hurts the eyes. Find colors that are easy on the eyes, get a basic layout, don't try to get all fancy. You start fluffing up your site like that, people will know or think you're hiding something...like that your writing must suck. You say you love writing, you probably write very well...so leave the fluff behind, leave the flashy crap behind, basic, basic, basic and let your writing speak for itself.

And no matter how well you think you write, go where you can find people who do it better than you. Go to the places on this forum that work your mind with word games or "Words and Phrases you hate" (or love), and learn more. People WILL be watching how you write...and some of them know much more than you do. If you get a critique, take it in stride. If it's something you can learn from, then learn it. If it's insulting, delete the comment and move on with your life. Don't get in to a pissing match with a commenter. It makes everyone look stupid.

Ok, those are all the hints I have for now. Just get to writing!

[Three Wolves In Snow]

Originally Posted by plain and simple

QUESTION: I plan to make my blog very user friendly and easy to navigate. It won't be cluttered but it will be pleasant to the eye. It will include pictures and occasional videos. (One or two videos a month... maybe? What do you think?)

- Which blog host site offers the most space for bloggers and is reliable and media-friendly? Is there anything I need to consider when it comes to using lots of pictures and some videos?

How serious are you about blogging?

Here is what I suggest:

Start off with a free site. (Don't worry, everything can be transferred over later.) Do that for awhile. And by, "awhile", I mean, a few months or more. Really, no less than 6 months.

At the end of 6 months...are you still enjoying it? Are you still updating everyday? Are you thinking that this is fun and you want a "real" site?

Then consider getting your own domain and your own site. Find a good hosting company, buy your domain for a year, (and make your domain match the one you are using for BlogSpot or WordPress or whatever you choose), and set up a site that allows you to do almost anything you want.

The one I have now? NO limits. I have unlimited everything. Yes, I really do. Ok, I think I do have a limit on emails but who the hell really uses all 100?

Try it first, see how much you enjoy it, if you really are in to it six months or more, later, get your own domain and hosting company. And while you're at it, learn some coding along the way. It's so much easier than you think.

If you know absolutely nothing about coding, go to webmonkey.

[plain and simple]

Thanks, Three Wolves In Snow! I'm in agreement and want to respond but I just caught myself nodding off. More tomorrow when I do your posts justice. 'Night.

[andywire]

I have a few topics I have been thinking of blogging about. What kind of a site do bloggers use to host their blogs?