Turning a Hobby In To An Income: Start Blogging

This is the first part of a several-part series because frankly, there is just far too much for one post.

Let me say at the onset that blogging is NOT a way to get rich quick.  It's not even a way to get rich slow except for a very few people.  But if you have a blog with a decent-sized readership, it can be a way to make some extra spending money!

Above all, no matter what ads you have on your website, Content is King.  Without good content, very few people will ever see those ads and your chances of making money from your site are very slim.  Sure there are people who throw up a blog that is nothing more than one big advertisement, but the ones who make the best money are the ones who have built a strong loyal reader base with original content (the blogosphere is much smaller than you might think and if you do it right, you will find many new friends within the community.  "Borrowing" content from other sites without permission will get you the cyber equivalent of an angry mob with pitchforks!). 

The first thing you need to do is decide what you are going to blog about.  I chose to be a "frugal blogger" with a concentration on the Philadelphia-area grocery stores because it was something that I cared deeply about.  No matter what you decide to write about, you need to keep your blog focused. There have been so many things that I would have loved to write about the past few months, but you guys don't come here to read my views on politics...you come for the savings!

The next thing you need to (if you haven't already) is set up a blog.  As far as I know, the only company that will provide you with a free blog that you can monetize is Blogger (Wordpress.com and Livejournal.com will give you a free blog, but prohibit ads).  I use what is known as "self-hosted Wordpress", which means that I pay for hosting (about $85/year with BlueHost) and use the free Wordpress.org system for the operation of my blog.  This allows me the benefits of Wordpress (which I LOVE), but the ability to have ads.

If you decide to get started with a free blog through Blogger, I strongly suggest that you also buy your domain name (usually only about $8-10) and have it forwarded to your Blogger blog.  Free Blogger blogs will have the word "blogspot" in your URL and you want to be able to "protect your brand" if you later decide to go self-hosted and remove the "blogspot" from your URL (example:  you register as "mindisblog" on Blogger.  Your URL will be mindisblog.blogspot.com.  You also want to buy the name "mindisblog.com" from somewhere like GoDaddy.com and have it forwarded to your Blogger blog.  Before you commit to a name, make sure it is available both on Blogger  AND as a "stand alone" name!

Once you have that done, it is time to start writing and building a readership.  Most advertisers will have little interest in you until you have done that (and/or your blog is at least a few months old).  For tips on how to find and retain readers, check out these 3 excellent resources:  BlogCoach, ProBlogger and this post from MomAdvice.

Next up in the series?  Finding Advertisers, using Social Media to get more readers, Protecting your Brand, Treating Your Blog as a Business, Making Money Without Sacrificing Your Integrity and much more!