If you have been surfing the internet, you have probably seen many sites that claim they make lots of money with their blog. Some will suggest, that If you buy their ebook, they will tell you how you can get rich, with a blog, too.
Today’s Lesson
Making money by blogging, is not something that happens overnight.
Granted, it is very easy to get a blog. Some are even free.
But, before you can earn money with blogging, you first need to get your blog discovered.
As for how many visitors you need to earn decent money from your blog, unfortunately, the numbers are high….in the tens of thousands. This is not an easy feat. Plus, you need to sustain that type of readership, in order to see a steady income.
It also depends on the audience you are writing for.
Computer savvy readers, and bloggers, rarely click on ads.
If you are using Google AdSense, your ads match your content. Some ads pay more than others. The amount you receive from a click, may be only a few cents. Although high paying keywords may get you higher paying targeted ads, if you sacrifice your content, for the ads, your readership will suffer.
If you use affiliate marketing or referral ads, you don’t make a dime, unless someone places a order by clicking on a link in your website. What’s to stop a reader from going directly to the site? Nothing.
If you do a product review, and suggest that someone buys a product. There is no guarantee they will click on the link on your site to buy it. They may go to their favorite store and find the product.
With blogging, you want longevity.
It’s the older bloggers that are seeing financial success. They all started out the same as everyone else. But….they also started years ago when readers were not “blind” to ads.
Due to ad blindness, and the ability for readers to block ads, financial rewards may come slower to new bloggers.
If you are looking for a way to make money quick, blogging may not be the avenue to pursue.
Earlier, I wrote an article about how others made millions. It wasn’t with blogging, although having a website is essential. To read more, here’s a link.
Today’s Assignment
Do you think your blog will sustain the test of time, and generate a decent income for you?
Would you like to become a problogger (blog, as a profession)?
If you have been blogging for a period of time, what is giving you the most satisfaction? The money? The comments? Other?
When you think about, even the successful bloggers do not make that much money. I believe some of the top blogs make about $2~300K or so, but many cases they have staffs/ employees helping them (e.g. Techcrunch), so by dividing it up among everyone involved, it is not that much. (Yes, it is a lot, but does not make you a millionaire) And there are only a handful of blogs that are successful to that level. And to be so successful, you have to become a full-time, maintaining blog is a lot of work.
So when there are other priorities in lives, blogging goes down the priority list…. I am really struggling to find time these days to keep going. I can not wait for the end-of-year holiday seasons to catch up, because I will be working through Thanksgiving…
You’re right Asako,
Blogging is time consuming. Life happens, and oftentimes, a blog is not at the top of your list of priorities.
And yes, with the staff that big name blogs maintain, even though they may have huge earnings, as with any business, as a blog grows, so does the overhead.
Take the rich out of the art, and the money will follow. If it doesn’t, enjoy it for it’s own sake anyway.
by Marion TD Lewis author The Divorce Saloon (http://www.marionlewisesq.blogspot.com)