Guest post by Michael Belk
The Learning Curve:
Hi my name is Michael, I am like any other blogger who wants a successful content rich blog “weblog”. I want to be successful so bad that I spend every waking hour writing or marketing my blog.
Some more veteran; more established blog authors will tell you blog marketing is key to a blog’s success. I have bought into their program.
I work a normal eight hour shift at my job but I spend most of my night thinking about how I can improve my blog. For example, I am writing this article even though I know I have other tasks to accomplish before work.
I understand my life could be more exciting if I did more social things with my friends, but to be quite honest I feel like friends will be there. If my friends are not there in the end, I hate to say it but I will make new ones in my pursuit to be a successful blog author.
Blog Marketing: The Sea of Information Overload
I am going to tell you the many methods you can learn to market your blog. I am not claiming to be an authority or a magical blog marketing artist, but I will share with you the various methods I have tried.
For starters, I tried many different blog platforms and some of them were easy. I must tell you easy and free is not always the way to approach your blog if you are as serious about earning a sufficient amount of income from blogging. I believe you should use the free platforms to get your feet wet. However, if you want advertisers calling you then you should always learn new methods of blog design, article formatting, blog marketing, networking, branding, and anything that has to do with reaching your goals.
My journey with blogs
I am a casual blog publisher. My journey goes back about three years with an experiment in article writing. I am not mentioning any names because I do not want to brand bash anyone, but I wrote articles for a particular company and I was motivated at first and I was spending a too much of my time writing articles. I thought about marketing but it was not my focus. I made a log to monitor my progress. I wrote down my article views, answered all emails, monitored the income growth, and I tracked all variables associated with the growth of my articles.
At first it was easy for me, since I had no other life. I noticed that I was receiving a small amount of interest in my articles and I felt that article growth was not adequate for the amount of time I was contributing towards my articles, so about 6 months later I reconsidered my goal focus. I no longer wrote articles but since I had intellectual rights to my articles I was compensated in small dollar amounts. I still have articles on this website but I have not written any articles for years.
Although I was not as successful as I planned to be, I learned a lot about article formatting, marketing, business, and I learned not to put all my eggs in one basket.
The journey continues:
I am telling you about my fails so it may help someone else along the way. I recognize there are other ways of arriving at the same goal but everybody’s path to “blog” stardom is not the same. Be patient with me while I share with you my faults. I know there will be people that will say I approached blogging the wrong way, but we learn from our mistakes and that is what ultimately makes us successful.
My next venture was a little more direct. I used the blogger platform because it was free, popular, easy, and it quick to set up. I later found out those reasons to launch a well respected blog were deceiving me into thinking success was easy. I had a blog in literally minutes. The World could now read my most inner thoughts and visitors could possibly learn what I was thinking about. I tried many different niches, my first “brilliant” idea was relationship consulting.
I quickly found out I was not the supreme authority on relationship consulting. I received compliments on my blog design, but a beautiful designed website does not ensure income. I even got some relationship comments.
The problem was not my effort, it was my passion. I did not have the experience, knowledge, or passion to offer sound relationship advice. I was so happy to be accepted into Google’s ad program that I thought the money would come. I made .84 cents in three months. I was devastated, but for some reason I could not get the success bug off my back. I continued to look for any money making opportunity out there.
The Ebay Experiment:
I realize an Ebay store is not blogging but the marketing principles are very similar. The Ebay platform uses keywords and you have to sell yourself to the customer as well as your merchandise. This is not brand bashing of Ebay. I mention them because they were part of my journey to become a successful blogger.
I opened a store with Ebay and I was initially excited because it was not blogging. I have always considered myself to be a natural seller, because we all sell everyday when we give movie reviews or when we give shopping tips. The bad thing about this kind of selling we receive no compensation for our efforts.
At first, I sold everything I had, somethings were new and some things were in high demand. When I finished cleaning out my closets I was struggling trying to find more merchandise. I opened a business with the state. I legalized my business by obtaining a business license so I could buy from wholesalers. I wasted more money with the wholesalers because they charged me fees to belong to their network. They provided with an access to more merchandise and they drop shipped to my customers.
This really excited me because it freed from stocking inventory. Drop shipping is great but you still have to pay for this service. My profits were being eaten up in fees and shipping costs. I hardly made any money. I sometimes lost money when it was all said and done. I quickly decided to exit this money making strategy.
