For those who are trying to make money blogging, the first reaction can be to ’sell something.’ That’s how we’re taught to make money our entire lives.

In the blogosphere, you’re in a unique position that makes that impossible. In most cases, readers get to try and use everything – they even get to take it home before they buy. In fact, they might take it and use it and not buy at all. Buying, in this case, of course being subscribing to your blog or clicking on an advertisement.

If you’re having trouble selling – it’s probably because you’re trying to sell something. Try teaching instead.

People who read blogs are looking for real information. They want quality, reliable content and they want it fast. That means you have to deliever useful information that will actually benefit people and you have to present it in a way that’s easy to read and comprehend.

Teach, dont’ sell.

It’s amazing to see how much you can take in about blogging just in a single day. Today alone, I’ve read ___ great articles on blogging and I wanted to share them.

They come mostly from four different topics – design, blogging, writing and monetization.

All of these categories fit well inside my blog and I wanted to share some thoughts on each of these articles

5 Ways you are Unknowingly Harming Your Posts

If you have been blogging for a while, you should probably have a rough idea of what things you should and should not do while writing a blog post. But believe it or not, whether you know it or not, there are still quite a few things you have on your blog that are hurting it that you don’t realize.

Inside this post, I particularly liked the reference to dates. I still do dates, but after reading this – I’m reconsidering. Dates do give your blog a time stamp, which can be beneficial or detrimental, depending on your content.

5 Sure-Fire Sources for Headline Inspiration

Some days headlines are a breeze to write. The perfect words flow from brain to page in a flash of brilliance.

…

It can be intimidating, frustrating, and a little bit humbling . . . and worst of all it can grind your projects to a halt.

It doesn’t have to be that way — as long as you have a few sources of headline inspiration at your disposal.

This is a great idea post that will help you get going when you’re stuck. In addition, a commentor suggested a poetry book. I would also suggest newspapers. Journalists have been getting people to read boring stuff for a long time.

10 Elements of Highly Effective Articles

Here’s the bottom line: If you want to keep a majority of your visitors then you have to be able to produce amazing articles.  Period.

There are a lot of people out there not producing amazing articles who still do fine. Regardless, it’s important to try, right? By the way, never use the word amazing. It’s empty and means nothing.

Make Money Blogging

Do you want to make money blogging? If you do – you’re not alone. More and more bloggers are finding that blogging is a profitable medium. Whether it be to earn a few extra dollars a week to feed their coffee habit, or making enough money to stop them having to get a part time job to get through college, or whether they’ve got it to a point where they are able to make a full time living from their blogging – there are tens of thousands of bloggers making money from blogging.

This is an old favorite from Problogger. I still look back at it every now and then to see what I’m not doing or what I’m doing wrong.

Success Keys For Young Entrepreneurs: Simplify Your Life

No summary here, but this article has a good list of overall traits you should have if you want to be a successful blogger.

I’m introducing this week a new series called Write Right Wednesdays. The idea is to offer a writing tip each Wednesday in the spirit of making us all better writers.

No one is perfect. I write my posts, read them, edit them, edit them again and come back three hours after I’ve posted only to find a spelling or grammatical error. I’m definitely not trying to preach to anyone, just help out.

I was a copywriter for broadcast and web publications at a local television station for two years. In that time, I’ve come to be good at some things and worse at others. Hopefully, this series will help me be better at a lot of things.

This week’s Tip

It’s important to know that there is a big difference between it’s and its. In fact, it’s so big that it’s this week’s Write Right Wednesdays tip.

The solution to this problem is pretty simple. It’s stands for it is and its is possessive.

In a sentence, just check to see if you can replace It’s for It is or It has. If you can, then you’re doing things the right way. Otherwise, you should probably try to see if its works.

For example, It’s important to spell correctly is translated as It is important to spell correctly. On the other hand, The pencil is infamous for its spelling errors.

Got it? Good. Now check to see if I made in mistakes and e-mail me if I did!

Regular blog readers know that some posts go on and on and on and on and on….. and on… and on. And then, they go on and on.

And pretty soon, it gets really boring or you just get lost altogether. That’s not a good thing, if you’re a blogger.

The folks over at Copyblogger, who I would consider the experts on blog writing, are generally agree that it’s important to keep your blog posts as short as possible.

Some writers don’t seem to know when to shut up. They ramble and pontificate and theorize, seemingly oblivious to the agony it’s causing everyone else.

