Easy Ways to Monetize and Improve your Blog

The difference though, between a blog and a website, is the interaction that ignites between the blogger and his/her audience, often generating hundreds and sometimes thousands of responses on a single topic.

Because blogging has become something of the norm these days, with 1.4 new blogs created per second , there’s a greater demand for bloggers new to the “blogosphere” to become well-versed in how to craft engaging content that will generate responses, traffic, and ultimately put more cash in their pockets. Yes, just like in the real world, there’s money to be made in blogging.

And while there tons of sites out there willing to bend over backwards to offer up information on how to do just that, the SEOmoz site seems to be the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to handing out blog-friendly advice.

Create a “Voice”

In order to maintain a steady readership, it helps to write with a voice that will appeal to readers. The blog audience wants to read something they can relate to emotionally, something that will spark their interest and keep them coming back to participate in discussion. This is extremely helpful for corporations, because their blogs give them the opportunity to humanize the otherwise anonymous corporate executive trying to promote their business.

Make it Easy, Make it Pretty

Adding a simple picture or video to a blog post is enough to draw the reader in, and hold their interest long enough to read the entire post. Be sure the blog is easily navigable by placing “Next” or “Previous” links at the bottom of the page so they can read more. This easier the reader can read the content, the better.

Reach Out to the Blogging Community

Browse blog search engines like Technorati and Google Blog Search to find out what bloggers in a certain field are blogging about. Commenting on another blog with similar content opens up a lot of doors for bloggers looking to swap links, because if they get a good relationship going with another blogger, they can use each other to maximize traffic.

Submit to Blog Directories

Blog directories are a useful way for people to discover good content. By submitting a blog to blog directories like Bloggapedia, BlogCatalog, or DMOZ, there’s a good chance someone will stumble upon it.

Keyword Research

Identify popular keywords associated with the subject of the blog. For instance, if the blog is health-centered, search “health” in either WordTracker, Google Ad Words, or Google Trends, and a good list of what keywords people are using to search for that topic pops up. This allows the blogger to see which keywords are being looked up the most, and how they can utilize that in their content, titles, and meta tags.

Monetizing a Blog

Before money comes into play, bloggers should consider whether or not they have strategies to generate timely and engaging content, as well as how to attract new members to their blogging community. After a strong readership has been established, there are a few ways to make a little dough.

• Banner advertising: When sponsors pay bloggers a monthly fee to display their banners
• Affiliate advertising: When a blogger gets a cut for each transaction their banner inspires.
• Pay Per Click: After setting up an account with Google Ad Words or Yahoo! Publisher Network, they send snippets of code to insert in the blog and display ads related to the content published. Bloggers then get paid for each click. (Never click on the ads though, bloggers can be banished from the entire payment network).
• Sponsored Blog Posts: When individuals in the same field of the blogger pay them to post about their product. Usually the product is somewhat related to the blogger’s field of expertise.
• Text Link Ads: Contextual ads are placed within a blog post by a service like Text Link Ads, without the blogger having to make any changes to the code. An example would be if someone were writing about travel, the blogger might mention “cheap flights” which would link to a flight advertisement.

Also, here’s a list of useful sites to keep in mind when moving forward with a blog.

• Copyblogger
• SEOmoz
• Daily Blogger Tips
• Problogger

Blogging is one of the easiest ways to reach the masses online, and can add a great deal of value to small business start-ups and organizations. These, of course are only baby steps a blogger can take to alter or monetize their blog. It takes time and effort to get a decent blog up and running, and most of the time the tricks of the trade are learned along the way.