100k Job Trading From Home

There are certain myths that have grown up around blogs, bloggers and the blogosphere in general. Here are just some of them and some clarifications:

Anyone can start a blog! Not just anyone! There are some requirements, some more obvious than others. Obviously, you need a computer that you know how to use, an Internet connection and some experience using the Internet. You also need a host for your blog; there are blog hosts that are free and some that cost a small amount per month. One last requirement is not just an ability to communicate your thoughts but also a willingness to do so.

Anyone can set up a blog! Some blogs are much easier to set up and use than others, this depends on your blog host (e.g., blogger, iblogs, typepad, tblog, etc.). Some blog hosts take you through a couple simple set-up steps and you’re off writing your first post but there are others that get far more technical than the average user may be ready for.

Blogging doesn’t take up that much time! That depends! Some posts, when you have a clear idea of what you want to say, may take just a few minutes while you may struggle for days (literally) with others that involve complex issues or thoughts. In general, blogging is a daily activity for the serious blogger (some bloggers write up to ten posts a day) and a once-a-week activity for the casual blogger.

Blogs are in competition with the main-stream media! This is true in a few cases (not as many cases as bloggers would have you think). Just recently, there have been some very popular and influential social and politically-oriented blogs that have caused main-stream media outlets to back-track and change their coverage of important events.

Bloggers just criticize and have no new information to add! This may be true in some cases but blogging today is much more than the personal activity it used to be. Corporations, media outlets, public personalities, politicians and experts in almost every field have now joined the ranks of blog producers. Considering all this expertise, one would have to say that bloggers have a lot of new information to add to any debate.

You can’t believe anything you read in a blog! That’s a bit of an overstatement. You’ll run across bad information and even intentional untruths in blogs but, for the most part, bloggers who state facts are stating what they honestly believe to be fact. It is always up to the readers to verify that any information they receive is accurate information.

Most of you must have known about the story of rich dad – Robert Kiyosaki. To my understanding, one of the keys to his success is asset building. Over the time, he accumulated enough assets to generate a sizable income to surpass his rich dad. The real value of an asset is that it brings you income, passive income for most of the time. While my blog and web sites started to bring me stable income month after month, I feel that I’m on the right path to be a rich dad myself. Have a look at some of my recently acquired blog/web sites, as they started to generate income for me almost immediately:

Somebackup.com – a Tech blog,
PHPpeixun.com – a PHP traing company site,
Lidanatural.com – a site development originally in a foreign language, I converted it to a photography library.

It is important to realize that your choice of a niche can have a significant influence on the success or failure of your new blog.

Deciding on a theme can be a daunting task. What exactly are you going to write about? Your niche needs to be a popular topic that many people are interested in.

If you are going to blog about yourself, then you better have a very interesting life, or you will have difficulty keeping your readers coming back for more. You should choose a topic that will make it comparatively easy to grow your readership and build a strong following.

Since many bloggers write about their favorite subjects, it’s not a bad idea to start brainstorming by writing down a list of your hobbies, interests, and any areas of professional expertise. Now try to determine a niche you can target within one of those areas.

Should you blog about automobiles in general, or the latest sports cars? If you choose too narrow a theme then you may struggle to come up with regular, fresh content. And if you choose a topic that’s too general your readers may be confused by a jumble of seemingly unrelated posts.

You might consider niches within the following general topic areas which have proven to be popular for blogging:

•    Automobiles
•    Computers & Information Technology
•    Digital Cameras
•    Gadgets
•    Music
•    News
•    Photography
•    Politics
•    Shopping

If you plan to use Pay-Per-Click advertising to get traffic to your blog, then remember also that the hottest topics might have the highest pay-per-click fees.

You can sometimes get great niche ideas by browsing at Blog directories and sites like Google Blog Search: http://blogsearch.google.com

A great way to keep blog readers coming back for more is to understand who reads your blog and write content that is directed towards them. This does not mean that you have to write on only one particular subject, though. If you are a stay at home mom and write about your life at home with the kids, your loyal readers may not appreciate it if you write about cutting edge topics or use a lot of foul language in your writing. If you generally write humor, do not bog your readers down with sorrowful woes and tales. Your readers will be interested in the things that attracted them to your site in the first place. That is usually what you are more interested in writing about. You can gain a better understanding of your readers interested by including places for comments and encouraging your readers to contact you by email.

I was trying hard to find some unique characters from some of the top money making bloggers, and came up with the following thoughts. To become a super blogger, you will have to be:

As kind and greedy as John Chow

John Chow is kind enough to share his tips on how to monetize your blog. However with every tip he gives you, there are a dozen affiliate links or CPC links attached to it. Almost half of his blog posts are paid reviews. Although he claimed to earn $30,000+ per month, he tried hard to get a free Mac Air from one of his sponsors.