To avoid this awful fate, you probably try to keep your posts short, chopping up longer ideas into a series of posts. No need to scare away readers by dumping too much information on them all at once, right?

If you know then, that it’s important to keep your posts relatively short – or at least, keep them shorter than War and Peace, the question becomes – how do you do it?

Again, we turn to Copyblogger for the answer. Here’s the list.

Write For Yourself

Edit For Your Readers

Stick to the Spine of Your Content

It’s all about Precision

Save the leftovers

For a long time in school, I was encouraged to write more. Then, I came to a Professor who wanted every paper to be less than one page long. The latter taught me a few things that I have stuck with me when it comes to articulating.

Write for a Knowledgeable Audience

Assume that the people you’re writing for know what they’re talking about. If they don’t know, chances are they are going to Wikipedia for the answer anyway.

Don’t Try to be Pretty

If you read the Copyblogger post, you got the point that plain is pretty when it comes to writing. If someone has to look up a word that a blogger uses, then it’s probably a sign that the writing is too extravagant.

Stick to the Limit

Newspaper writers and authors know that when an editor or publisher says X number of words, the editor or publisher means X number of words, not X words plus  a few.

If you have to, set yourself a limit and stick to it.

In a blog design, there can be a lot of wasted space. It’s easy to lose track of what can be some valuable parts of your blog, like your “sidebar” and your “footer.”

Don’t forget about these areas. Usually, they’re dedicated to advertising and/or navigation. They can be more valuable than that though. There was a great post at ProBlogDesign last February about re-thinking the “sidebar.” Wordpress design expert Justin Tadlock has been discussing the “sidebar” even longer than that.

The point is, don’t waste that space. Every pixel of your design is important.

Why The Italic “Sidebar?”

You may be wondering why I keep using the term “sidebar” in quotes and italics. It’s for good reason. The term sidebar or for the part of the blog that’s not where the “real” content goes, is very vague and subjective.

For one blogger, the “sidebar” could be on the left and for the other it could be on the right. For some, it could be below or on top or in the middle or anywhere in between. Really, a “sidebar” is just a different area of your blog that can be utilized for a different purpose other than blogging content.

I call them widget-areas, thanks to Justin Tadlock. For the purposes of this discussion, we’ll continue to call them “sidebars.” Really though, the term should be changed because these areas shouldn’t just be used for what’s leftover or what’s extra.

Conventional Wisdom

Conventional Wisdom in terms of “sidebars” says that this is a secondary area of your blog. It’s for features like search, category and tag navigation, and advertising. Maybe, if your site has a lot of dynamic content, you can use it for most commented posts and the like.

This is great. When blogging was in its infancy, this was probably a great use of that “other space” leftover after the content makes its bed. But there is more that can be done with these areas.

My Suggestions

The way I think in regards to “sidebars” is really a combination of the philosophies I linked to earlier. The “sidebar” of your blog can be used to push content and keep readers moving in the direction you want them to go.

For example, I create my top picks to push readers toward those posts. It will keep them on the site longer and hopefully, inspire them to come back.

I offer tag navigation and ad space secondary to my content. Because that’s the way it should be.

Also, if you scroll down (don’t forget to scroll back up and finish reading) and look at my footer, you’ll see that I utilize this area of my blog for content too. I put recent posts here so when readers are done reading and at the bottom of the page, they are directed to more relevant content.

Don’t waste your space. Use everything you have to help keep your readers on the site longer. The “sidebar” and “footer” areas can be utility blocks to promote your content.

In 1995, eBay crept on to the Internet scene and since that fateful day, has grown into a billion dollar, international company whose name and influence is known throughout the world.

Thousands of products are sold directly or through auction on eBay every day – we’re talking billions and billions of dollars worth of stuff each year. Everyone from common collectors to massive Internet companies utilize eBay to earn their living – and you can too.

Depending on your blog niche or topic, it could be possible for you to utilize the eBay Partner Network as an income source for your blog.

The best part is you won’t have to touch or sell or market any of the products.

What is the eBay Partner Network?

The eBay Partner Network is an affiliate program of sorts – a really big one. It’s far more serious and in-depth than most affiliate programs, too. This means that more serious bloggers and more serious content providers make more money than those who just drive “fluff-traffic.”

Let me explain.

How the eBay Partner Network Works

With the eBay Partner Network, you place code on your site that automatically generates listings based on keywords or categories. There are an array of options including the type of listings, the number of listings as well as things like pictures, font colors and other aesthetics. All in all, you have almost complete control over what listings appear and how they look on your site.

