How To Start A Blog And Make Money

There is a plethora of ways to make money online… yet, most people fail. Simply because marketers tend to get distracted with “Shiny Object Syndrome” and never generate enough revenue to sustain their online business. In this article we will focus specifically on how to start a blog and make money generating revenue online.

One of the most fundamental and powerful processes of generating revenue online is blogging. It is a proven technique that has stood the test of time… and will be around for many more years to come.

The money part of your blogging business won’t happen overnight. The number one priority should be helping people solve their problems by delivering quality content that is engaging and persuasive.

Building A Solid Foundation

You first build a foundation by choosing a niche that you’re very passion about. I stress “passion” do to the fact that you will be creating tons of quality content. The more you enjoy doing something the less it feels like a job; thus the more productive you are going to be.

Now keep in mind however… when selecting your niche avoid from being too broad! There are millions of people looking for stuff online, but the key take-away is really narrowing it down to a group of people that are more specific and targeted.

The following is an example of choosing a niche for a Podcast; however the sample principles can be applied when choosing a niche for a Blog…

Choosing Your Domain Name And Setting Up Your Website

When choosing a domain name for your website, it is important to keep the name congruent with your niche selection. Another key tip is to choose a domain name that is already getting lots of organic searches on Google. Take your time and do some research as the benefits will become greater later.

One of the best places I found to purchase domain names at a very low competitive price is Namecheap.com – you can purchase domain names for as low a $10.00 a year… Godaddy.com is a great source also.

When it comes to selecting a hosting account… My favorite is Hostgator.com – the customer service there is excellent and they have several packages to choose from starting at around $3.95/month which also includes advertising credits for both Google Adwords and Yahoo/Bing.

Bluehost.com is yet another great hosting service. They also have hosting packages that start at $3.95/month that includes advertising credits for Google and Bing as well. You can’t go wrong either way…

Once you have your domain name and hosting setup it’s time to install WordPress. WordPress is the most widely used platform in the world and has a wide range of “add-ons” known as plug-ins that you can use to extend functionality and help optimize your website.

For this particular training of installing WordPress we are going to be using Hostgator in the demonstration video…

SEO Ready

Now that you have your website up and running… you want to make sure it’s Search Engine Optimized (SEO) so search engines can find it. The obvious goal is to get ranked with the big 3… Google, Yahoo & Bing. However, keep in mind that Google owns over 2/3 of all search traffic, and over 95% of all mobile searches.

For this reason… one of the very first plug-ins to install and setup is the All in One SEO plugin. SEO is an ongoing process, and each new page or post you add to your website has it’s own SEO score. Meaning you will be using your plugin to optimize your content for search engines as you add it.

Next will be conducting “keyword research.” This is the act of finding keyword phrases that are relevant to your niche and making a sound decision on whether or not to build content around that particular word.

The ultimate goal of keyword research is to find keywords that you can get rankings for in Google, Yahoo, and Bing… all while attracting a relevant audience. Some of the most effective keywords are long-tail keywords (i.e., 3 or more words in a phrase relevant to your niche) that are in low competition.

Remember, Google and other search engines are around because of CONTENT and if you can deliver quality content that targets long-tail, low competition keywords… you will be able to get great rankings!

A great tool for locating low competition, long-tail keywords is “Longtail Pro”

Creating Quality Content

Once you’ve successfully located about 4 to 5 low competition long tail keywords that people in your chosen niche are searching for… it’s time to create quality content around those keywords.

The most important aspect of any content, whether it is text or video is that it is created with the reader in mind. Real people are reading this content so you want to deliver something that is relevant and interesting. When writing content you want to keep in mind that you are writing it for people, not just for Search Engines.

A very important tip to keep in mind when writing your content is to have the mindset of helping people. Once you build rapport with your audience… they will realize you are helping them to solve a problem and will buy from you based on your recommendation. So be original and authentic, while at the same time building your brand and earning your reader’s trust.

Before we continue… let’s take a look at the life cycle of a customer

(1) Customers rarely buy on their first point of contact to a product
(2) It typically takes a person 7 times (this could be website visits, email newsletter, etc.) before they make a purchase online.
(3) Customers do not buy from people they don’t trust
(4) Customers are exchanging “money” for something that will improve upon their existing situation
(5) Customers have more access to product information and reviews than they ever have
(6) Most customers can see through scammy promotions, in fact are turned off

This “Customer Purchasing Lifecycle” is going to help you humanize the process of an online business and show you what creating a customer is all about (hint: it is not about selling).

Monetization

Ultimately, your main goal is to profit online and sustain a highly lucrative business right? The problem is too many people are going about it the wrong way. They’re constantly selling to people instead of trying to help them and build relationships.

That said, one of the most popular and effective ways to earn revenue from your blog is with Affiliate Marketing. Affiliate Marketing is very simple. It allows you to promote other people’s products and services for a commissions.

The process of becoming an affiliate is very simple… you join the program by submitting an application. Upon approval from an affiliate manager you are giving a special link to put on your website to promote their products. When someone clicks on your affiliate link to make a purchase you get credit for the sale, and thus make a commission.

Commissions can range anywhere from 5% of the sale to 100% depending on the product, service and/or niche. So the bigger the price point the better the commission.

Some of the most common Affiliate Networks to join and get started with are:

(1) Commission Junction
(2) MaxBounty
(3) Clickbank
(4) ShareASale
(5) LinkShare
(6) Amazon

There are affiliate programs out there for pretty much anything you can imagine, however most people do not know how to efficiently find them. Just conduct a google search with your niche e.g., golf clubs + affiliate program and check out the results:

I could then sign-up to any of of these networks and instantly be able to promote a large range of “golf clubs.”

Yet, another way to effectively monetize your website is with “Google Adsense.”

For a complete guide on how to monetize your website using Google Adsense I highly recommend a FREE-to-get-started training course from Wealthy Affiliate University.

Conclusion

If you’re constantly struggling with all your efforts to produce revenue for your online business… well you’re not alone. Trust me I’ve been there!!

I’m here to tell you that it’s never too late to create passive income by setting up a foundation for your business by creating quality content you’ve always been passionate about.

Keep in mind that this article is just an a overview of how effective creating a website can be for your business. However, these methods cannot be taken for granted.

There will be moments when the process gets grueling, but when a swarm of people come knocking down your door just to engage with your content, you will benefit a thousand times over.

That’s why it’s extremely important to have someone in your corner holding you accountable.  Wealthy Affiliate University provides comprehensive over-the-shoulder training that is invaluable for you and your business. And as I mentioned earlier it’s completely FREE to get started.

So what’s your excuse now? There is absolutely no reason why you should not be generating passive income for your business! All comments are welcomed…