ProBlogger

An update of one of the bestselling blogging books, written by
two of the world's most successful bloggers

There's a reason why the first two editions of this book have
sold thousands of copies worldwide. Written by two of the world's
most successful bloggers, it's one of the clearest books out there
on how to earn an income from your blog. This new edition gets you
up to date on the very latest changes that affect the
blogging-for-business landscape. Featuring new material on Twitter,
Facebook, and LinkedIn; plus new ways and tools to grow your
audience and expand your business beyond your blog, this
professional blogger's bible is better than ever.

• Helps novices choose a blog topic, analyze the market, set up a
  blog, promote it, and earn revenue

• Gives aspiring bloggers proven techniques and the tools they
  need to succeed in building a business from their blogs

• Reveals 20 key ingredients for a successful blog post

• Offers solid, step-by-step instruction on how bloggers actually
  make money, why niches matter, how to use essential blogging tools
  and take advantage of social media and content aggregators, how to
  optimize your advertising, and much more

• Includes techniques for attracting and growing an audience and
  how to mine new business opportunities beyond your blog

Written by two fulltime professional bloggers, this exciting,
updated edition of ProBlogger tells you exactly how to
launch and maintain a blog that makes money.

Auteur

Darren Rowse is the guy behind ProBlogger.net, a leading online information source for professional bloggers. He writes for various blogs and edits the popular Digital Photography School site (digital-photography-school.com). Chris Garrett is a writer, online business consultant, teacher, coach, new media industry commentator, and of course, professional blogger. He shares blogging advice at chrisg.com and contributes to numerous blogs.

Texte du rabat
Make blogging your business — and love what you do! You really CAN make a living as a blogger — if you're willing to commit the time and effort, and if you follow the advice in this book. Written by two leading authorities on creating and monetizing blogs, ProBlogger lays out the steps you need to follow to create a revenue-generating blog. Complete with exercises to help you put the advice into practice, this book offers a realistic, approachable look at what it really takes to turn blogging into a successful career. With this practical guide, you can

• Understand both direct and indirect earning methods
• Develop a successful earning strategy
• Write content that attracts and holds visitors
• Learn to market and promote your blogs
• Engage followers via Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn
• Study the secrets of more than a half-dozen successful blogs

Résumé
An update of one of the bestselling blogging books, written by two of the world's most successful bloggers There's a reason why the first two editions of this book have sold thousands of copies worldwide. Written by two of the world's most successful bloggers, it's one of the clearest books out there on how to earn an income from your blog. This new edition gets you up to date on the very latest changes that affect the blogging-for-business landscape. Featuring new material on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn; plus new ways and tools to grow your audience and expand your business beyond your blog, this professional blogger's bible is better than ever.

• Helps novices choose a blog topic, analyze the market, set up a blog, promote it, and earn revenue
• Gives aspiring bloggers proven techniques and the tools they need to succeed in building a business from their blogs
• Reveals 20 key ingredients for a successful blog post
• Offers solid, step-by-step instruction on how bloggers actually make money, why niches matter, how to use essential blogging tools and take advantage of social media and content aggregators, how to optimize your advertising, and much more
• Includes techniques for attracting and growing an audience and how to mine new business opportunities beyond your blog
  Written by two fulltime professional bloggers, this exciting, updated edition of ProBlogger tells you exactly how to launch and maintain a blog that makes money.

Contenu

Introduction xxi

1 Blogging for Money 1

What Is a Blog? 1

What Makes Blogs Different? 2

The Added Benefits of Blogging 3

Making Money with Blogs 4

An Introduction to Professional Blogging 4

How Much Could You Earn? 5

Pro Blogging Is Not a Get-Rich-Quick Tactic 5

Direct and Indirect Earning Methods 6

Passive and Active Income 9

Is Pro Blogging Right for You? 10

Which Monetization Method Is Right for You? 10

How to Make Blog Advertising Work for You 12

Blog Strategies 13

Multiple Blogs 13

Freelance Blogging 13

Building and Flipping 14

Measuring a Blog's Success 14

Traffic 15

Subscribers 17

Comments, Feedback, and Interaction 18

Links 20

Search-Engine Results 21

Summary 22

2 Niche Blogging 23

10 Reasons Why Niche Blogs Are Successful 24

How to Choose a Profitable Niche Topic for Your Blog 26

Are You Interested in the Topic? 27

Do You Have Experience or Expertise in the Topic? 27

Is the Topic Popular? 28

Is the Niche Growing or Shrinking? 29

What's the Competition? 30

What's the Competition Neglecting? 31

Will You Have Enough Content? 32

Is the Niche Able to Be Monetized? 34

How Wide Should a Niche Be? 35

Should You Try Niche Demographic or Niche Topic? 36

Gala Darling 36

TCGeeks 37

Sports Networker 38

Choosing a Niche 39

Tools for Helping You to Choose a Niche for Your Blog 40

Summary 42

3 Setting Up Your Blog 43

Choosing the Right Blog for You 43

Blog Platform Choices 44

Hosted versus Self-Hosted 48

Hosted or Self-HostedWhich to Choose? 53

Choosing a Domain Name 54

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Domain Name 54

Registering a Domain 57

Creating Your Blog 59

Four Steps to Setting Up a Hosted Blog at WordPress 59

Setting Up a Custom Standalone Blog Using One-Click-Install 61

Enhancing Your Blog 66

Adding a Contact Form to Your Custom WordPress Blog 67

Blog Design Considerations 69

A Word on Color 70

Customizing a Blog Template 71

Summary 72

4 Blog Writing 73

What Is Good Content? 73

Usefulness and Uniqueness 74

Writing Tips for Bloggers 76

Scannable Content 77

Using Titles Effectively on Blogs 79

How to Use Titles Successfully 80

Opening Lines Matter 83

Post LengthHow Long Should a Blog Post Be? 83

Post FrequencyHow Often Should a Blogger Post? 84

Keeping Posts Granular 86

20 Types of Blog Posts 89

10 Steps to Writing a Successful Series on Your Blog 93

Building an Interactive Blog by Encouraging Comments 96

Summary 98

5 Blog Income and Earning Strategies 99

Time to Make Money? 99

Factors to Consider 102

Monetizing Directly with Advertising 102

Ad Payment Types 105

Finding Advertisers 106

Preparing for Advertisers 106

Finding Advertisers 108

Approaching Advertisers 109

Taking Payments 110

How Much to Charge 110

Ad Formats 110

How Many Ads to Display 111

Optimizing Advertising 112

Other Direct Forms of Income 112

Affiliate Programs 113

Tips for Using Affiliate Programs on Your Blog 113

Donations 115

Classifieds 117

Merchandise 117

Subscriptions 118

Indirect Income-Earning Strategies 118

Freelance Blogging 118

Magazines and Books 121 Speak...