Then, as you merge the listings into your valuable and unique content, your visitors will click through to the eBay listings.

From there, eBay evaluates your traffic based on things like exit patterns and rate-of-sale, and then pays you a commission for generating a lead.

Why It’s Different

Now, you might be thinking – “wait, this is just like any other affiliate program.” It’s not. The eBay Partner Network is dramatically different in that it offers dynamic, up-to-the minute content and your paid based on more than just clicks and sales.

Compared to other affiliate programs, eBay offers dynamic content – rather than just static links to items or services. For example, if you blog about knitting, you may have links to several books or videos about knitting. This may work and it may not. With eBay though, your links will have a better chance of being the popular, leading source on your topic. With our example, the eBay listings should offer a more realistic view of what the world is buying in terms of knitting books or videos or materials.

That’s a big difference than your old-fashioned affiliate program. It offers you content that changes as the world changes.

Also, with the eBay Partner Network, you’re paid on the quality of traffic you send to eBay. If you’re sending quality, engaged and active visitors to eBay, you will make more. If you’re sending less-engaged and less active visitors, you’ll make less even though you might send more.

Conclusion

The eBay Partner Network is revolutionizing Internet Marketing. You don’t have to worry any more about creating headlines or catchy descriptions. You don’t have to touch tangible goods or sell them from your closet. In fact, you don’t sell or touch the transaction in any way.

To me, that’s great – because I’m busy and if I wanted to sell on eBay, that’s what I would be doing. Even still, I can utilize the resources and tap into the vast amount of wealth out there without even being involved.

There are always the essentials. The must-do’s. The absolutes. The things you must do or see before you do or see something else. Blogging is no different.

When you start a blog, there are some things you must know and do before you actually START the blog. Buying a domain, finding a platform and topic aside, I’ve compiled what I think is a list of 7 articles you must read before you start your blog.

The 7 Deadly Sins of Blogging

Before you know what you should do, you should definitely know what you should not do. This is a comprehensive list of blogging no-no’s. Memorize them now.

Blogging Tips for Beginners

Darren Rowse at ProBlogger shares this newbie guide. Don’t be embarrassed, no, don’t be stupid — read this post if you’re new to blogging. For that matter, read it even if you’re not. In here is a great list of tips and how-to’s for beginning bloggers.

100+ Lists To Help You Become a Better Blogger

You think this list is helpful? Try this one. This post covers profit making, traffic, SEO, design and more. You’ll get lost – which is a good thing. Knowledge is Power.

7 Elements to Make Your Blog Look Great

An important part of a blog is its presentation. If your blog looks great and offers great content, then readers will come back. The people at ProBlogDesign can fill you in on the fundamentals of good blog design.

30 Ways to Increase Readability

Oops, wait. If you have a blog and you have good content, your readers better be able to read it and navigate it. Check this post to make sure your blog is fundamentaly readable.

9 Tips to Start Blogging

Another ProBlogger post that will help you get started. This post covers everything from crafting your URL’s to content to emotional advice when you start a blog.

15 Essential Checks Before Launching Your Website

Don’t miss this one. If you’re going to make your site live, check off this list before you get started – you won’t regret it.

19 Strategies for Finding Readers

Once you gte the blog and once you’ve made it live – let’s make sure you can get some readers, right? Here’s a hint: Content is King.

There’s much ado about the power of social networking and what it can do for your business, your blog and everything else in general. The dark secret though is that, to steal a phrase, there’s much ado about nothing.

A new study from a marketing research firm shows that most of the messages on Twitter are “pointless babble.” Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and all the others are undoubtedly similar.

From an honest perspective, most people use social networking for just that – social networking. A good number of Twitter and Facebook users are engaged in pointless nonsense and accomplish nothing important. Some, however, have managed to go viral with promotion and marketing creating the assumption that everyone can harness the power of social networking to achieve greatness.

In a sense, this is true; in another, it’s not.

Social Networking Can Push You To The Top

You can push thousands of visitors to you blog, or create countless new customers through retweets and wall posts. You can, but you probably will not.

Forbes.com recently profiled a company – Ernst & Young – that hires 3,000 new employees, all college graduates, via a Facebook Group. This is just one example of companies and individuals who have been successful in one way or another at using social networking to accomplish some goal.

What’s the Secret?

We know it’s possible to go viral on Twitter or Facebook or YouTube, but you need to know how to do it. The secret is simple.

