Show Me The Money: Turning Your Blog Into A Source Of Income

Online journaling - also known as "blogging" - has rapidly evolved from a personal hobby into a powerful tool for Internet entrepreneurs. According to Jim Kukral, creator of http://BlogKits.com, you can monetize a blog in several ways. "For instance, you might build a stand-alone blog and sell ad space to targeted businesses," suggests Kukral. "Or you could put up a blog on your web site to drive more traffic and keep in touch with your customer base."

Stand-Alone Blogs
How can you create an effective stand-alone blog? Start by choosing a subject you're passionate about. If you try writing about a topic you're not truly interested in, your lack of enthusiasm will show through in the results, and you probably won't be consistent with your blogging efforts.

Once you get going, there numerous tools you can use to generate revenue from your e-musings:

•Google AdSense - This contextual system instantly delivers ads to your blog that relate to your topic. Every time one of your readers clicks on an ad, you get paid. And Google has a built-in function that lets you block ads from disreputable sources, so you can protect your name and brand.

•Quigo - Similar to AdSense, Quigo pairs your blog with relevant paid ads. Their system also allows you to see where your ads are being placed.

•AdBrite and BlogAds - Both are marketplaces where you can list space on your blog, for X dollars per month. Businesses can come in, look at your blog stats, and choose to rent an ad spot.

•BlogKits - Again, your blog is matched to ads with a similar target audience. But with this program, you receive a sales percentage each time one of your readers clicks through an ad and makes a purchase. This per-action model is ideal for bloggers with only a handful of traffic. You'll see fewer actions than clicks, but the higher commissions will add up much faster.

Business Blogs

Unlike with a stand-alone blog, your goal in creating a blog for your web site is to stimulate indirect income. The way blogs are constructed is conducive to your site ranking well in the search algorithms. The engines, particularly Google, like the archive structure; the links allow their spiders to easily find and index everything. They also like to see new, original content being added regularly. Having a blog boosts your site's search positioning, thereby, increasing your exposure and your targeted traffic.

Your blog also adds value to your site by providing visitors with useful information and giving them a reason to return. That's why the content needs to be focused on education, rather than promotion. Your readers don't want to hear about your company - they want to know how you can solve their problems and what you can teach them concerning your area of expertise. If you sell cat toys, for example, your target audience is cat owners - so blog about issues that matter to cat owners. You might give tips on preventing fleas, share your thoughts about tracking pets with microchips, or simply divulge your own little trick for keeping your cat out of the fish bowl.

Blogging: The Big Picture

Blogs are positioned to stay around for quite a while, and their value to online marketers should continue to increase. States Kukral, "Every Internet entrepreneur ought to take advantage of this resource - blogging is a profitable proposition, regardless of your online goals. It's a very simple, very effective way to create a better E-Biz."