Back to the Basics:
I went back to an old familiar friend, blogging. By this time I learned about a platform that was suppose to be more dynamic and easier. I avoided the WordPress platform because I knew it was free and I had another learning curve to conquer. I still felt free platforms could be disastrous. I finally asked myself what did I have to lose if it was free and then I heard the better version was a self-hosted WordPress blog.
I told myself this has to be a better route because it forced me to invest in myself. I have always believed in my own efforts so I decided to try. I am currently using this platform and I made more investments in the web design. I ran into a problem right away.
My web designer and I decided my domain name was not a search term. I immediately abandoned the domain name and I went through three more domain names. I paid for each one until we decided on my current domain name. My web designer gave me this idea I laughed at him at first but, the more I said the name to myself it started to have an appeal. Thanks again, Collins!
Recovery: The right path?
I have am still using this platform and I have a good web host company. I like the web host company because they offer unlimited bandwidth and they have an excellent customer service. They are open twenty four hours a day so a night owl like me can call them with any hosting related questions. As you can see my path has not been easy, but I left off some of my efforts to save you from boredom.
Lesson Learned:
I learned that writing How-To articles can be successful but you need to have a marketing plan first and make sure you are adequately paid for your efforts. I do not discourage anyone from trying this method, just be prepared for a long term strategy. If I had put more effort and time in this method I would have been successful but I do not have time to play.
I do discourage anyone from using free web hosting platforms. There are several disadvantages to free services, they make you use their domain names. That can be a real negative if you want to be taken serious by your visitors/customers. If the companies change any of their services or the way you can use them, you will have no say in your website.
I can not express this enough take it from someone that has used both methods. I will be honest when I see a free website, I use them with caution and they usually are not written very well. I am not speaking to the ones that dedicate their time to improving their websites, but you should know when your content is poorly written.
I encourage you to always market your blogs, I plug my blog whenever I can. Make your social sites promote your site, use an email signature with you blog URL, join forums, guest post, comment on other blogs, cross promote your other articles, use videos, join dedicated nings (something new to me), install commentluv plugin, use good seo, and you should do anything that promotes your blog.
You should have an exit strategy in case you decide 0n the wrong niche. Pick a niche you are passionate about or one that you can research. People hate doing proper research, but if you can provide them with facts they will probably read your content.
Tell me about your path to “blog” stardom. Share the techniques that have helped you the most.
Michael currently writes a pet related blog at 4LegCelebrity. He often writes on topics that can help other bloggers promote their blogs. Michael believes that blog marketing is the same for all niches. He is a strong net worker in social media channels. He can be found at Facebook.com/michaelbelk and twitter.com/mibelk.
About Guest Author
Thank for specifying and clarifying the basics. Its been great to know about that it is very necessary to do blog marketing if one consists a blog.
That was my reason for Sharing. Be it anything, my ideas, my posts or my blog, when it comes to marketing, i feel i still need to learn more tricks of the trade. Thanks Fria, I hope you did learn from my experience. I’m a part-time blogger, too, but I’m a lot newer at it.
Great post Michael. Blog marketing is a tedious task. However, its very rewarding especially if you’re generating a lot of income from it. Participating in Social Media sites will also help you with your marketing efforts. It will bring tons of traffic to your site and helps you bring up your Search Engine Rankings.
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
That is so true Jarrod, I have been playing around with Stumbleupon today and I have gotten crazy traffic. Good Luck.
4legcelebrity recently posted..Dogs and Relationships | Has your social life gone to the dogs?
Blog Marketing is never easy and people especially the bloggers are already aware of it…Am I right??This post really helps…
Tannya recently posted..How to Deal With The Xbox 360 3 Red Ring Problem
Thanks for sharing the experience of your own life that assists the beginners like me to learn about the proper way of blog writing. I am obliged to read the information I have waited since a long time. Being a blogger, it is essential to well aware of the all strategies as well as ideas shared by you.
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks for commenting, I wish you luck.
Michael Belk recently posted..Why do celebrities use small dogs as accessories?
This is very fascinating Michael. Bloggers who wants to become successful in their career should get to know this. I’m planning to venture on a career on blogging and following your tips is one good way to start.
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks Tony, I am glad my article has helped you, keep on pushing and perfecting your blog.
Michael Belk recently posted..How to control a dog skin irritation?
I’m a part-time blogger, too, but I’m a lot newer at it. Your journey is very enlightening to someone just getting started. I elected to use WordPress after I got over being intimidated by the plethora of updates, plug-ins, widgets, etc. It’s actually pretty user-friendly and I’ve been learning by doing.