As bold and generous as Shoemoney

Jeremy Shoemaker is bold, not only his head (which is bald and attractive to some girls/ladies), but his style in blogging. He throws everything out to get as much as subscribers and commentators to his blog. When he got a free spare Mac Air, he gave it away to his readers in a contest.

As passionate and tight as Problogger

Darren Rowse is the guy behind Problogger. He is passionate to put up around 4 blog posts per day and also countless tweets on twitter.  Although he is one of the top earning bloggers, when he got a spare Mac Air, he was tight enough to sell it on his blog.

As honest and fishy as Yaro

Yaro is honest enough to accept not everyone can make big money without lying. He can put up a testmonial on his blog to brag about his coachin program out of thin air, and banned anyone who found out his trick from commenting on his blog.

How do you find out about these top bloggers?

There are many factors that make blogs much better than normal WebPages including the speed at which blogs are indexed, ability to submit to blog directories & normal directories, pings and track backs. All these little things can help drive more traffic to blogs. Here are 14 popular techniques you can use:

1.) Submit to My Yahoo! When you submit your own RSS to My Yahoo it is indexed by Yahoo.

2.) Submit to Google’s Reader. When you submit your own blog RSS to Google’s Reader the Google Blog Search will index your site.

3.) Add a relevant link directory to your blog and trade links like a demon possessed! Although it may take more time than simply submitting to a search engine one time, this method is perhaps the best way to drive traffic to your site. Use software such as Zeus to speed up the link trading process.

4.) Use ping sites like ping-o-matic. Ping your site every time you add a new post.

5.) Submit your blog to traditional search engines such as AltaVista, and MSN.

6.) Submit your blog to traditional directories such as DMOZ. Directories (particularly DMOZ) increase relevance with Google. DMOZ is very picky, but what do you have to lose by trying?

7.) Submit to as many RSS Directories and Search Engines as possible. This is a simple but repetitive process that can be done with software such as RSS SUBMIT.

8.) Comment on other blogs. Do not just leave short, lazy comments like “I agree.” Leave well thought out replies that will force readers to wonder “who wrote this?”

9.) Use track backs. If there is a blog that you refer to or quote and it is highly relevant to your subject, leave a track back. It increases your link popularity and may even score a few interested readers from the linked site.

10.) Go offline. Use newspaper ads, public bulletin boards, business cards, even stickers to let as many people as possible know your blog exists.

11.) Add a link to your blog in your e-mail signature block.

12.) Use Groups (Usenet). Find a relevant group on Google groups, Yahoo groups, MSN groups or any of the thousands of other FREE group services and find like minded people and talk with them. Make sure your use your blog URL like it is your name.

13.) Use Forums. Forums are one of the best places to go for advice. Go to forums and find problems to solve. Make sure you leave your blog name, but be tactful about it; some forums get annoyed with those who selfishly drop a few links to their own site and leave.

14.) Tag your website. Tagging is a new idea that has erupted across the web. Sites like http://Del.icio.us, Technorati and many others have a social feature that allows you to place your article under keywords or “tags” that everyone interested in that tag can see.

Although these are some of the most popular ways to drive traffic to your blog, do not limit your self to tips and lists. Use your imagination and you will come up with thousands of ways to drive traffic to your blog!

Blogging can be an extremely interesting hobby to have. A blog is a place where someone can post exactly what’s on his/her mind. While some bloggers could care less if their posts are read, others actively try to gain more readers. Some advertisers are offering money for blogs that get high traffic amounts, so learning to blog better can be an important task. If you are interesting in learning more about better blogging, check out these six helpful tips.

Use a Casual Tone

The most interesting blogs are not written using formal grammar rules. If you want your blog to be popular and a success overall, consider writing in a more casual tone. Think of the writing as being a conversation you are having with a friend. Write exactly the way you would talk, not the way you are supposed to talk. Using slang and other words that may not be considered “proper” is a great way for your blog to reach a wide variety of viewers. Using humor and other personality characteristics in your writing will make people want to keep coming back to read your newest posts.

Don’t Overdo It

Keeping your blog posts short will help you retain any interested viewers. People don’t want to spend massive amounts of time reading text on the web. If they wanted to read a novel, they would do just that. Try to stick to your point and keep it nice and short. A blog that is more than 700 words is just too much. If you need to carry on with the topic, consider creating another post that finishes your point, so the readers will be less likely to get bored.

