Blogging As A Business
By Eileen Hebert

A couple of years ago "blogs" (from the term "web logs") were a convenient means of maintaining an online diary. Blogging software enabled you to type in whatever you wanted to say, press "publish" and up it went on to the web for all to see. Well, as you might imagine, it wasn't long before certain entrepreneurial individuals realized that it was possible to make money blogging (!) and in this article I explain how YOU might get into blogging as a business.

Your first question might be: what's so great about blogs? Well, they appeal on several fronts. To begin with, because they are virtually "pre-made" web sites, blogs are fairly simple to put up on the Web. You can also open a blogging account with a service like Blogger which doesn't require you to have your own site. (A service like this can be a bit restrictive though, and for most blog home businesses I'd suggest you create a blog using software e.g. WordPress or Moveable Type instead.) On top of this, many search engine experts believe that search engines rank blogs above typical sites. Among other things, this is supposedly due to the fact that on each occasion that you post a new article to your blog, the search engines get notified and therefore tend to re-index (read: "re-rank") it more frequently. Plus, people can sign up for RSS (short for "real simple syndication") feeds which alert them to your latest posts. These, among a number of other features, can give you considerable web traffic.

Blogging as a business is, of course, all about monetizing the traffic you attract to your blog. And, in fact, there are a number of strategies to monetize such traffic. Your blog could be one component of your overall site, e.g. the home page, while the other pages include promotions for your products. Alternatively, you might include the links to your other sites within your blog. Some people prefer a business strategy where they seek to attract traffic to their blogs and then funnel that traffic to their "name squeeze pages" or sales letter sites. For example, if you offer information products about how to run a home business, you might wish to optimize your blog for the search engines - focusing on terms such as "blog home business" or "blog home based business". Then, within the context of your blog posts, you might refer this traffic to your related sites (i.e. those that sell your information products). Or perhaps your blog could BE a product, i.e. a subscription product, where people must pay to receive invaluable information from you.

You don't need to have a product or service to make money blogging. You can simply run advertisements or affiliate offers from other companies on your blog. You might run say, Google Adsense ads, down the side of your blog page. When someone hits one of the hyperlinks in those ads, you'll receive a few cents or dollars depending on how much you get paid per click. On the other hand, you might become an affiliate for a number of companies and mention their offers in your posts. If a person clicks on one of those hyperlinks and ends up buying something, you will get paid. Finally, another possibility is using your blog as a product launch tool - a place where you can write messages designed to build excitement and momentum for an upcoming launch, whilst also allowing people to comment (which further builds excitement and momentum!)

Of course, blogging for money is not just about knowing how to blog. You also need to treat your blog as a profit centre and apply the same rigor to testing and measuring various approaches as any other aspect of your business. That doesn't mean your blog should be stuffy or formal though. The content should still reflect who you are, and be appropriate to your audience. In particular, you want to write posts that attract and satisfy your audience, whilst also achieving your business objectives.

All in all, if you're looking for a sound way to make an income, do consider blogging as a business. Given the variety of ways to monetize your blog, there is bound to be one that is ideal for you. In terms of resources - check out WordPress and Moveable Type as two different kinds of blogging software programs, and Blogger as an online blogging service.

Eileen Hebert©
TrueCallingCareers.com
Make Money Doing What You Love

About The Author
Find out how to break free from the corporate world. Eileen Hebert is a happy corporate escapee who helps individuals create happiness without 9 to 5 jobs. Visit TrueCallingCareers.com for free tips on career change, home based businesses, and making money doing what you love!