Right now, I’m working on getting up a nice set of posts, and hoping that someday I can make a living at blogging.
I like your advice about not getting stuck in the wrong niche – I’ll definitely keep that in mind!
Great article!
Mary Frumkin recently posted..Simple Steps for Creating an RSS feed for your Word Press Blog
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Marry, There is a lot of hope, you can do it. My blog is making good progress. The things you learn will be helpful. I will help anybody that needs it, do not hesitate to ask. Thanks for commenting.
Michael Belk recently posted..How to control a dog skin irritation?
Hi Michael…I have learned a lot from your experience and I hope more people will read this as well…Thanks!
Gaiye recently posted..A few tips on choosing an aquarium canopy
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks Gaiye you are too kind. That was my reason for Sharing.
Michael Belk recently posted..Discovery of Dog Arthritis
Twitter: Janis167
says:
Well everything on the Internet is similar, keywords are everywhere and everything is interconnected :)
Zogs recently posted..Droši žogi
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
You are so right, thanks for commenting.
Michael Belk recently posted..How to control a dog skin irritation?
Thank you so very much to share your golden experience. It really helpful for blog marketing and of-course the things to do’s and dont’s. Once again thank you Michael
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thank You Tessa, Your words are encouraging.
Michael Belk recently posted..Immoral or Not my problem? Disease caused by pet over population
We all know that marketing is never easy and I think, this post can really help…
Fria recently posted..software for affiliate marketing
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks Fria, I hope you did learn from my experience.
Michael Belk recently posted..How to control a dog skin irritation?
Thanks for sharing your experience about thing what to do and what we should not do, I think being a blogger I’m not much good in marketing as I know blogging but when it comes to marketing I feel I need to learn more to sell products and getting popular
I liked your whole idea about blog marketing tips and tricks.
Roger Jignesh Parekh recently posted..Omega VRT350 Heavy Duty Dual-Stage Vertical Single Auger Low Speed Juicer Review
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thank You for commenting, marketing is a difficult lane.
Michael Belk recently posted..How to control a dog skin irritation?
Thanks a lot for your detailed and sincere experience sharing. Your story can be an example how to act and how not to act. I think we can find very nice points to consider in your post.
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks DiNarRa that is what I wanted to accomplish. Thanks for commenting.
Michael Belk recently posted..Immoral or Not my problem? Disease caused by pet over population
I am going through this same thing man, so I feel ya and couldn’t agree with you more
Caleb recently posted..Blogging For Beginners
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Hey Thanks, Caleb I am glad you enjoyed it. Stay strong.
Michael Belk recently posted..Immoral or Not my problem? Disease caused by pet over population
Hmmm… blog marketing, two difficult words – combined it results one hard thing to do. I remember trying to do blog marketing with a few blogs, didn’t have too much luck but it was really fine. Though, I invested a lot of money and time in the blogs, products, SEO and advertising but it was too much for me so I stopped and took a pause with them. It’s really nice and helpful to read these great tips on blog marketing, I find out a lot of useful things and maybe I will re-launch my blogs and start doing some money. Thanks for sharing!
Amit recently posted..Get a Forklift License
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Thanks, this really tells me that everybody struggles with this subject. Marketing is no easy task. I think we understand blogging but we forget about marketing our words in the proper format, that is why pay people to help us.
Michael Belk recently posted..Traveling with a Dog: Truck bed accidents
I think many bloggers have a similar story. In fact, I went through much of the same path as you did trying out the free blogging platform, dipping my feet into article writing and even a bit of ecommerce before I went to a self hosted blog. Currently, I am also blogging in my after work hours and really enjoying the topics that I am blogging about.
Richard recently posted..nRelate Review: A Better Related Post Plugin
Twitter: bloggersethics
says:
I had always been very very bad at marketing. Be it anything, my ideas, my posts or my blog, when it comes to marketing, i feel i still need to learn more tricks of the trade.
One thing that really work wonders, as you mentioned in the post, is using blog URL in signature. People do get curious when they see a blog link and are compelled to click the link
Thanks for the share Micheal.
tushar recently posted..This One Way You Will Never Run Out of Blog Post Ideas
Twitter: Life2Learning
says:
Hey Tushar, Thanks for taking the time to comment. You are so right I think we all need help in marketing, but the key is to never stop trying because things get better as we know better.
Michael Belk recently posted..Discovery of Dog Arthritis
Great post Michael.Learn lot of new things from it.New bloggers also can learn from this post.Thanks for sharing such a great post.
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