The Beginner's Guide to Translating Blog Entries into Dollars

The Beginner's Guide to Translating Blog Entries into Dollars
Unless you live in cave; you've heard about the blog explosion over the past few years! Now you're thinking that it's finally time to try your hand at such a feat yourself, and maybe garner a few extra dollars in the process. The only problem is that you have absolutely no idea where to begin. Here are some tips for first time bloggers...

Choose the Right Blog

Make sure to read the terms and conditions of every user agreement before plastering your blog with countless ads and links (which is another thing you probably don't want to do, unless you have an unsatisfiable craving to give your site the appearance of living spam; we'll address this later). There are tons of blogging sites out there (Blogger, Blog, Wordpress, Livejournal, Xanga, and TypePad being a few of the most popular) with pre-formatted stylesheets to choose from, and basically all the kinks worked out for you. Browse around and see which ones you like best.

Some blogsites, notably WordPress, don't like Adsense or are not proponents of affiliate programs. Blogger, amidst many other blogging sites, does.

Choose the Right Topic

Regardless of whatever newest mp3 players or video games are the hottest sellers on the market, take a step back and decide whether the products that seem the most popular are really the ones you want to write about. Stuff that sells well does so largely on its own merit, of course, but the benefits of top-notch reviewing and recommending can do wonders in advertising a product. With your blog, you want to write about something you're actually interested in. If you don't care about the things you're writing about, chances are your writing will seem bland and dispassionate, and you will seem as if you're only out for economic gain. Whether you actually are or not is your decision, but you definitely don't want to come across that way. When you have an interest in the products you write about, you're more likely to write about them well - creatively, passionately, and even expertly. A writer hooked on the things he writes about has a much better chance of enticing his readers to be as well.

Use Affiliate Marketing

Amazon Associates is by far the most popular affiliate marketing program in use today, but just about every site, whether it deals with electronics, books, movies, music, clothing, lawn supplies, etc., ad infinitum offers such an option. This means that the website provides you with links to certain products or pages on their site in the form of text, banners, photos, or a combination, which you then paste into the appropriate HTML section of your blog. The links are encoded with a special ID that allow the site in question to track how many people reach their site by clicking a link from your blog. Some sites will pay you per click, but most give you a certain percentage of the total purchase of a customer who clicked your link. Not every person who clicks through to an affiliate site will buy something, so not every click will bring you money, but be patient, and with steady, high-level content and time, you should start to see a gradual increase.

Put Blog Ads

The most popular blog ad program is Google AdSense, which pays per click and allows you to determine what type of ads are displayed, as well as where. The main benefit of AdSense is that the advertisements are relevant to the material discussed on your site, which prevents them from becoming annoying to potential readers. Many more blog ad programs exist, including but not limited to AdBrite, BlogAd, and Chikita. Do a little research and find ads you feel would look good on your site - enhancing its content while remaining palatable to readers.

Proper Presentation: Consider the Text Ad

You want your links to be seen, but you don't want them to be the only things your readers see. Consider the layout of your site, as well as its content and the types of people likely to come there. Will they be looking for concise prose and easily accessible photos to click on? Or will huge blinking ads or banners do more to detract from than emphasize the blog entry?

Even if they're not catchy, consider using subheaders (like the ones in this article). Most people appreciate dealing with broken-up text as opposed to never-ending walls. Readers will be more inclined to keep on reading an extra-lengthy entry if its separated parts make it look shorter than it actually is. People also like being able to scan text for specific information, so make sure your subheader titles are relevant and informative.

The key to making money with a blog is to choose a blogging site that allows advertising and/or affiliate programs, pick a subject you care about, write about it passionately and well, and present your information, affiliate links, and ads in an appealing manner. If you strive to balance all of these factors, then with patience and consistent updates, your blog should eventually begin to rake in revenue.

source:
http://www.affiliatelife.com/articles/the-beginners-guide-to-translating-blog-entries-into-dollars.html