The Idiot's Step-By-Step Guide To Blogging for Profit

By Daegan Smith

Blogging is easy, blogging is fun. And what's more.it can help
your business in a lot of ways. A blog is a frequent,
chronological publication of personal thoughts and web links in
the cyberspace. You could call it an e-diary where you can
register your thoughts, opinion and comments on anything and
everything under the sun that interests you. Though people had
been 'at it' long before the term blog was coined; it has gained
currency as an effective medium of communicating over the
Internet only recently. The introduction of automated published
software like "Blogger" at www.blogger.com has been instrumental
in blogging success. A blog or a weblog' is conceptually similar
to a website and is accessible to anyone on the Internet.

There are millions of bloggers in the world today blogging away
to glory. But blogging can be more than just chatter in the
cyberspace. It can be a great tool for boosting your online
business's profitability once you've understood how it works and
what are its limitations. Take a look at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weblog#Corporate for some more
information.

How to become a Blogger?

The key to learning how to become a blogger is to start
blogging! Easier said than done? Not really. There are several
websites that can give you information on how to be a blogger.
Blogger.com is one of them. You have three options here to
choose from:

-Have a hosted service like Blogger allows you to set up an
account and fire away in a matter of minutes.
-A remotely
installed blog like movabletype allows you to install on a
server for a small fee.
-Desktop blog programs like Radio
Userland are installed on your desktop and then uploaded to a
host. These are usually desktop programmes that include hosting
and upgradation for a certain period of time and charge you a
small fee.
- You can get more information on blogging
resources from http://www.blogroots.com/resources.blog.

Also see: http://www.blogger.com/start

Once you have decided what option you want for setting up your
weblog/ blog you are ready to start blogging. It is that easy.
It could take a while before anyone will notice your little blog
in the corner and take you seriously. But you can cut down this
time with some great ideas at: http://help.blogger.com/

offers some great ideas on increasing your blog's readership.
There is a Chinese saying, " It's a wise man who learns from
others' mistakes". Read others blogs to see what works and what
doesn't, what are their writing styles etc. It's a great way to
teach yourself and fun too.. you are learning on some one else's
expense.

Guidelines for the greenhorn blogger

Here are some simple guidelines for a newbie blogger. Take a
chance with these to increase your chances of success.

1. Get Blogging: Like I said earlier, the best way
   to learn blogging is to start blogging.
2. Recognize your
   motivation: Why are you blogging? What do you hope to
   achieve?
3. Link to other blogs: the best way to
   popularise your blog is to link to other blogs. So link you
   must!
4. Develop a unique style of writing: Developing a
   writing style is an evolutionary process. Try different
   approaches and formats until you find one that fits your
   message, audience, and personal motivations.
5. Express your
   personality... let your humour, your perspective on life,
   and your values shine in your writing.
6. Be regular with
   your posting: readers will quickly wander away from blogs
   that are not updated regularly. So this is very important.

More blogging resources are available at:
(www.lights.com/weblogs)

How to profit from Blogging?

Now that you have understood what a blog is and how to get
blogging, its time to make it pay. Blogging is a great way to
enhance your online company's bottomline. It is a popular and an
easy medium and has potential of reaching millions.

Here are some tips for you to turn blogging into a serious
profitable strategy.

1.Customer Interaction: A blog is a good means to keep in
touch with your customers regularly. You can keep them updated
on new events, happening in your company, new products and
services and other developments. the best part is that you can
do it more cost effectively and in much less time than other
methods like newsletters, customer updates and customer
meetings. The elements of interactivity, community and
collaboration are key here. Your blog can also serve as a
platform for advertising, promotion and even internal
communications. One well-known business example is software
company Macromedia's use of blogging to keep customers updated
on what's happening with its products.

2.Query management: With a blog you can receive and
answer to customer queries more quickly than an email. For
potential customers it is very important to have a sharp
turnaround and you can do that easily with a blog.

3.Link to other sites: Linking your blog to other
similar, but not competing, sites is a great way to get some
free publicity and traffic for your online business. It is also
one big reason why Search Engines will grab your site in their
result pages. Ask any online entrepreneur what getting quality
traffic to a website means and you'll know what I am talking
about.

4.Get Feedback: Getting feedback from your customers on
your products and services, on your company practices and other
things is one of the most valuable resources you can build. With
a blog, it is not just easier but also time saving for customers
to leave feedback for you without filling complicated and mile
long forms.

5.Get Google to work for you: Selling ad space is one of
the most popular revenue streams for online businesses. With
Google's free AdSense service it just got easier
www.google.com/adsense. AdSense allows bloggers to display up to
three content-specific "ad units" (boxes that can hold up to
four ads each) per page. Each time a visitor clicks these ads,
you get paid. Need more convincing?

6.Become an affiliate: Your blog can become a cash cow by
using the simple idea of becoming an affiliate for other
websites. An affiliate basically carries a link to the other
site and each time some one clicks on that link, you get a small
commission for it.

7.Donations: If you are running a blog that people love
to read and keep coming back in hordes, why not ask them for
some monetary appreciation?

Put on your thinking cap and let your imagination run unbridled.
You will surprise yourself with the number of ideas that will
make your blog less of a personal e-diary and more of a digital
cash cow. Blogging is a relatively new marketing arena for
webpreneurs, but has immense possibility and potential. Be sure
to get on to the bandwagon early in the game and reap your
benefits later.

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