1. Life in the blog lane…

2. What is the mission of the site you are going to create? What will you
be writing about? What is your passion? What is your expertise? What
do you want your readers to come away with after visiting your site?
Social Good Product Review
Food & Recipe Home Décor & Organization
Travel Parenting & Baby
Crafts & DIY Education
Humor Business & Business Skills
Fashion & Beauty Marketing & Sales
Health & Fitness Technology
Memoir Social Media
Product Review Local Living
Personal Finance Lifestyle
Coupon & Money Savings Relationships
Green, Organic, Earth Friendly American Made
Books Scrapbooking

3. Blogging is a marathon, not a sprint. If you are willing to take the
journey you could follow your passion, have a great time and
make money along the way.
How many hours do you spend on blog related items?
“6-8 hours online every day”
“on average 8 hours a day”
“10-12 hours per day”
“6-8 hours, 6 days per week”
“40 hours per week”
“at least 5 hours every day”
“usually 7 hours a day”
“10-12 hours per day”

4. Promoting blog posts
Responding to blog comments
Networking / Finding your tribe
Visiting other web sites and leave comments
Engage with others on Facebook & Twitter
Analyzing traffic, keywords and engagement
Attending blogging conferences, local events and niche events
Creating and updating a media kit
Pitching yourself to brands (selectively)
Following up!

5. Why are you writing your blog? Is it for free stuff? Is it for money? Is it
for your family? Is it for personal satisfaction?
Is free product enough for you to write a sponsored post or do a product
review? Would you write a blog post for a chance to win something? Are
unpaid opportunities such as attending press junket, speaking at a
conference or doing a celebrity interview worth your time?
Know what to you is worth the time and effort.
Know that it is okay to say no.
Value your time and your choices wisely.

6. Affiliate Links:
You can input links in your posts or ads on your site directly to a product
available for purchase. You will then get a small portion of the sale made
off of the direct link through your blog. This works especially well for
craft, food and fashion/beauty blogs. Popular affiliate programs include:
Pepperjam, eBay Partner Network, Amazon, Shareasale, Linkshare and
Commission Junction.
Advertising Networks:
Place advertisements and/or text links on your site. Higher traffic
typically means more people will click on the link, therefore getting you
more revenue from the Ad. Examples include: Google Adwords, Federate
Media, BlogHer, Lifetime Moms, Glam Network and Food Buzz Network.
YouTube:
If you create Vlogs you can also earn revenue in a similar way to an
advertising network by placing ads on your site. YouTube’s advertising
network is by invite only.

7. Sponsored posts: *
This happens when you are paid to write a post about a product or
service. Sponsored posts are done authentically and attribution is made
to the company. You must disclose in your post or on your site when you
are paid to write sponsored posts.
eBook sales
Newsletter advertising
Freelance writing
Social media consulting
Brand Ambassadorships
Note: Though the terms are often used in conjunction, sponsored posts and product reviews are
not the same. Sponsored posts are just that, sponsored by a company. Product reviews are
when you are given a product to try out and write about without compensation or obligation

8. Secure a unique domain name:
Watch for alternate spellings or misspellings. Be careful of trademarks.
Also, consider buying those alternate spelling or misspelling domains too
and pointing them to your site. Make sure that you can get a Twitter handle
that corresponds with either your “real” name or your blog name.
Use Your Own Host:
A self-hosted Wordpress blog holds more weight an has multiple advantages
over competitors. Some examples of companies for self-hosting are
Hostmonster, Hostgator and BlueHost. You can also purchase your domain
directly through the host (so you don’t have to have it transferred over in
order to begin using it).
Use Wordpress:
Once you have selected a host and domain, create your website in
Wordpress rather than Blogger or Typepad. Google recognizes Wordpress
sites much faster than Blogger and with Wordpress you can have more
creative control over your site. While Blogger is simpler to use for beginners
many bloggers end up transferring their blogs from Blogger to Wordpress for
those reasons so consider beginning with Wordpress in the first place.

9. Use Interesting Post Titles
Consider your blog’s color scheme, logo and other branding
Consider using photography and embedding videos for visual
engagement
Tell a story
Be conversational / Ask questions
Use full disclosure
Use keywords and SEO terms in your posts and on photos
Practice. Practice. Practice.

10. RSS feed: Really Simple Syndication (eg: Feedblitz)
Social media: Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram
Post submission sites (eg: Stumbleupon, Reddit)
Press releases
Newsletters
Link-ups, Blog hops, Linky’s
Meme’s & Blog carnivals

11. http://bloggybootcamp.com/
http://typeaparent.com/conference
http://blogher.com
http://reviewersretreat.com
http://digitalfamilysummit.com
http://bloggyconference.com
http://beblogalicious.com
http://savvybloggingsummit.com/
http://dad2summit.com/
For a full list, keep checking back at:
http://www.momcentral.com/fun-events

12. Blogging for profit is a marathon, not a sprint.
Be persistent.
Be professional.
Be practical.
Be yourself.
Enjoy the journey.