Internet Multifunctioning

Blogging for profit has increased in popularity since its inception. The irony is that the original blogs were not at all designed with profit in mind. They were meant to be primarily informational and hopefully entertaining, well some of them wanted to be entertaining. The original blogs were essentially logs of articles that could be found about particular subjects or interests online. The real beauty of the original blogs is that they were excellent resources to some quite obscure information that might have otherwise been overlooked or missed in the research process (not all good information has been optimized for Google or other search engines).

The idea of blogging for profit, while not entirely new has taken on new meaning in the last couple of years. Gone are the days when Google ruled the roost. There are other monetizing options for today’s blogs and today’s bloggers. Many blogs are turning towards information marketing, affiliate programs, and other Google alternatives such as Chitika eMiniMalls, Amazon, and yahoo for starters. Each of these options offers something attractive to those who have either been spurned by Google or find themselves dismayed by their slow progress.

Google is probably the most popular service for monetizing blogs. It is also a stickler for strict adherence, which is not necessarily a bad thing if you’ve managed to understand all the rules. You really need to take your time and read and understand everything fully about Google before signing up. I will say that while I have had some degree of success with Google, I am not really making enough money by Google alone to make it worthwhile, particularly with the rather high minimum payout rate. To each his or her own however, and I’m sure that many of you will find Google more than adequate for your blog monetizing needs.

Of the many, I’ve heard mixed reviews on Chitika eMiniMalls. This is one that really does need to reach a targeted market. I have a gadget blog that I have found some degree of success with these particular adds on while these ads did not fare as well in some of my other blogs. The general opinion about Chitika is that it works well if the ads are targeted to your audience. If you are dealing with techies and have articles about iPods and PDAs you will do better than if you are targeting tired housewives. However, Chitika isn’t limited to gadgets, they have other ads as well. See if any of their ads fit into your niche before writing them off. I also recommend a few weeks of trying and playing around with ad placement before deciding against them as well. You only need to have earned $10 in order to receive a payout from them unlike Google and you can use these (provided you follow the rules set forth-check the website for details) along with Google ads on your site.

The important thing to remember when monetizing your blog is that you are not limited to one or two options, you have many. Check them all out, play around with them and see which options can be used in conjunction with other similar options. You just might be surprised at how much more money you can earn by choosing the underdog.

There are many ways to make money online but you’ve got to get out there and do it. The seven techniques described below can get you off to a good start, so get busy.

1. If you have a website or blog, you are probably familiar with Adsense. This is one of the easiest ways to make money online. You merely add a short bit of code to your site and Google will post ads that are related to the content. Each time someone clicks on an ad, you make money. It is among the easiest and maintenance free ways to sell advertising space online. Google does all the work and you collect the checks.

2. Although Adsense is the best-known advertiser, there are other services that perform similar services. Yahoo! Publisher Network works like Adsense and is a good alternative to Google’s program. And like Adsense, you make money each time someone clicks on one of the ads.

3. Chitika is another service that can make you money. Based on your site’s content, Chitika will automatically place ads for related products on your website or blog. When people buy products through your ads, you collect a commission and make money. The earnings you make through Chitika can be deposited directly into your PayPal account.

4. Amazon works similar to Chitika. By entering a bit of code, they will automatically place related ads on your site. Amazon has very broad list of products that they offer.

5. If you have developed your own product or service, you can sell it through your website or blog. It is quite easy to set this up. You do not need a merchant account or complicated checkout procedure; these services are readily available and quite inexpensive.

6. Set up an affiliate account with Clickbank to sell digital products. Clickbank has over 10,000 products to choose from so you are sure to find something that you can promote. This is a very popular and potentially profitable option. You only job is to send visitors to the product sales page. When someone makes a purchase, you get paid.

7. Email marketing has become very popular and is a great way to make money. You can develop a list by offering a free report to anyone who subscribes to your list. Then you can email them about special products and deals that you are promoting. With a good list, you can expect to make about one dollar a month for each subscriber in your list.

We’ve discussed about using Google Adsense and other merchants’ affiliate programs to generate profits from your blog. However, here are even more options to monetize your blog.

The first option we’ll be looking at is Chitika. What is Chitika you ask? Chitika is a very innovative contextual advertising program because it can serve very detailed advertisements to your blog that fit perfectly with your blog theme. For example, on your technological gadget blog, Chitika will show advertisements for tech gadgets such as iPods. They show them in different tabs: one for “Best Deals”, another for “Details”, another for “Reviews” and so on. This way, it is more of an informational section for your visitor rather than a blatant advertisement, and naturally the click-through will be higher. You can apply at chitika.com

You can also be an affiliate for Amazon.com. Amazon offers a wide range of products but its predominant niche is in physical books. And, like Adsense, you can select Ad blocks that display products that fit your blog perfectly. Whatever your niche is about, you can probably find a book about it on Amazon.com. Keep in mind though, they do NOT pay big bucks. You can refer visitors to them and earn up to 10% commission. It’s not a lot but if you can manage to refer big volumes of visitors, Amazon is for you. This program really shines when it comes to the ways you can refer visitors: you can use their predefined templates to pull up recent items that match a certain criteria you set, you can target your ad to show a specific item on sale or you can just simply weave your referral links into your blog posts. Every dime helps so join their Associate program if you are into selling hard and soft cover books.

Last, but definitely not least, you can sell advertising space on your blog if your blog is truly popular. Just take a look at blogs like: xiaxue.blogspot.com. That blog receives over 10,000 pageviews every day and naturally merchants will want to strike a deal with the blog’s owner to post their advertisements there. If you manage to pull in huge amounts of traffic like that blog, you can definitely get people to buy ad space on your blog for prices from $150/month upwards, depending on your blog popularity.

To gauge how many pageviews and visitors you get everyday, just use the free tool available at statcounter.com. They have a very detailed setup guide there so I won’t go into it.

If your blog has not acquired a large amount of visitors yet, you can still sell ad space on your blog on a per click or per impression basis. Just visit sites like: adbrite.com. For a complete list of these sites, visit: performancing.com.

This is just one in a 6 part series that should help you drive readers to your blog and maximize earnings and profits from your blog! Yes, it is possible to quit your day job through blogging. All that stands between you and freedom is working smarter, and sometimes harder, towards your goal. It’s a balance. Eventually, after you have worked harder, you will be able to work smarter.

I edit 15 blogs. It took 6 months of learning and working harder before I was able to work smarter and begin making extra income.

I did not jump on every offer and rejected those marketers who claimed I could make overnight riches with no work on my part. In fact, I have spent less than $100.00! You can do this too!