Really simple.

Content.

If you want everyone to know your name and want all your followers to retweet, then offer something valuable. Web users that are looking for answers or tips or some kind of information are gone if you don’t offer it to them in two or three clicks.

With Facebook and Twitter, it takes even less to lose one’s attention span because traffic is so targeted.

If your information, service or entertainment is worth while, then people will use it, share it and promote it. If it’s not, then too bad.

The Ugly Truth

The sum of the equation then is this: Social networks are mere mediums for original content. If you’re not offering high quality, in-demand material – then Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and the Crown Prince of Egypt will do you no good.

What do you offer? That’s the question. What can you bring to the table that’s new or different?

Let me know if social networking has worked for you.

We talk a lot about how to make money with blogging or how you can, but rarely is it mentioned how you can’t or why you can’t make money blogging.

Sometimes you can’t. Some people can’t. If you can’t, then it’s probably you’re fault. Sorry to be blunt, but end-user error is the cause of the problem 9 out of 10 times.

Sonia Simone over at Copyblogger has a good post about why you can’t make money blogging. In her post, Simone points out a few reasons or causes as to why bloggers can’t make money online.

• They’re entertainers
• They don’t solve problems
• There is no value
• They think it’s a game

If you’re not making money, I suggest you check out the post and find out why you’re having trouble.

Note though, there is a difference between not making money because you’re doing something wrong and not making money because you haven’t been doing the right things long enough.

It takes time

There are tons of ads, testimonials and bloggers out there promising that you can get rich instantly, even tonight if you sign up now. That’s just not true.

Blogging for money takes time. It’s just like any business. You’re going to get out of it whatever you put into it. Stay up late, get up early and do the right things.

It also takes effort

Merely putting a few words together and posting them up isn’t blogging. You really need to provide some sort of advice, service or help. Simone says “solve problems.” In other words, do something.

You can try to cheat your way to the top, but you’re going to have to get lucky. If you want to really make money blogging, then really offer something worth money.

When you’re blogging, it’s important to have the right resources at hand. You wouldn’t try to build a house without a hammer and nails, right?

Here is what you’ll need to start and run your blog, no matter your level of experience.

• Topic/Information
• Platform
• Design
• Monetization Tools

Using these four items above, you will be able to build and run your blog all from the comfort of your sofa.

Topic/Information

Well, you need something to write about, right? Content is king. What you write about it the most important aspect of your blog. You can have all the SEO experts, tips and tricks at your disposal, the best design and the best domain and you will not get anywhere without good content.

Pick carefully your topic and make sure it’s broad, but not too broad. Be specific, but not too specific. Be vague, but not too vague. Wait, I’m kind of being vague now.

What I’m trying to say is – make sure your topic includes enough information, but make sure it’s specific enough to target an audience. This blog, for example, is about blogging. Within that topic, there are sub niches – like design, monetization, advertising and well, blogging.

Platform

A platform to blog from is also very important. In order to blog, you’ll need a blog. Personally, I run a self-hosted version of Wordpress. That cost me some money though. You’ll need a domain and hosting to do this. You can get a free version of Wordpress too. You can also get a free version of blogger.

When picking your platform, take into account your topic. Also consider the depth of your blogging and how much you might want to customize on your blog. Free platforms come with limitations. But, if you’re just looking to throw up some ads and write for fun, that might be for you.

Design

Your blog design is very important. Everyone says “don’t judge a book by its cover” but everyone does. Your blog needs to look reputable. It also needs to present your personality.

Make your blog real and trustable. If you want people to return, then you will want to have a professional and presentable blog.

That doesn’t mean simple though. You can have a blog with lots of flare and spice – if that fits your topic. Take into account what you’re blogging about, who your audience is and what you want to say to people when picking a design.

Monetization Tools

Perhaps, this is the most important part. That is, if you’re looking to make money with your blog. There are several different ways to make money blogging.

These include Ads and Affiliate Programs. Both are effective and both are good to use. This blog uses both.

Ads like banner ads and text ads are usually paid per click. A visitor clicks on the link and goes through to another website. These ads are minimal in margin, but people make thousands of dollars a month from them. The best ad program to use is Google Adsense, but you can also try Text Link Ads.

Affiliate programs usually pay more, but also usually require a result on the other end of the link. For example, a visitor clicks on an affiliate ad and goes through to another site, but before you get paid – the visitor has to sign up or buy something. For affiliate programs, I use Clickbank and Commission Junction.