Never Advertise Improperly

Too often people use blogs as a space to advertise their services or their products. This can be a cheap way to get your work out there. It is noted however that blog readers can get annoyed quickly at advertisements on blogs. If you must advertise on your blog, consider doing so in a more subtle manner. Write a short post about your product and put a link to your website. Don’t take up your entire blog space with the advertisement, people will be scared away from your blog altogether.

Check Your Spelling

Although the tone of your blog should be kept casual, you should still edit your work. There is a way to be casual, without being sloppy. You should always check your spelling before you submit your post. If your posts are sloppy and full of misspelled words, people will think that you are not educated and probably won’t take anything you say seriously. Some blogging software comes will a spell check features, while some doesn’t, you may simply create your post in a word processing software and use the spell check there. This will allow you to post without spelling errors, which is highly recommended.

Be Versatile

If you want to reach the largest amount of people, you do not need to advertise endlessly. You simply have to be versatile with your post topics. Those blogs that cover only one type of thing may be popular with one specific targeted group of people. That is fine, if it is what you want. If you want to reach everyone however, you need to post on everything. Consider posting on current affairs, music, books, and other hot issues. This will draw people in. When you post about popular things in the news, it will draw people to your site when they do a search on the web.

Post Frequently

People who become fans of your blog will likely be looking for a new post every few days. Some will only look once a week. If you want to keep your blog fresh and interesting, you should post often. Posting often is something that takes very little time, because your entries should stay short and sweet. It is a way however to keep things new and exciting for your biggest fans. They will be waiting for your new posts and will continue logging on as long as you provide them with new information.

Did you ever ask yourself, why you are bloggin, or why do you have to blog? Nowadays on the Internet there are more than 70 millions blogs, and the number is exploding. It is interesting what purposes do all these bloggers pursue?

Until recently, to make money online was not easy for ordinary people like us. 4-5 years ago it was difficult to earn something on the Net until WEB 2.0 era had came. The only way which could help us in that time was website creating, its promotion, and selling of advertising space.

Today everything changed. Blog fever amplifies day by day, and everyone, who heard something about blogs, wants to have it. So, why? Lets try to make some supervisions.

1. Glory. The vanity was, is and will be always. Whether is necessary to be surprised that people wish to be famous? Look at how many amazing people did you know since you have enjoyed blogging. Seth Godin, Steve Pavlina, Darren Rowse, John Chow… Did you ever know them if not for blogs?

2. Self-expression. Many people are blogging because it gives them some charge of energy. I created this blog because I just want to share of my thoughts and experiences… Why not? And there are guys, who are the professionals in different spheres, but they don’t have another opportunities of expression. Internet is the best instrument for people like us. Blogging is exactly what we need.

3. Job. For many, blogging is a real time job. Companies are hire people to write about their new products and its announcement. The middle salary of such blogger in US is equal $2,5-3 thousands per month.

4. Sale of own products. Through Internet, we can start selling our products worldwide from the minutes after beginning. Especially if we have an electronic product like eBook or useful software, Internet is the best that we can use. And people use it. Blog helps to realize these purposes.

5. Sale of affiliate products. Recently, some new techniques emerge, which help anyone to sell affiliate products with the help of blog. Check those out.

6. To Help Others. Yes, yes, yes… And why not? I found many blogs of family doctors, radio engineering and even workers of the zoo which are writing about what should we do in different situations.

7. Money Making Online. And eventually people are blogging for the sake of money. Look at Jonh Chow, his blog brings him over $30,000 a month. And John is not alone. For many people blog is a big business. I read somewhere, that Engadget makes more than $100,000 per month. You are probably agree with me, that these people don’t have any financial problems even nowadays.

Let’s create blogs, promote them and enjoy this process, because it gives us a big opportunities in our lifes. So, what’s your take on this? Why you are blogging?

There are times when a blogger, like any other writer, will ‘loose the muse.’ Every idea that comes to mind seems either trite or dull or, worse still, no ideas come to mind. What’s a blogger to do? Here are five tactics that just might clear away the cobwebs and allow you to find an inspiring idea for another great post:

Start with surfing your favorite blogs. What are your favorite fellow bloggers talking about? You might have a different view on the latest hot topic that might just be interesting to your fellow bloggers or a perspective that might make them mad (BTW, never worry about making bloggers crazy — most of them love having something to gripe about). If you can’t find anything that inspires you in your favored blog, surf through some of those blogs that always make you mad; the ones that seem to promote everything that goes against your lifestyle. Anger is always a good blog motivator but don’t get so angry you get irrational. Comment on some blog posts and then expand your comments into a post on your blog. Also try logging onto Blog Explosion, Blog Clicker or one of the many other blog traffic generator programs — there are lots of ideas out there that are worth writing about from either a pro or con perspective.

