Journaling, the same as blogging
I’ve always kept a journal of some sort ever since I could write. In the early days of journaling, I clipped a lot of photos from magazines and pasted them into my journals. Today, I do the same, only electronically! I blog on my LivingWithDana.com website and then I share pins on my Pinterest page, so no more clipping from hard copies! Sharing my thoughts and images on Facebook and Twitter, all digitally, is so easy!
Have you always kept a journal? Do you want to share your thoughts and images AND make money from your blog, pins and posts? I am here to share how I grew my blog from 0 visitors to over 50,000 visitors a month and my Pinterest page has over 30,000 monthly viewers. Facebook and Twitter are slow growing and so I don’t devote as much time to them as I do to my blog and Pinterest.
According to the stats from my “journaling” on various social media channels, my blog and Pinterest are the most lucrative.
When you start your journal sharing online, I suggest starting a blog on your own website and starting a Pinterest page.
Find a site host that you trust
There’s no need to get bogged down in all the technicalities of starting a blog on your own website. Hop on over to Bluehost and sign up for their services. I signed up for three years. It’s a great one-stop provider for affordable hosting. The registration of your domain name is quick and easy. It offers WooCommerce which enables you to set up an online store (sell stuff of your own!).
What you don’t want to do is start your blog on a free website. You don’t “own” the free site. On the free sites, you’re at the mercy of the host and could have your blog deleted.
Why do I support Bluehost? For the same reasons you should when selecting your web site host: speed, security, support and track record. And features such as 1-click WordPress install, free domain name, and more!
Organize your digital files with CMS
WordPress is a type of content management system also known as CMS. When you blog using WordPress you will write, design and publish your posts using the WP CMS (those abbreviations should be easy to follow). The WP CMS lets you keep your posts, images and videos organized. You have control over how your blog looks by using themes found through WordPress and/or custom designed.
Many popular sites use WordPress for a reason: it’s dependable!
WordPress.com is the free web hosting site which you don’t want to host your site on if you plan on making money from your blog. It’s the WordPress.org site that you want to use and which you can set up through Bluehost. You will have total control of monetizing your blog on the .org version. Remember, Bluehost can install your WordPress.org blog with one-click.
Topics to blog about
What have you been journaling about all your life? In my case, I’ve always journaled about the things that are important to me such as love and friendship, clothes and fashion, animals, travel, cooking, and fitness. I could have chosen one of these topics to base my blog on but instead I have incorporated all of them into my lifestyle blog.
I have another topic that I blog about that is a unique niche and that is my #neardeathexperiences. But in order to draw a lot of visitors, my site could not be just about that one topic. I did research and discovered that the topic attracts just a few dedicated followers and I did not want to limit my site’s visitors. It’s a great topic for people to stumble upon when they visit my blog. It’s a great topic for people to read who know me personally and wonder why all 10 of my toes were amputated. But it’s not a great topic to monetize my blog.
Lifestyle blogs
Having multiple topics in a lifestyle blog translates to a couple things: I won’t get bored writing about the same thing repeatedly and my posts will be more frequent. Those are important considerations for you to ponder when deciding what you are going to write about.
Are people going to care what you write about? Will you find it easy to write about? Don’t worry if someone else (or many people are) is writing about the same topic. Your experiences and your writing about it will be different from others, so don’t let that stop you from starting. Your experiences have value and so will your blog!
WordPress is easy to use, versatile
If you’ve gone through Bluehost and the 1-click WordPress installation, you now have thousands of free and paid theme options. Users will judge your blog by its looks so your theme selection is important. Look more closely at the blogs you visit frequently. What is it about the design of the blog you like? Can you find a similar theme in WordPress? Chances are you can!
Look at logos and branding. Look at navigation.
Sometimes when you scroll to the bottom of a blog site, the name of the theme used will be one of the last things on the page. Check it out!
Tips to keep it simple
Remember to keep your theme simple and make sure it is responsive which means your blog adapts to the device it is being viewed on! So cool!
