Are you curious about how to make money online? Think that starting a blog is the way to go?
Great! Starting a blog can be a solid way to make long-term income – just for doing some writing on stuff you actually like and care about. But there’s a little more to it than that AND it may not be for everyone. This is not a get rich quick or plug and play business. If that’s what you’re looking for, this is not the place for you.
Yes, you can make a lot of money online but, like other traditional businesses, it’s not guaranteed. Anyone who tells you otherwise, is not being truthful.
Our goal is to help people who are really serious about building a real online business – because you can make a little, or a lot of money. That all depends on you…
Here’s the big difference between making money online and going to a job every day. If you do it right, the work you do today, this week, and this year – will continue making money for years to come. It’s an investment rather than trading your time for money.
So how does this work? Search engines find and cache the articles that you write, and over time each post is “worth more” to the search engines. That means you’ll get more web site traffic with every passing month as your site gains credibility. This does not happen overnight. It takes persistence and even some hard work – but you can do it if you’re serious and committed…
We did it (Dan and I both walked away from our corporate jobs and now do this full time), and so can you. The good news is that you get to take advantage of what we’ve learned over the last several years and avoid the sand traps that we had to dig our way out of.
Decide To Start Today
TODAY. No, not tomorrow, not next week, and not next month. Tomorrow always feels “safe” because you’re not having to make a decision. The power of today is that you make that commitment to yourself. And that is the first step to success.
This step is the most critical one, and it’s where most people get stuck. Don’t dream about doing something. Just get up and do it.
Step #1. Create Your New Blog
The first thing you need to do is find a home for your new blog. This is where your blog will live. It’s where you’ll write, publish, and manage your blog posts (or articles). It’s where you’ll decorate and personalize your blog.
Don’t make the critical mistake of confusing an old-school web host for a blog host. If you get a web host, that’s like buying the shell of a house – you’re going to have to build all the walls and install the plumbing yourself!
Be smart and go with a full service blog host where someone else manages all the techie stuff so that you can focus on blogging.
We highly recommend Blogger blog hosting for this. It provides a “well-built and excellently maintained home” for your blog so that you can focus on blogging without having to worry about all the techie stuff that comes with managing servers and databases.
Blogger is where we host all of our Dan & Jennifer Media Blogs that get millions of page views every month.
Step #2. - Install WordPress and Configure Important Plugins
This is where most people get stuck! Configuring WordPress gets very techie…
If you took our advice in Step 1, this has already been done for you!
If you decided to go it alone, here are the step by step details on how to install WordPress Yourself, check out “How to Start a Blog – Step 3: Install WordPress to Run your Blog”.
Step #3 – Make a Great First Impression With a Great Blog Theme
First impressions always matter. On the web, that’s even more important. A web visitor’s first impression about your site determines if he clicks away in the first 5 seconds, if he stays on to read what you have to say, and if he will ever come back again.
So it’s very important to put your best foot forward. Make your site interesting, distinctive, and engaging to your readers by using a great “theme”. WordPress themes are basically website designs that you can just download and enable for your WordPress account.
Start with a free theme and when you have the resources, consider having a custom theme made to enhance your brand even further. (Blogger offers 100+ beautiful free themes for you to choose from.)
Step #4 - Write Your First Blog Post
OK, at this point you’ve chosen THE best niche for you, you’ve become very familiar with that niche and it’s most popular sites, and you’re basically what could be considered an “authority” on your topic.
So now is the time for that all important first post
Off the top of your head, make a quick list of all the issues in your niche that people care about. What problems do they have, what questions do they have? What keeps them up at night?
Now pick ANY one of these and write a quick article on it. This “article” can be just a simple Top 10 list, with a supporting sentence of two for each bullet. That’s it!
Get feedback
Get this first article out there and see what people think. Email it to your family and friends, and ask them to help you make it better.
All the planning in the world is no substitute for Action. It’s time to go forth and do those good and powerful things.
Step #5 – How To Start Making Money With Your Blog Today
Did you know that with Blogger, you can start making money with your blog TODAY – not in 6 months.
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