Read some news! Open up your favorite news page or open a newspaper and see what catches your attention. What are the politicians up to today? Any pending legislation that worries you or flat out scares you? Or perhaps someone is running for office or proposing a law that you may want to publicly support. Some celebrity is sure to be in trouble again; have anything to say about that? Maybe you have an idea about who should be dating or marrying who. Who died? A nice memorial post for a nice person may be in order. What happened “On This Date” in past years? Some past events are worth researching and writing about. Are you into sports? Many bloggers or blog readers are sports fans and they might be interested in your take on the playoffs or the players. Don’t forget to check the editorial page and the letters to the editor — do you agree with the opinions? Tell the world why or why not.

What have you been watching or reading? Have you read any good (or bad) books lately? Write about your latest read — recommend it, blast it or even write an abstract for your blog (but don’t give away ending). How about movies, the great ones or the pitiful losers might be worth some good or bad words — you could make movie or book reviews regular features of your blog. The same goes for television shows. Start a series that follows your favorite TV show, there might be quite a few fans of the same show that will be interested in your take and appreciate your summary of episodes they missed. If there is a book, movie or TV show that you thought was great there is sure to be a reviewer who panned it. Find the bad review and write a post countering the reviewer’s opinions.

What have you been doing? Your work place, your co-workers, you bosses, your home and your family members are all fair game for your blog — keep it short and amusing and you’ll have a great post. Once you introduce a particularly interesting person to your readers you may want to do some sequels. When was your last travel vacation — write a travelog about where you’ve been or do some research on some places you’d love to go to and write about them.

Do you have a special skill? If you can make something that is unique or something that is common but made special because of what you know, there may be people interested in knowing how to do it. Give away tips on cooking, sewing, cleaning, fix-it projects, pet care, child care, beauty secrets, personal care or organizing tips. Make it a regular feature on you blog. If you have a digital camera find an interesting subject, take some pictures and then write something based on the subject. If you found it interesting or comical or sad its likely to interest someone else.

If you’ve just entered the world of blogging or if you’ve been blogging for a short time and find that things are not working out as you expected, it will be worth your while to spend some time understanding the common mistakes that bloggers make, mistakes that make it hard to enjoy what should be an enjoyable, satisfying experience: Blogging!

The five most common new blogger mistakes are:

Diving in!(rather than wading in)
Many bloggers are so anxious to get started that they dive in rather than wading in slowly — its a mistake in an unfamiliar swimming pool or pond and its a mistake when entering a new arena such as the ‘blogosphere.’ Consider these things before you start your Blog:

Take the time to read dozens of different blogs: note the colors, graphics and layouts to get an idea of what appeals to you. Also note that some bloggers are long-winded and others are brief and to the point . . . others are just chatty and entertaining and have no particular point to make . . . this too is a personal style you get to choose.

You need a host for your blog, some are free, some charge a small amount per month for their service, some are simple to use and some require more technical knowledge, some have more features than others; choose carefully, once you’ve established your blog and have a few regular readers you may not want to change your address (your URL).

Unrealistic expectations!
If you come to blogging expecting instant results: a large readership and many complimentary comments, you may be disappointed. There are tens of thousands of blogs online vying for the same audience. Patience and tenacity are essential on your part. If you write well, find a unique niche to fill, have appealing titles for your posts and tirelessly promote your blog the readership and comments (some of which will be complimentary) will come.

Losing focus!
When you started your blog you had a particular reason for doing so; it might have been to express your views on a topic or it might have been to just communicate with a close circle of friends about your daily activities. Readers will come to your blog for the first time and either be interested in your subject matter or not, will either like your style or not and, if they like your subject and style they may comment and then come back later. Once you’ve established a topic and tone for your blog you’re free to change it but to do so you’re basically starting all over.

Plagiarizing!
There are some great bloggers out there and as you surf through blogs you might find one who said something really well, something that resonated with you and something you want to put in your blog. DON’T just copy and paste someone’s words in your blog without giving them credit, making it look to the world like the words are yours. If you write it, write it in your own words and write it better, adding your own thoughts and feelings and then be gracious, mention where you got the idea and provide a link.

Ignoring the reader!
Some of the people who read your blog will leave comments; some readers will agree with you and some readers may even praise your insights but most will pick a point you’ve made and criticize it. People leave comments on others blogs for the same reason they themselves blog, to exchange ideas and express their points of view. Always respond to your readers comments; thank them for reading and taking the time to comment (even the severe critics) and then respond, as appropriate, to their comment. If you ignore your comments your readers may end up ignoring your blog.