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Today, special guest blogger Gabe Young of Free Blog Help dot Com explodes the top 5 money-making myths running rampant through the blogosphere. Gabe has a very strong background in Information Technology, and and MBA. In short, he’s an authority, and very much worth reading.
Top 5 myths of blogging for money
By Gabe Young
If only it were so easy!
There’s just so much information (and misinformation) on the web today, how do we sort through all the garbage and find the real useful stuff that will actually help us earn an income by blogging? Let’s set the record straight on some common myths.
Top 5 myths of blogging for money
- You can get rich quick. Not at all! In fact, it’s the opposite. If you poured your heart and soul and every waking moment of your day into blog for a month straight, you would probably making more money flipping burgers during that same time. Whether you plan on being a full-timer or a hobbyist, your blog site is still a business, one that requires nurturing and time to grow. In the long run, you will out-earn a short-order cook but it will take plenty of time on your part.
- It is easy to make money with a blog. Also totally untrue. Anyone who tries to sell you a “secret” to making money fast is a scam artist. So let me add a caveat to my previous myth: you cannot get rich quick unless you are a scam artist, then you have a small chance. Not only will growing your blog take a lot of time but it will also require focus and energy. You will have to pay attention to it closely and perform many experiments. Then you have to find solutions for your problem areas, which require creativity, patience, and lots of trial and error.
- You can start your money making blog for free. Of course you can start a blog for free but if you want to make money, it will cost you. It’s an investment in yourself, after all. Your upfront costs are a domain name and hosting, usually less than $100 for the year combined. However, before your first year is up, logos, themes, email service, and advertising are among your other costs, which can add up real quick.
- There is a recipe for success. There are general road maps but there is no “system” that works for everyone; there are just too many variables. Even if you were to try to reproduce the niche, the strategy, the tactics, and the theme of a successful blogger, the timing isn’t the same. Futhermore, you don’t get to see what strings are being pulled from behind the curtain. Take the time to learn from experts, digest the information, and as Simon, Paula and Randy would tell you, “make it your own”.
- Once a blog is successful, it can be put on autopilot. The internet is organic. As a result, there is no autopilot button that would work well long-term. Let’s say you were able to create amazing success after a few months or a year, in order to continue that success you would have to keep up with trends, adapt to changes, grow existing relationships, create new relationships, rethink your strategies, fine-tune your tactics, continue to market your blog, perform regular SEO and tweak your ads. And did I mention that you still have to write fresh content?!?
Not exactly what some of you want to hear, is it?
There’s a bright side to it: I’m not trying to de-motivate potentially great bloggers, rather, save bloggers who wouldn’t make it anyway several months of their time.
So, if you still want to blog for money, go for it! Now you know what you’re up against.
Gabe Young is a business professional with
an entrepreneurial spirit. Gabe has an MBA and managed IT departments in the Fortune
500, creating strategies and tactics for some of the most popular websites. Visit
Gabe at Free Blog Help dot Com.