Along with your blog theme, you should select some basic WordPress plugins that let you add even more features. You can add plugins for SEO, email captures, form builders, analytics, backup, cache, image optimizers, and more.
If you need additional help, hire a designer for your blog.
Basic blog pages everyone needs
Your blog needs a foundation of pages such as About Me, Contact Us, Disclaimer/Privacy Policy, etc. On your About page let your readers know what you’ll be blogging about and how your posts will help them solve problems related to that topic. Include a sign-up form for your newsletter! Explain why you are qualified to write about that topic. On your Contact page, you can include your email address, social media accounts, a contact form, and a few FAQs.
Plan your content to meet your goals
Come up with a content strategy. Are you blogging to build an email list? Do you want visitors to download your digital product? When you check out your site analytics, be sure to view the demographics which help define your audience. Then give your audience more of the type of blog posts they’ve been reading!
Your content should be posted at regular intervals so that your followers become accustomed to visiting your blog on a regular basis. This is actually two goals: posting at regular intervals and driving traffic to your site. Regular postings sets expectations with your followers and yourself. The more you publish, the more you’ll learn about the types of posts that keep your readers coming back. Check your site stats!
Goals and expectations
Don’t create high expectations that you can’t reach. Don’t start out with 10 posts a week for a few months and then drop off to one or two posts a month. You’ll lose your following. Keep expectations to a minimum, the smallest amount you think you can manage each week. If you are sure you can maintain a publishing schedule of one to two posts a week for as long as your blog is around, then that is what you should stick to.
Another goal should be to publish posts around your topic. These posts are what your readers need.
I use a calendar to map out the posts I’m going to publish:
Personal tips and tricks (saving money, cooking, decorating, crafts)
Quotes from experts (in saving money, cooking, fitness)
Industry news (store closings/openings, must-have apps)
Call-to-Action (read more of my best content)
Photos turned into memes
Free download-ables
Every blog post should include an image. Your posts will get more views with images attached.
WordPress has a few plugins that give you access to free images that you can use with your blog posts.
How can you make money from a blog?
There are several things you can do. I am writing this blog to help you get started and hopefully I can shed some light on any areas you are unsure about.
- Affiliate Marketing: A simple explanation is that on your blog you link to a product for sale on another site and if someone clicks on your link and buys a product, you earn a commission on that sale. Sign up for affiliate programs.
- Advertising such as through Google AdSense
- Events such as online or summits
- Recurring Revenue from continuity or membership programs
- Promoting Your Offline Business
- Services such as coaching, consulting, writing, copywriting, design, training, freelance.
- Products, physical and virtual, such as eBooks, courses, software, reports, T-shirts, etc.
- Donations
- Syndication
- Selling blogs: you build it and sell it, usually for a popular niche.
Affiliate marketing: Refer people to your favorite website host. I use Bluehost and highly recommend it if you want to set up your site quickly and easily. Throughout my blog you’ll see many affiliate links that lead to products I support. If you click on an affiliate link you don’t pay extra for your purchase; instead, the merchant pays ME a commission for qualified purchases. The merchant thanks me for promoting — marketing — their products by paying me a commission.
You, too, can set up a blog and earn money through affiliate marketing. If you do some research, you’ll see that you could start earning money a few months after starting affiliate marketing. Some people earn enough money from affiliate marketing that they can quit their “day job.” Will that be you? Earning money through blogging and affiliate marketing takes an investment of time, in my opinion.
Continue to learn as you go, use what works for you
If you are using an SEO plugin with your blog, you will note that copy needs to be broken up with subheads. How often should you use a subhead? Definitely any time you switch topics in a post. Images within a post can help break up long blocks of text, too.
I will continue to share new ideas and new methods for you to try with your own blog. My goal is to post a new “make money blogging” article once a week! I hope you continue to read them and share with me your questions. I will answer to the best of my ability. Thanks so much! Best wishes!
