To get your blog up and running and start making money, you must first understand what blogging is and how a blogger makes money from their blog.
Furthermore, whether you’re a rookie blogger or a seasonal/amateur blogger looking for a boost, you should always keep this thinking in mind: You have to spend money before you can earn money, and if you adore something but it only pays peanuts, look for other choices. We can’t afford to spend any time!
Blog, blogger, and blogging – What are they about?
Well, before talking about what blogging is, let’s just make sure we all agree what a blog is and who bloggers are.
What is a blog?
A blog is similar to a website; however, rather than representing a company, organization, corporation, or other entity, a blog is more personal and is operated by a single individual or a small group of people.
A trip blog, a mom blog, a beauty blog, a travel and lifestyle blog, a mom and home-schooling blog, and so on should all have a major focus or a combination of numerous topics.
There are also some blogs that act as portfolios, mostly among persons working in the fields of digital marketing, graphic design, art, and other fields where displaying one’s work is required.
Last but not least, there are blogs that are purely personal in nature, where bloggers express their sentiments and (parts of) their personal lives. Those blogs are more of an online journal than a money-making venture.
That, I believe, is a sufficient definition of what a blog is.
Who are (professional) bloggers?
First and foremost, I’d like to state unequivocally what I imagine of a professional blogger.
Many people believe that professional bloggers are those who have no other job or business besides their blogs, implying that the blog is their sole source of revenue and that they work full-time on it as a blogger, freelancer, content provider, or whatever else.
A professional blogger, on the other hand, does not necessarily mean the same thing to me. The term “professional” should be interpreted as “professional work.”
Professionalism may be seen right away in the URL of the blog. A professional blogger will invest in a self-hosting service and a good domain name, allowing their site’s URL to be neat and concise, rather than using a free service and ending up with URLs like thisisablog.wordpress.com or myblog.wixsite.com. Have you seen mine?
Next, a professional blogger would wisely choose a topic/niche that they can profit from, rather than one that is overly personal. A blog about how to efficiently learn online is clearly more likely to make money than a blog about a wet day in the countryside. Unless, of course, you own an umbrella shop in the countryside.
Professionalism extends to the manner they manage their blog. Were the articles modified properly? Do they frequently publish new articles? What about the pictures that are used in the blog? SEO? What is your content strategy?
Simply put, being a professional blogger is the same as having a career, except it isn’t a 9-to-5 position with a set monthly salary. The most significant distinction is that you are in charge of yourself.
So, what is this “blogging thing” about?
You become a blogger when you own a blog, and blogging is just sharing your passions and knowledge with others.
When you start blogging about something you’re passionate about, you give yourself a one-of-a-kind opportunity to promote your passion and share your expertise with others who are curious about the same subject you are and want the same information you do. That is what blogging is all about!
At the same time, you make money from your blog by blogging.
Profits can be made from a variety of sources, including:
- Displaying advertisements (like Google Ads)
- Affiliate marketing refers to the practice of earning a commission by suggesting products or services to your readers who then purchase them.
- Writing sponsored blogs, PR articles, and link placement, among other things
- Selling online courses, real goods, or services (e.g. tour planning service, menu planning service, consulting service, etc.)
Does this seem appealing to you? It’s easier said than done, to be sure!
You have a long way to go to create a proper income from these sources, or even from just ONE of them.
Set up a professional website, generate compelling content, share your material, understand how to grow traffic to your blog, master (or at least know how to use) SoMe, establish your community, develop your personal branding, build trust, learn email marketing, stay on top of the latest trend, the works.
Is it still the case that you’re following along?
Don’t worry if you’re doubting your decision to become a blogger since I created this entire blog, From Hobby to Money, just for you. With over a year of experience as a travel blogger, I know precisely what you need to do and how to do it in order to become a successful, professional blogger and make money from your site!
The professional blogger’s mindset
Before you can become a professional blogger, you must first think like one. To be a successful business owner, you must have a start-up attitude; to be successful, you must believe that you will succeed.
So, how does a professional blogger think? These are, in my opinion, things you should always keep in mind:
- It’ll take some time. Quite a few. So, please be patient. It took a long time for Rome to be built.
- Never surrender. I understand that there will be (many) days when you are frustrated and hesitant about this blogging thing, but guess what? Everything will be OK.
- Learn from other successful/professional bloggers. Look at them as examples/inspiration rather than rivals, and learn from both the good and the bad. NOT to copy, but to learn.
- You have to write a lot to get people’s attention, and you have to write an effing lot to start making money from your lovely site.
- Don’t be afraid to make your content available to the whole audience. You’re trying to sell something at the end of the day, right, and the sales game isn’t for introverts, sorry.
- And, once again, you must spend money in order to earn money. If you have to invest, do so. I’ve never encountered a successful blogger that uses a.wordpress.com URL and a free theme provided by WordPress. Never.
I sincerely hope that this information will help you understand what a blog, a blogger, and blogging are, and that you will find it useful in making your selection.
Happy blogging!
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