Monday 26 April 2010

Earn with blog or website (1 part) Start your own web-based journal


If you are thinking about how to make money while you sleep, this could be one of few answers to your question, but it will require some effort (time and creativity) from your side before you can enjoy cash flow from it.

If you don’t have your very own blog or website yet, but would like to have it, then follow these steps to start it for free or with little investment:

Step 1: Where to start?
For starting your free website you can use such free web hosting as AtSpace.com, Wix.com or similar, but if you start your blog, I suggest you to start with Blogger.com or Fanbox.com. You can also use Wordpress.com, but it’s more complicated and more recommended for experienced bloggers.
If you decide to pay for your hosting, I suggest you HostMonster.com as hosting for your website. There are many other hosting sites, but before using them, read hosting reviews, because not all of them will meet your requirements.

Step 2: What kind of topic to choose?
Choose the topic in which you are competent and/or interested. If you like technical devices, you can make good and profitable mobile phone or computer review. If you like fashion and cosmetics or you are beautician, make beauty web recourse (it also can earn you good money). You can also choose the topic for your website or blog by making research of what people need. Many people around the world every day are searching how to make money in internet, how to lose their weight, how to cook one or another dish and other themes (health, politics, psychology, movies etc.). You are free to choose any you like.
Choose only one topic for your website or blog!
Before you start your blog or website, look at terms of use and policies of chosen web platform (AtSpace.com, Blogger.com etc.), your theme and content should meet their terms!

Step 3: How to choose the right name?
Unfortunately not always you can name your web recourse as you want, but anyway you should take as maximum as you can from web platform of your choice. Your domain name should be:
·        related to your blog or website topic (preferable to use
         keywords),
·        short enough to remember,
·        easy for reading (don’t overload it with punctuation marks),
·        memorable and even unforgettable.        
For example: healthyplannet.com (for health and beauty web resource), nexttech.biz (to present technical innovations in IT, telecommunication etc. fields), cookaspro.blogspot.com (for cooking blog) etc.

Step 4: How to make attractive appearance for your website/blog?
To design your web space you don’t need to be a web designer (however you can hire one if needed). You can easily use existing templates and tools of web platform of your choice! You can find many free or cheap templates for any website or blog (but if you start with Blogger.com, you may not find right one). If you will not be satisfied of ready-to-use templates or simply will decide to make it unique, you can modify or make your own template (you will need at least basic skills or knowledge of how to do it).
Don’t overload your web space with Java and Flash applications (or better don’t use them at all), otherwise your webpage will open slowly and you will loose visitors.
Make your web space comfortable to use so your visitors can find what they searching for. Use easy to read fonts and colors (visitors will not stop by on beautiful looking, but eyes spoiling text). 

Step 5: How to feel your web journal with magnetic content?
Unfortunately (or thank goodness) you cannot publish other people content word for word mentioning yourself as author of this content (accordingly other also can’t do this with your content). That’s why your content should be unique. However if you want to take other people content for your web space you can quote it (mentioning real author and recourse).
To create your own unique content you don’t need to be a writer, but you need to be a good communicator! You can talk with your visitors at your manner by writing contents!
Steps to create your own articles:
1.  Collect necessary information.
2.  Name your article (it shouldn’t be very long, better if you use
     keywords in title).
3.  Make a plan of your article.
4. Write text. Try to replace pronouns with objects you are talking about. Address to your readers with your content (“Did you ever dreamed about ….?”, “You will discover…”, “You can…” etc.) Don’t create big paragraphs (it’s difficult to read them). Mark out significant words. Divide text to parts and title them. Don’t use more than 10 keywords in one article.
5. Add images and publish your article at your web space.
If you don’t feel comfortable to do it yourself you can always buy content from special article stores like www.constant-content.com or hire freelance copywriter.   

Step 6: How you can monetize your blog or website?
Before you go to monetize your web journal, make sure you have at least 5 pages like Home, About, Contacts etc. (with at least 1 content on each). It will be necessary for such services as Google AdSense.    
There are many ways how to monetize your web recourse: Google AdSense (or alternative), private ad sales, banner ads, promoting products, affiliate commissions etc.
Lets look closer to some of them:
Google AdSense is one of the biggest monetizing opportunities for website or blog. You should register as Google AdSense publisher with your website/blog at www.google.com/adsense (its free) and paste ads HTML code to your web resource, then within 3 days they will check your web journal and ads will reflect on it! When visitors just click on those ads, you got paid! Blogger.com made this process very easy for their users, so it’s very comfortable to use and make profit!
Amazon is one of the most successful affiliate programs. You can make good money by advertising Amazon products on your web resource! As in previous method you should sign up first (its also free). You can do it here https://affiliate-program.amazon.com. Then you can generate your own links and place banners or site stripes to your web space. When your visitors click those links or banners and buy Amazon products, you got paid! Bloger.com users are winners twice, because for them Amazon monetization tool was also built in! Of course you can use other affiliate programs (for example: ClickBank, iTunes Affiiliate etc.) instead or together with it!
Create your own product and sell it with your blog (for example: postcards, books, toys). It can be very effective, because you will have unique product! 
When your web resource has a lot of visitors, you can join advertising services such as AdSonar, DoubleClick, Adify etc. Such services are created to let you as publisher meet hungry advertisers! You publish their advertisements on your webpage or blog and get paid when somebody views it or buy it (depends on rules of service)!
Promote your own business through your blog or website. It can be common business or Network Marketing. You can find customers and partners through it. Nowadays good webpage is very important for any business. It will raise your chance to get more dials!